Manar H . Makhoul

A study of every novel published by Palestinian citizens in Israel between 1948 and 2010
Presents a comprehensive study of all 75 novels published by Palestinian citizens in Israel over 62 years
Identifies the intellectual and ideological forces that drove major social and political transformations in the community over six decades
Develops different concepts relating to Palestinian life in Israel, socially and politically, and in relation to other Palestinians
Analyses the process of modernisation and the wide range of reactions to it among Palestinians in Israel
Explores the reactions of Palestinians in Israel to the peace process between Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization from the 1990s to 2000
This book uses the methodology of sociology and literary studies to come to terms with the reality of Palestinian citizens in Israel across several generations. It explores the evolution of Palestinian identity from one that struggled for independence and self-determination up to 1948, to one that now presses the call for civil rights and civic equality. What were the forces that shaped this transformation over six decades?

Traditional sociological research on this community focusses on the structural relationships between Israel and its Palestinian citizens. Primarily concerned with the political discourse and activism of this community, it mostly makes use of party agendas, voting patterns and opinion polls as primary indicators. In contrast, this book focuses on the Palestinian voice, through an analysis of the 75 novels published by Palestinian citizens in Israel from 1948 to 2010. Paying attention to processes that are internal to this community, the author identifies the intellectual and ideological forces that drove major social and political transformations in this community over this period.

إن محور الاهتمام الرئيسي لهذه الدراسة هو البحث في عمليتي التغير والتحول اللتين شهدهما الخطاب الوطني الفلسطيني منذ سنة 1948 حتى السنوات الأخيرة (الإطار الزمني لهذه الدراسة هو 1948-2010) كما تجلتا في الأعمال الأدبية، ولا سيما في الروايات، وذلك في محاولة لفهمهما. بعبارة أُخرى: إن هذا الكتاب محاولة لفهم القوى الأساسية التي طورت خطاب الفلسطينيين، من خطاب تحرري استقلالي إلى خطاب مدني في سياق المواطنة الإسرائيلية. ولا يوفر علم الاجتماع المتعلق بالفلسطينيين المواطنين في إسرائيل فهماً كافياً فيما يتعلق بالتحولات الداخلية للمجتمع الفلسطيني، لأنه يركز في مجمله (في العقود الأخيرة تحديداً) على بنيوية العلاقة بين إسرائيل والمواطنين الفلسطينيين. فدراسة بنية هذه العلاقة تطلعنا على طبيعة إسرائيل أكثر مما تطلعنا على الهوية الفلسطينية والتحولات التي طرأت عليها. لذا نحن بحاجة إلى مؤشر داخلي، أو إلى نظرة من الداخل، فيما خص دراسة المجتمع الفلسطيني. وتأتي هذه الدراسة لتشكل خطوة في اتجاه ملء هذا الفراغ، ذلك بأنها ستتعامل مع الهوية الفلسطينية من وجهة نظر فلسطينية. ويشكل التحليل الأدبي وسيلة ناجعة لتحقيق هذا الهدف، لأنه يمكننا من الكشف عن جوانب في الهوية الوطنية والتطلعات التي يصعب الوصول إليها من خلال أساليب أو مناهج بحثية أُخرى. وبكلمات أُخرى: تأخذ هذه الدراسة بعين الاعتبار العلاقات المعقدة والترابط بين مجمل التحولات الاجتماعية والسياسية والاقتصادية والثقافية في السلوك البشري، وبالتالي في تشكيل الهوية.

זה לא סוד שלכולנו יש סודות. סוד יכול להכביד על מי שנושא אותו, וחשיפה או שיתוף של סוד יכולים להביא לתחושת הקלה. אבל יש סודות שחשיפתם מכבידה, מסוכנת ואפילו לא חוקית. סודות נמצאים בכל תחומי החיים, החל במתכון הסודי של סבתא, הסוד המקצועי של אמא או סודות משפחתיים, עבור בסודות הטבע או סוד ההצלחה של מישהו, וכלה באגודות סתרים וסודות מדינה. סודות אישיים יכולים להיות מחלות נפש, בגידה במשפחה, ילדים מחוץ לנישואין, פשע כמו צבירת הון באופן לא חוקי או רצח. מצד שני, סוד יכול להיות פיתוח של טכנולוגיה או מוצר חדש שמעניק יתרון במסחר או בביטחון.
עדיין, קשה להגדיר מהו סוד, והקושי להגדיר אותו טמון בעובדה שכל דבר יכול להיות סוד. מאמר זה מבקש לחשוב על המושג “סוד” ועל השלכותיו הפוליטיות דרך דיון באופסימיסט של אמיל חביבי. הדיון במאמר הזה מתמקד בשלושה ממדים מרכזיים: הסוד (כלומר התוכן), הסודיות (כלומר הכלי או הדרך לשמירת הסוד), וביטוייה של זהות כפולה.

Animals in the 1948 War carry secrets hidden in plain sight. In this essay we employ a shift that is related to ecocriticism and animal studies to examine stories of the 1948 War, seeking the language and imaginings of, and about, animals of Palestine for untold aspects of its story. We ask how the depiction of animals in Palestinian and Israeli literatures helps us understand other dimensions of space, life, and death in Palestine/Israel and their narratives of 1948. Reading in works by S. Yizhar, Emile Habiby, and Anton Shammas, it appears animals hold a humanistic message for all living things, a message that continues to be passed on from generation to generation, even if only in whispers.

For some, the 1967 war meant a setback to grand Arab projects; but the Palestinians understood the war in physical and epistemic terms. This is because the war made it clear to them that Israel and Zionism are capable of physically erasing Palestine as well as its history. The Palestinian existential fear of epistemic erasure (athazagoraphobia), following the complete occupation of their land, has produced works that affirm epistemic presence through the assertion of history and ownership. Athazagoraphobia refers to an existential human fear of death both physically and memorially––namely, human continuity. As a result, Palestinian discourse, responding to athazagoraphobia, centers around questions of origins, genealogy, and beginnings. Moreover, Palestinian reaction to athazagoraphobia opens up a discussion about the impact of this reaction on larger intellectual projects that deal with universal themes. Consequently, this article offers additional insights into the relationship between the 1948 and 1967 wars.

Although Palestinian citizens of Israel remained in their homeland, this community has undergone massive transformations in almost all aspects of life. The 1948 War, during which Israel was created, was a catastrophe (Nakba) for the Palestinians. Some 750,000 Palestinians were displaced during this war, which erupted in November 1947, and became refugees. A group of 156,000 Palestinians remained to become citizens in Israel. How did the Palestinian citizens of Israel adapt to their new status as a minority, numerical and political, and to the subsequent social and political reality? To answer this question, in this article I will analyze the first Palestinian novel to be published in Israel after the 1948 War. Mudhakkarāt lājiʾ aw Ḥayfā fī al-maʿraka (A Refugee’s Memoirs or Haifa in the Battle, 1958), by Tawfīq Muʿammar. This novel registers some aspects of the initial transformation in Palestinian discourse, as well as the considerations that underlie them. This article will focus on the political motivations as well as the inhibitions
that surround the publishing of this novel.

This article examines Palestinian identity transformation in Israel during the years between 1967 and 1987. Fifteen Palestinian novels and autobiographies were published in Israel during this period. My article will focus on a group of five from among them that I call counteraction novels. Counteraction novels show the failure of the Zionist modernist paradigm—according to which modernization and integration of Palestinians in Israel are complementary processes—by reflecting a Palestinian distinction between modernism and Zionism. On the one hand, the novels reflect that Palestinians in Israel are grappling with issues posed to them by modernization. On the other hand, counteraction novels present a uniform rejection of Zionism’s erasure and alienation of Palestinians in Israel. I also argue that counteraction novels do not portray a “positive” Palestinian identity; they do not voice what Palestinian identity is.