The Israelis: Founders and Sons

by Amos Elon

Israel was built on dreams and strivings, on humanistic principles and hard labour. What was conceived as a country of peace and dignity, however, has emerged as a society of contradictions, ethnic tensions, clashes between the religious and the secular - a society buffeted by extreme changes in both national and international politics. The ideals of the founders have floundered in the reality of wars and violence. In this dramatic, fair-minded portrait of Israel, first published in 1971, Amos Elon places the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East in brilliant historic perspective. In illuminating the political and philosophical background of the State of Israel, he offers rare insight into the rise to power of Menachem Begin and the complications of the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty, and he shows how Zionism, ironically, led to the development of its bitterest enemy, the Palestinian nationalist movement.

Genres: History, Israel, Nonfiction, Middle East, Jewish

359 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

Amos Elon was an Israeli journalist and author.

Reviews

[Harry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amos Elon has written an important, sensitive, critical and mostly-balanced book on Israel with much material that I have not encountered elsewhere. The book is divided in two sections: 1) Founders - the early history of the founding of the State and its original (socialist) ideology and 2) Sons - the psyche of its citizens (as of 1971). Although after almost 50 years, the Sons portion is very dated, the book still provides important insights.
That being said, I take exception to certain aspects of the book. Elon hardly mentions any religious imperative to return to Israel or the contribution of Sephardic Jews. According to the book, one would think that the State only came about through the efforts of Jewish socialists from Russia and Eastern Europe who were looking to escape pogroms and other atrocities and build a Utopian society. This gives ammunition to the Palestinian narrative that they have been displaced only as a result of crimes committed against Jews in Europe.
Secondly there is way too much guilt and hand-wringing over winning the Six Days War and the territories that came with it. Despite the stated goal of five Arab armies of wanting to push the Jews into the sea, Elon only presents the moral anguish of Israelis having conquered another people. Yet there were many others, including the disciples of Rav Zvi Yehuda Kook and Gush Emmunim, who felt that this was a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy. Based on its socialist beginnings, Israelis and the Labor Party were primarily left leaning. This started to change with the election of Menachem Begin in 1977. After years of terrorism and Arab (as well as Israeli government) intransigence, most Israelis have become more realistic, hard-bitten and have moved to the center or right. This was borne out by the recent past three inconclusive elections where the public was split between centrist Gantz and right-wing Netanyahu. The Labor Party only managed to gather three (out of 120) seats. Today Elon's left-wing positions are primarily held only by some university professors and other intellectuals. Citing his disillusionment with the direction of Israeli society, Elon moved from Israel to Italy toward the end of his life.
Finally I find the cover by Neil Stuart totally misconceived. It depicts an elderly Haredi Jew fervently praying at the Western Wall. Religion is only mentioned in the last chapter, and only then negatively. It was as if the publisher wanted to slap a generic "Jewish" picture on the cover. The back cover says Elon "offers rare insight into the rise to power of Menachem Begin and the complications of Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty." These topics are only briefly mentioned in the forward to new edition written ten years after the book was first published. Did Stuart even read the book, and did Elon approve of this cover?
In this forward, which I only read after I finished the book, Elon stared his intention: "This is not a history of Zionism, nor a biography of its main figures. It is a polemic." I wish I knew this before I picked up the book.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elon’s portrait of Israel is unsparing. Published 50 years ago, his book nods to almost every criticism of Israel you’ve heard in the past month. Yet Elon never mistakes criticism for a justification of annihilation. The first half of the book, a skeptical account of the country’s founders, thoroughly details their failures and achievements. The second, a look at the Israeli psyche after 1967, is a tour de force of national insight. In the end, Elon, better than any apologist, explains why Israel had to exist and why it will endure.

[Jeffrey Spitz Cohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amos Elon might have written the "The Israelis: Founders and Sons," almost 40 years ago, but the majority of his observations and insights are still highly relevant today.

He didn't set out to write the definitive historical account of Zionism, but if he set out to write the definitive intellectual treatment of Zionist history, he succeeded. This book is a classic for good reason.

One of the most interesting threads that weaves through the book is the notion that the Arabs inadvertently helped facilitate the Zionist project. Elon reminds us that the Arabs repeatedly rejected compromises that, if accepted, would have resulted in a much smaller Israeli state.

But the fact that lamentations written in 1971 sound as if they were written now speaks to the persistence of Israel's problems.

Tell me this doesn't sound like an analysis of the recently reinitiated peace talks:

"It is easier to evaluate the injustice suffered by the Arabs than it is to devise means of correction that would not only be acceptable to Arabs but would also preclude an even greater human tragedy."

This book richly deserves another printing.

[Andy Oram · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a huge amount from this classic even though enormous transformations have taken place in the one or two generations since it was written. The bulk of the book (in emotional weight and perhaps in page count) concerns the early immigrants and events leading up to the founding of the state. Although the book gives short shrift to the experiences of Arabs after the founding of the state and to the non-Ashkenazic immigrants, it has plenty to compensate, looking at technical, social, spiritual, and political trends that have defined the country.

[Sarah Weiner · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first half of the book is a very good look at the early history of modern Israel. The second half describes the author's opinion of Israel "now", only "now" was nearly 50 years ago. I recommend reading just the first half. The second half may be useful if you're doing research on opinions of Israel between the 1967 and Yom Kippur wars, but it's not necessary for the modern reader.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written history of the development of political Zionism, the first waves of Zionist settlement in Palestine, the founding of Israel, leading up to the 1967 war.

[Catherine Schneider]

Rachel Biale suggested.

[PSLB · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned much about the establishment of Israel, who came and from where, when they arrived and when and where land purchased and sites established.

[Robert]

currently re-reading this book in advance of my upcoming trip to Israel

[Arlian Sorkal · Rating 2 out of 5]

the second section is dated, not relevant today. it expresses the society as it was apprehended in the 70s.

[F · Rating 2 out of 5]

the second section is dated, not relevant today. it expresses the society as it was apprehended in the 70s.