The Zionist Ideology - (Tauber Institute Series for the Study of European Jewry) by Gideon Shimoni (Paperback)

About the Book

The definitive study of the origins and evolution of Jewish nationalist ideology.

Book Synopsis

Winner of the Arnold Wiznitzer Prize, Hebrew University. This superb and highly nuanced study traces the development and ramifications of the ideology of Zionism from its roots in Europe to its full flowering in the establishment of the State of Israel. Gideon Shimoni begins by outlining the social origins of Zionism, including its debt to European nationalism and its subsequent emergence in the 1880s, precipitated by the pogroms in the Russian Empire. He then describes the various streams of Zionist thought, and concludes by examining both Zionism's connection with a secular Jewish identity and the nature of the Jewish claim to Eretz Israel. Throughout this comprehensive survey, Shimoni illuminates Zionism's common thread: the underlying axiom "that the Jews are a single, distinctive, entity possessing national, not just religious, attributes."

From the Back Cover

This superb and highly nuanced study traces the development and ramifications of the ideology of Zionism from its roots in Europe to its full flowering in the establishment of the State of Israel. Gideon Shimoni begins by carefully outlining the social origins of Zionism, including its debt to European nationalism and its subsequent emergence in the 1880s, precipitated by the pogroms in the Russian Empire. He then describes the various streams of Zionist thought and how they were transmogrified by events and individuals, and concludes by examining both Zionism's connection with a secular Jewish identity and the nature of the Jewish claim to Eretz Israel. Throughout this comprehensive survey of the interplay of historical events, ideas, and personalities, Shimoni finds and follows Zionism's common thread: the underlying axiom "that the Jews are a single, distinctive, entity possessing national, not just religious, attributes".

Review Quotes

"An outstanding study . . . Comprehensive in the breadth and depth of its analysis and exemplary in its methodology, this book takes its place with other seminal studies of Zionism."-- "Library Journal"

"Offers the most complete and detailed study to date of the history of Zionist ideology, from its roots through the establishment of the state of Israel . . . Indispensable for students of Zionism and modern Jewish identity and of great interest as well to anyone interested in the emergence of the European nationalisms of the late 19th and early 20th centuries."-- "Choice"

"Shimoni writes about Zionist ideology like no one else before him . . . Not only does he succeed in conveying the main points and putting them in proper analytical context, but amazingly enough, it all sounds quite fascinating."-- "Ha'aretz"

"This intelligent book places the development of Zionist ideology in a sensible comparative framework, highlighting its distinctive features without making it seem unlike all other forms of nationalism . . . Once Zionism took hold, it developed along several different paths, each expertly described in this carefully researched and well-written book."-- "Foreign Affairs"

About the Author

GIDEON SHIMONI holds the Shlomo Argov Chair in Israel-Diaspora Relations at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he is Associate Professor in the Department of Contemporary Jewry. His books in English and Hebrew on Zionism include Jews and Zionism: The South African Experience, 1910-1967 (1980).