The Pen and the Sword: Israel, Writing, Politics Jewish Quarterly 250

Description

Successive generations of Israeli writers have charted the hopes of peace and the pain of conflict. What does the nation's writing reveal about the challenges of today? The Pen and the Sword explores the efforts by multiple generations of Israeli writers to grapple with their nation's difficult political questions. In a probing essay, Israeli novelist Nir Baram examines the remarkable friendship between two giants of Israeli literature - Amos Oz and A.B. Yehoshua - whose lives, writing and passionate quarrels reflect their country's recent turbulent history and divides. And leading critic Arik Glasner surveys a younger generation of Israeli writers, whose disparate voices and stories provide a crucial glimpse into Israel today. The issue also includes an essay by Steven Nadler that provides new insights into the excommunication of Spinoza, an account by Irris Makler of the changing character of the Old City of Jerusalem, and more.

Jonathan Pearlman is the editor of Australian Foreign Affairs and the world editor of The Saturday Paper. He has been a foreign correspondent and a politics reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Straits Times and The Telegraph. He studied at the University of New South Wales and Oxford University.