File spoon-archives/postcolonial.archive/postcolonial_2002/postcolonial.0203, message 126


Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2002 22:51:28 -0800 (PST)
From: Marwan Dalal <dmarwan-AT-yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: Sharon: in his own words



oz recent novel is, apparently, his biography. it
seems that oz is still searching and providing reasons
for the old and boring question "why jews came to
palestine?" the answer, not surprisingly, is continent
away: jewish suffering in europe. he writes of his
childhood in the kibutz, and laments on his
margenalization as an outsider, the jew of the exile,
as opposed to the dominant and powerful new jew in
palestine. it seems that even changing his name to
power (oz) did not help much. he also reflects on the
death of his mother. 

politically oz has chanted the israeli embassies
slogan from the beginning of the current
decolonization attempt in 1967 occupied palestine: the
palestinians rejected camp david. they are to blame.
and the ny times opened their pages for him to express
that view. 

as i mentioned before on this list, oz is far from
seeing the palestinian tragedy in 1948 (known today as
ethnic cleansing). also then the arabs are to blame.
they rejected the partition plan a year before and
lost a war that they started (the fact that this plan
granted 54% of palestine to 30% of the population in
it who actually owned 7% of the area seems to
consistintly skip the mind of oz.

oz will not use the language of sharon, certainly not
in america, although he once did in his short story
"navadim vetsefa" published in 1965. nevertheless, he
is far from being in the league of the intellectuals
celebrated on this list. he did not sign, for example,
the petition of israeli intellectuals supporting the
objecting reserves. oz wants peace now, and justice
later.

marwan  

p.s.: for the profs on this list who want to teach
cosmopolitan israeli writing i recommend, in addition
to yitzhak laor, the poet aharon shabtai. i also
suggest to try and release yourselves from twideldee
and twideldum of israeli prose: oz and a.b. yohushoau.





--- Lou Caton <lcaton-AT-wisdom.wsc.ma.edu> wrote:
> Ok, thanks Wolf.  this is surprising.  Oz gave an
> interview on PBS a few
> weeks ago, and he didn't give any indication that he
> was a Sharon
> supporter.  In fact, he made a point to say ethnic
> patrioticism was a
> sure way to continue the violence.  he was sort of
> making a pitch for
> his recent novel  titled The Same Sea. I think
> that's the title.
> Supposedly it transcends every social/political
> boundary there is.  I
> was actually thinking of using it for a class on
> cosmopolitanism.
> anyhow... more to chew on...
> 
> Lou
> 
> Wolf Factory wrote:
> 
> > C is Sharon.
> > No one is blaming Oz for Sharon's actions of
> course.
> > However, Oz has not been as critical of him as one
> > would have hoped. Rather, he has joined the chorus
> of
> > people laying the blame entirely on Arafat and
> > refusing to acknowledge the intifada for what it
> is, a
> > popular uprising in every sense.
> >
> > Also having conducted the interview and gained a
> > better understanding than most Israelis of what
> lurks
> > in the mind of Sharon, his silence on the current
> > crisis is reminiscent of the silence of certain
> German
> > intellectuals during the Nazi era.
> >
> > W.F.
> >
> > --- Lou Caton <lcaton-AT-wisdom.wsc.ma.edu> wrote:
> > > I'm a bit confused with the interview below. 
> Isn't
> > > Oz simply reporting
> > > on what Sharon is saying?  No one is suggesting
> that
> > > we criticize Oz for
> > > the violence and intolerance suggested by
> Sharon,
> > > are they?  And who is
> > > the "C" mentioned at the end of the interview?
> > >
> > > Lou Caton <lcaton-AT-wisdom.wsc.ma.edu>
> > >
> > > Wolf Factory wrote:
> > >
> > > > By Amos Oz (interview with Ariel Sharon
> published
> > > in
> > > > the Israeli daily Davar)
> > > > DEC 17, 1982
> > > >
> > > > "You can call me anything you like. Call me a
> > > monster
> > > > or a murderer. Just note that I don't hate
> Arabs.
> > > On
> > > > the contrary. Personally, I am much more at
> east
> > > with
> > > > them, and especially with the Bedouin, than
> with
> > > Jews.
> > > > Those Arabs we haven't yet spoilt are proud
> > > people,
> > > > they are irrational, cruel and generous. It's
> the
> > > Yids
> > > > that are all twisted. In order to straighten
> them
> > > out
> > > > you have to first bend them sharply the other
> way.
> > > > That, in brief, is my whole ideology.
> > > > "Call Israel by any name you like, call it a
> > > > Judeo-Nazi state as does Leibowitz. Why not?
> > > Better a
> > > > live Judeo-Nazi than a dead saint. I don't
> care
> > > > whether I am like Ghadafi. I am not after the
> > > > admiration of the gentiles. I don't need their
> > > love. I
> > > > don't need to be loved by jews like you
> either. I
> > > have
> > > > to live, and I intend to ensure that my
> children
> > > will
> > > > live as well. With or without the blessing of
> the
> > > Pope
> > > > and the other religious leaders from the New
> York
> > > > Times. I will destroy anyone who will raise a
> hand
> > > > against my children, I will destroy him and
> his
> > > > children, with or without our famous purity of
> > > arms. I
> > > > don't care if he is Christian, Muslim, Jewish
> or
> > > > pagan. History teaches us that he who won't
> kill
> > > will
> > > > be killed by others. That is an iron law.
> > > >
> > > > "Even if you'll prove to me by mathematical
> means
> > > that
> > > > the present war in Lebanon is a dirty immoral
> war,
> > > I
> > > > don't care. Moreover, even if you will prove
> to me
> > > > that we have not achieved and will not achieve
> any
> > > of
> > > > our aims in Lebanon, that we will neither
> create a
> > > > friendly regime in Lebanon nor destroy the
> Syrians
> > > or
> > > > even the PLO, even then I don't care. it was
> still
> > > > worth it. Even if Galilee is shelled again by
> > > > Katyushas in a year's time, I don't really
> care.
> > > We
> > > > shall start another war, kill and destroy more
> and
> > > > more, until they will have had enough. And do
> you
> > > know
> > > > why it is all worth it? Because it seems that
> this
> > > > war has made us more unpopular among the
> so-called
> > > > civilized world.
> > > >
> > > > "We'll hear no more of that nonsense about the
> > > unique
> > > > Jewish morality, the moral lessons of the
> > > holocaust or
> > > > about the Jews who were supposed to have
> emerged
> > > from
> > > > the gas chambers pure and virtuous. No more of
> > > that.
> > > > The destruction of Eyn Hilwe (and it's a pity
> we
> > > did
> > > > not wipe out that hornet's nest completely!),
> the
> > > > healthy bombardment of Beirut and that tiny
> > > massacre
> > > > (can you call 500 Arabs a massacre?) in their
> > > camps
> > > > which we should have committed with our own
> > > delicate
> > > > hands rather than let the Phalangists do it,
> all
> > > these
> > > > good deeds finally killed the bullshit talk
> about
> > > a
> > > > unique people and of being a light upon the
> > > nations.
> > > > No more uniqueness and no more sweetness and
> > > light.
> > > > Good riddance."
> > > >
> > > > "I personally don't want to be any better than
> > > > Khomeini or Brezhnev or Ghadafi or Assad or
> Mrs.
> > > > Thatcher, or even Harry Truman who killed half
> a
> > > > million Japanese with two fine bombs. I only
> want
> > > to
> > > > be smarter than they are, quicker and more
> > > efficient,
> > > > not better or more beautiful than they are.
> Tell
> > > me,
> > > > do the baddies of this world have a bad time?
> If
> > > > anyone tries to touch them, the evil men cut
> his
> > > hands
> > > > and legs off. They hunt and catch whatever
> they
> 
=== message truncated ==

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