Traditional Narratives of Israeli and Palestinian History

Traditional Narratives of Israeli and Palestinian History

This important article by Paul Scham provides a concise side-by-side chart comparing the traditional Israeli and Palestinian narratives from the birth of the modern Zionist movement in 1882 through the War of Independence in 1949. Scham briefly summarizes how each side relates to key historical events and movements, including the legitimacy of the Zionist movement, the role of the British, the identity of the Palestinians, and the establishment of the State of Israel. A useful resource when exploring the roots of this conflict, this article was shared on Jewish Virtual Library. Paul Scham is executive director of the Gildenhorn Institute for Israel Studies at the University of Maryland and co-editor of Shared Histories (2006), which explores the role of Israeli and Palestinian historical narratives in the conflict.