Draft:The World After Gaza:A History
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| Author | Pankaj Mishra |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Israel & Palestine History, Middle Eastern Politics, |
| Publisher | Penguin Press |
Publication date | February 2025 |
| Publication place | India |
| Pages | 304 |
| ISBN | 979-8217058891 |
The World After Gaza:A History written by Pankaj Mishra in February 2025, explores themes of Zionism, the Shoah, antisemitism, philosemitism, and The work is personal, historical, philosophical, and revolutionary.[1][2]
"The World After Gaza" is a novel that presents striking portrayals of men and women who strive, and occasionally falter, in their efforts to protest the injustices of their era. The book serves as a cautionary tale against complicity in this trend and highlights the peril of undermining the existing world order.[1]
He writes about the October 7 attack: "With this attack, Hamas challenged Israel's ongoing vulnerability."[3]When Mishra wrote this book, a ceasefire had not yet been established between Hamas and Israel.[4]
Mishra's works include "The Age of Wrath: A Modern History," "From the Ruins of Empire: The Intellectuals Who Remade Asia," as well as several other nonfiction and fiction titles. He contributes to The Guardian and the New York Review of Books, among other publications.[5]
Motivation
[edit]Misha articulates his motivation for writing the book as a means to liberate himself from confusion and avert a moral collapse. His assertions regarding the West's role in the establishment of Israel are audacious. In this work, Misha examines history through the lenses of race and decolonization.[3]
Indian nationalism was shaped by the belief that Gandhi and Nehru had witnessed the atrocities of countless Hindus, who were victims of violence and sexual assault perpetrated by British-backed Muslim separatists. However, the works of literature, writers, and playwrights critical of nationalism had clouded this perception in his mind until he visited the West Bank in 2008. There, he observed the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli military control. “Their tormentors were former victims of the West,” he writes, highlighting the deep-seated racial tensions he encountered. The author hailed from a land that had experienced colonization. He noted that the Palestinians, as he expressed, were “people like me, now enduring the nightmares that my ancestors had left behind.” Upon returning home, he felt “awake and resentful.”[4]
Content
[edit]Mishra was captivated by Israeli heroes during his childhood and even had a picture of Moshe Dayan, the Israeli defense minister, hanging on his wall. In 2008, he visited Israel and the West Bank, where he observed the plight of the residents. He characterizes Israel's actions as barbaric and is taken aback by the suffering endured by Palestinians in their own homeland. Mishra draws parallels between the experiences of Palestinians and Indians, noting that Indians fought against Western and white supremacist rule to achieve their freedom many years ago. He believes that Palestinians are now embarking on a similar journey.[3][4]
He contends that the extermination and imprisonment of Asians and Africans stem from the perpetuation of a global racial hierarchy maintained by Western powers. Mishra argues that the Eichmann trial in 1961 framed the Holocaust as a political issue related to Zionism, positioning Israel as the sole institution capable of ensuring the security of Jews. Consequently, Israel portrayed Arabs as accomplices in this genocide. This narrative has led to the normalization of Israel's persecution of Palestinians, allowing it to occur with impunity. He asserts that people worldwide accuse Israel of being a colonial, ruthless, settler, and Jewish supremacist regime, which is supported by both Western liberals and extremists.[3][6]
He wrote this book to address two questions:How could Israel wield such devastating power to drive a population seeking refuge in its own land to the brink of death? Furthermore, how can the Western media overlook or justify this cruelty and injustice?[1] The World After Gaza addresses several other critical questions, including, did Israel become what it is today? This is the question Mishra posed to himself in 2008. In reality, Israel represents more than just a regime intent on annexing Palestine. Mishra explores the intellectual framework underlying this endeavor, the strategies employed to construct a narrative, and the intertwining of the widespread suffering from the Shoah to legitimize the existence of the Israeli state, alongside the systematic suppression of any opposition to it.[1]
Mishra describes a father holding the headless body of his son in Rafah. Even witnessing this from a distance, he notes, has inflicted “psychological suffering” on millions who have become “involuntary witnesses” to acts of “political evil.” He enumerates the denial of access to food and medicine, the use of hot metal rods to torture naked prisoners, and the destruction of schools, universities, museums, churches, mosques, and even cemeteries, among other acts of violence perpetrated by Israel.[1][4]
Shoah
[edit]Despite the restrictions on freedom of expression and regulations regarding anti-Semitism, Mishra emphasizes the importance of the Shoah in recent decades. If people acknowledge this, they will do everything in their power to combat anti-Semitism. This struggle serves as a benchmark for civilization in the West. While discussing Zionist ideology, Mishra highlights the influence of intellectuals and writers from the 20th and 21st centuries in the context of the Gaza genocide. He reminds readers of the extent to which our psyches have been saturated with violence during the events of the October 7 war.[1][7]
Mishra introduces us to the early emergence of Zionist thought and its entanglement with European ethno-nationalist motives, arguing that this connection contributed to the rise of anti-Semitism. The promotion of ideological justifications for political and financial support hindered Zionism from becoming a significant political force in Israel.[1]
Criticism
[edit]The book's strengths and weaknesses lie in its style. The World After Gaza is not a work centered on a single argument, nor is it solely composed of historical facts and analytical insights. Instead, it guides the reader through the waves of history, from the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943 to the attacks of October 7, 2023, and from the racist crimes of the West to the Israeli apartheid regime, featuring numerous quotes from Holocaust survivors, philosophers, critics, historians, and politicians. It resembles a stream-of-consciousness nonfiction novel. However, amidst the abundance of references and quotations, the main argument occasionally becomes obscured. Misha, known for his argumentative and structured essays, including his critiques of Niall Ferguson and Jordan Peterson, seems to lack his usual moral impact in this book. Furthermore, The World After Gaza offers very little insight into the world after Gaza; it is predominantly focused on the world before Gaza. Nevertheless, it remains a compelling examination of the moral failings of a violent past and present.[6]
See Also
[edit]Reference
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g "The World After Gaza—a Review". the markaz. 28 February 2025.
- ^ Foer, Franklin (26 February 2025). "The Dangers of Philo-Semitism". the atlantic.
- ^ a b c d English, Charlie (8 February 2025). "The World After Gaza by Pankaj Mishra review – legacies of violence". the guardian.
- ^ a b c d Pankaj, Mishra (9 February 2025). "The world of GAza by Mishra". The New York Times.
- ^ ""The World After Gaza": Author Pankaj Mishra on Gaza & the Return of 19th-C. "Rapacious Imperialism"". democracynow.
- ^ a b Johny, Stanly (14 March 2025). "Moral breakdown: review of Pankaj Mishra's The World After Gaza". the hindu.
- ^ Donoghue, Steve (2 March 2025). "The World After Gaza by Pankaj Mishra". openlettersreview.