This course is no longer offered

10239 Israeli Society: Patterns of Conflict and Consensus 1

Credits: 6 intermediate credits in Sociology and Anthropology

Prerequisites: none

Authors: Gad Barzilai, Amir Ben-Porat, Lev Grinberg, Dvora Hacohen, Yehiel Limor, Rachel Pasternak, Motti Regev, Zeev Shavit, Sammy Smooha, Ephraim Yuchtman-Yaar

Objectives: To develop an awareness of the complexity of Israeli society and an understanding of the major rifts within it, through an analysis of the foci of agreement and controversy regarding its collective (Jewish-Zionist) identity; To explore processes of change and continuity taking place in the social reality of Israel at the beginning of the 21st century, and to examine their development from a socio-historical perspective; To examine the foci of tension and agreement in the institutional and group structure of Israeli society; To provide the student with initial experience in the use of sociological methods of analysis studied in Introduction to Sociology (10134), in preparation for more in-depth and focused study of selected topics covered in advanced courses.

Topics: Zionist ideology and Yishuv society; Collective identity in the Yishuv; Arab-Jewish relations in Israel; Immigration and absorption; Inequality in Israeli society; Social and political economy; Political and legal culture in Israel; Introduction to Israeli culture; Education in Israel; Mass media in Israel; A multi-cleavage society; Change processes in the collective identity.


1The course has not been taught since Fall 2001.