On Settler Colonialism
Ideology, Violence, and Justice
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Since Hamas's attack on Israel last October 7, the term "settler colonialism" has become central to public debate in the United States. A concept new to most Americans, but already established and influential in academic circles, settler colonialism is shaping the way many people think about the history of the United States, Israel and Palestine, and a host of political issues. This short book is the first to examine settler colonialism critically for a general readership. By critiquing the most important writers, texts, and ideas in the field, Adam Kirsch shows how the concept emerged in the context of North American and Australian history and how it is being applied to Israel. He examines the sources of its appeal, which, he argues, are spiritual as much as political; how it works to delegitimize nations; and why it has the potential to turn indignation at past injustices into a source of new injustices today. A compact and accessible introduction, rich with historical detail, the book will speak to readers interested in the Middle East, American history, and today's most urgent cultural-political debates.
About this Author
Adam Kirsch is the author of several books of poetry and criticism. A 2016 Guggenheim Fellow, Kirsch is an editor at the Wall Street Journal's Weekend Review section and has written for publications including The New Yorker and Tablet. He lives in New York.
Reviews
"[If] schools were to assign one book this academic year, I'd recommend Kirsch's."
"In his slender new book, On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice, [Kirsch] not only picks apart the argument that Israel is a settler colonial state but goes after the larger project of settler colonial studies -- often to devastating effect."
"Kirsch has written a succinct and subtle study... On Settler Colonialism is unashamedly and splendidly bellicose. After its judicious analysis of the phenomenon's roots, it wastes no time getting to the heart of the matter."
"Kirsch has a talent for zeroing in on grisly details... and for zooming out to capture panoramic views, which allows him to sharpen his observations and broaden them at the same time. And he possesses a journalist's knack for being up to date... It is a short book. It is pleasing to read. It has the sparkle of sharp intelligence."
"Adam Kirsch has written an outstanding and overdue frontal assault on the ideology of 'settler colonialism'... what he achieve[s] in dismantling the settler-colonial ideology is noteworthy."
"[Kirsch's] Excellent new book is a primer that can be absorbed in a single sitting."
"Adam Kirsch has penned a learned and eloquent evisceration of [settler colonialism]."
"A rigorous moral reckoning... [Kirsch] writes compellingly, laying out his argument with the care of a poet."
"Adam Kirsch has given us the most profound intellectual product to emerge from the October 7 massacre of Israelis by Hamas."
"Adam Kirsch sets out to examine the baggy concept of settler colonialism and discovers a stark, accusatory, and literally hopeless ideology. He then shows how the concept's conceits can flatten history into a remorseless saga of indigenous innocence, European depravity, and immutable guilt. His bracing book will stir up trouble of the very best kind."
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