Out of Orientalism

What is it about?

This essay makes a case for reorientation in the controversially discussed matter of how the relationship between Orientalism and Zionism is to be interpreted. This reorientation abandons the notion of convergence between both spheres, postulating instead that a tradition of downright resistance to Orientalism is inscribed in German literary Zionism. To exemplify the potential of this reorientation for new insights into both postcolonial and German-Jewish history, this essay discusses Theodor Herzl’s novel "The Old New Land" (1902), Felix Salten’s "Neue Menschen auf alter Erde" (1925), and Franz Kafka’s "Schakale und Araber" (1917).

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