Israel

What is this stark monolith and why does it mean so much to many Israeli's today? Why is it included in this particular unit about the reactions of cultures when treated harshly by their conquerors?

The ancient fortress of Masada has come to represent the defiance of the Israeli people.

The term "Masada complex" is sometimes applied critically to advocates of right-wing policies in the Israeli government. Political scientist Susan Hattis Rolef has defined this "complex" as "the conviction ... that it is preferable to fight to the end rather than to surrender and acquiesce to the loss of independent statehood."

http://www.us-israel.org/jsource/Judaism/masada.html

The quote about the "Masada complex" is found in Susan Hattis Rolef, ed., Political Dictionary of the State of Israel, p. 214.

This website was constructed by Joan E. Holmes especially for Dr. Lee A. Makela's World History class at Cleveland State University in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. It was built with the help of Microsoft's FrontPage in July of 2003, and was last updated on July 23, 2003.