Walter Benjamin's political phenomenology of fascism -- Albert Camus and the warning of the Nihilist temptation -- Ernst Jünger: it is not what we are fighting for, but how we fight -- Carl Schmitt's community: friends against enemies -- Nietzsche and Heidegger: from Nihilism to community of experience -- The Fascist Order.
Prologue : the Promethean passion of modernity -- Fom Rousseau to Tocqueville : Janus face of modernity -- 1848 : "We are sitting on a volcano" -- From Marx to Lenin : a red future -- Anarchism, nihilism, racism -- Foucault and beyond -- Epilogue : the end of modernity?
The ambivalent & eclectic views of French intellectual Georges Sorel (1847-1922) are examined. Sorel supported both extremes of fascism & communism, & influenced thinkers in both camps. Rather than reporting history's progression through dialectic, Sorel sought to undermine the political status quo. He supported the renewal of myths in history, & invented a modern myth for the decaying Europe, clearly distinct from utopian ideology. Sorel's political philosophy drew on the ideas of such thinkers as Pierre-Joseph Proudhon & Friedrich Nietzsche. In his view, producers' morality was marked by authenticity & the beginning of a new heroic era, whereas consumers' morality was marked by decadence & the dying legacy of the Enlightenment. Sorel's thought has been described as a Nietzschean form of Marxism; his departures from orthodox Marxist theory are detailed. Violence in the general strike, revolutionary syndicalism, & violent revolution were incorporated into the Sorelian philosophy of history. J. Sadler
Modernity, modernism, and modernization in Zionism -- Martin Buber, Gershom Scholem, and the nationalization of Jewish myth -- Zionism and the modernization of messianism -- "Canaanism" between Zionism and post-Zionism
Abdul Hadi, Mahdi: Introduction. - S. 1-2. Avineri, Shlomo: Origins of political concepts and the Zionist movement (pre-1948). - S. 3-6. Segev, Tom: Jews and Arabs under the British mandate. - S. 7-11. Lissak, Moshe: The creation of Israel, the War of 1948 and early institution-building. - S. 12-14. Chazan, Naomi: The political system in Israel. Government, Knesset and lawmaking. - S. 15-18. Neuberger, Benyamin: Social cleavages and political parties. - S. 19-22. Rivlin, Paul: Economic growth in Israel, 1948-2000. - S. 23-27. Peri, Yoram: The military and security establishment. - S. 28-33. Davis, Uri: The Histadrut: continuity and change. - S. 34-41. Rosen, David: Israeli society and religion. Ethnic groups, identity and nationalism. - S. 42-47. Ohana, David: Israel and the Mediterranean option. - S. 48-53. Zeedani, Said: Palestinians in Israel. Integration, autonomy or secession. - S. 54-56. Avital, Colette: The Israeli lobby and US-Israeli relations. - S. 57-62. Aronson, Shlomo: Israel's international relations. The US, Europe and international organizations. - S. 63-67. Susser, Asher: Israeli politics. From the Intifada to the peace process. - S. 68-71. Maoz, Moshe: Israel and the Middle East peace process. - S. 72-75. Kimche, David: Israel's future in the region. Conflict or cooperation? - S. 76-80