Understanding Internal dynamics of Societies in Conflict: Collective Memories and Collective States of Denial: the Case of the Israeli-Palestine Conflict

Course Instructor:
Orli Fridman

This course will explore the concepts of collective memory and political denial and the role they play in the study of societies in conflict.  It will offer students an introduction to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, focusing on the dynamics of the societies involved while addressing some of the common misconceptions regarding this conflict.  The course will offer a comparative perspective of conflict studies, investigating the importance of analyzing the asymmetry of power and the role it plays in the present analysis of the conflict.  Through the lenses of research about memory and denial, the course will discuss issues such as competing historical narratives, dominant discourses and alternative voices in societies in conflict.  The course will examine these concepts and their relevance to the experiences and lives of the course participants and will seek to take the case studies of Israel-Palestine and/or the ex-Yugoslav Conflicts into a broader analysis of the study of internal dynamics of societies in conflict.