The Tombstone in Israel’s Military Cemetery since 1948: Israel’s Transition from Collectivism to Individualism

The Tombstone in Israel’s Military Cemetery since 1948: Israel’s Transition from Collectivism to Individualism
ISBN-10
3110309114
ISBN-13
9783110309119
Category
History
Pages
437
Language
English
Published
2014-06-18
Publisher
Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
Author
Yossi Katz

Description

Military cemeteries are one of the most prominent cultural landscapes of Israel. Their story reflects largely the main social processes that Israeli society has been undergoing since the War of Independence (1948)until today. Until the end of the 1970s, the military tombstones and their surroundings were uniform and equal, according to rules set by the State. However, since the 1980s families of the fallen soldiers started to add on the tombstone personal expressions, as well as personal objects, photographs, military artifacts etc. Thus the military tombstone and the Israeli military cemetery became one of the expressions of the dramatic transformation, from a society which emphasized the importance of the collective, to a society which intensifies the significance of the individual. The book is based on many archival documents, as well as interviews and photographs, all of which shed light on one of the most sensitive issues in Israeli society and express its importance as a central component of Israeli identity.

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