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001239 UNIVERSITY DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES THE CONFLICT BETWEEN NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL IDEAS IN THE KIBBUTZ MOVEMENT by Itzhak Kerstein Thesis presented to the Faculty of Social, Economic and Political Sciences of the University of Ottawa as partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. >*'< A Ulu^ Ottawa, Canada, 1967. •rJX ckj»- UNIVERS1TY OF OTTAWA - SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES UMI Number: DC53610 INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI® UMI Microform DC53610 Copyright 2011 by ProQuest LLC All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA - SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STU Dl ES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis was prepared under the guidance of Professor George Buzton, M.A., D.U.P. Gratitude for his valuable inter­ est and cooperation is hereby expressed. UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA - ECOLE DES GRADUES TABLE OP CONTENTS Page LIST OP TABLES iv INTRODUCTION v Chapter I. JEWS AND SOCIALISM 1 II. RELIGIOUS ZIONIST - SOCIALISM 2li III. SOCIALIST - ZIONISM IL3 IV. COOPERATIVE COLONIZATION IN PALESTINE 60 V. THE CONSOLIDATION OP THE KIBBUTZ MOVEMENT 87 VI. PROM AGRICULTURAL SETTLEMENTS TO POLITICAL C OMMUNITIES 10ii VTI. THE CHANGING IDEOLOGY OP THE KIBBUTZIM 127 VTII. CONFLICTS AND DILEMMAS 161 IX. THE SECOND GENERATION 187 X. THE FUTURE OP THE KIBBUTZ 213 BIBLIOGRAPHY 239 GLOSSARY 2I4.7 i^ UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES LIST OP TABLES Table Page 1. Loss and Gain in Degania and Merhavia 8ii 2. Origins of Jewish Immigrants by Continent of Birth 132 3. Party Response to the Intensity of Ideology .... 135 it. The Importance of Kibbutzim and Zionism in the State 136 5. Size of Kibbutz Based on Total Population l£2 6. Work Distribution in the Kibbutz 196 7. Work Preference 198 UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES INTRODUCTION Every individual by the mere fact of his existence is involved in a social conflict. It is man's desire for and drive towards human happiness and the social fact - the fact that people have always lived a social life, with institu­ tional restraints, that creates the conflict. One of the solutions to the above problem grew out of basic human aspirations and yearnings, especially the urge towards coop­ eration and mutual help which is deeply rooted in human nature and which consequently brought about the establishment of the commune. The emergence of communes is also anchored in man's wish for equality, and in his striving for a society based on justice. Following Rousseau's premise that property the source of inequality among men, is also the source of evil, socialism aimed to restore harmony and justice by eliminating that cause: property. Socialists strived continuously, some­ time joining in communes, social cells based upon complete freedom and equality and rejecting both exploiters and ex­ ploited. l-When discussing the commune - reference is made to the voluntary one and not to the one imposed upon the people. UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA - SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STU Dl ES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES INTRODUCTION vi But all this does not yet fully explain the growth of communes. Historical experience teaches that in most cases communes were founded in turbulent times of crisis and revo­ lution. This is easily explained: together with many advan­ tages, life in a oommune entails many limitations and re­ strictions, to which men are not easily reconciled. Excep­ tional circumstances, urgent needs and revolutionary changes in society are neoessary to shock men out of their routine and help them to overcome their doubts about collective life. The pressures and shocks which have produced collect­ ive social forms have been extremely varied. Primitive com­ munism, whether complete or fragmentary, sprang mainly from economic causes. In prehistoric times the obstacles to sur­ vival were overwhelming, while tools were primitive. Without communal life it was impossible to ensure the necessary means of subsistence. Hunting wild animals, clearing forests and other productive economic actions required cooperation. Social disturbances also lead to the organization of communes. It is no coincidence that the communal idea made headway during the peasant revolts of the Reformation, the French Revolution, and the many revolutions of the nineteenth century. These social upheavals raised tensions and caused ideological ferment, increased the consciousness of dissatis­ faction with existing social regimes, and encouraged the striving for new and juster forms of social life. The fight­ ers for new ideas often formed communes either because they UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA - SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STU Dl ES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA - ECOLE DES GRADUES INTRODUCTION vii wanted to show the masses an example of improved social life, or because they saw in the commune a framework of life suit­ able for people who were able to rise above personal inter­ ests and devote their lives wholly to one sacred idea, or because they were exposed to cruel persecutions and sought a haven of refuge within the collective. It is apparent that another motive which urges people to adopt collective forms of life is migration. The migrant is cut off from traditional and age-old forms of life. Dur­ ing the first period in a new country he faces unusual obsta­ cles and has to adjust himself to new social and cultural conditions. Sometimes he has difficulty in getting work. Therefore immigrants often form groups which are in greater ferment than the established local population. They are less bound by tradition and routine and more inclined to make ex­ periments. It is, therefore, not surprising that many immi­ grants have experimented with forms of collective life. Sometimes lack of security or the threat of physical extinction prompts people to choose collective life. It is obvious that a group can defend itself more easily than the isolated individual. This need of security was one of the reasons for the appearance of communal forms of life in the dawn of history, when man was engaged in fierce daily struggle with his natural environment, and also, with certain differences, during the period when new countries were being settled. UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES INTRODUCTION viii In our century communes appeared against a new and different background. In a number of countries today public movements or governmental authorities have established col­ lective settlements on a large scale as part of an all em­ bracing plan aimed at modernizing and developing the villages both economically and culturally. These programmes, executed on a vast scale in China, the U.S.S.R., India, Israel and other lands, are stimulated mainly by the knowledge that village collectives or producers' cooperatives can achieve development goals - both economic and cultural - more quickly and efficiently than the traditional smallholder. In the countries which have taken the road to socialist development the collectives also serve another more comprehensive goal: the organization of the village within a socialist framework, coupled with the elimination of the capitalist tradition which is embodied in the small farm. It is apparent, that among these many and varied motives is one common feature: mankind has never lost the vision of a society founded on solidarity and equality. By living in one or another social form, each one finds out to which social type he belongs, and which he needs in order to live as a socially happy Individual. This means that each one knows that in living as he does, he is not unjust toward his neighbor. This idea is found in the biblical terra "Love thy neighbor as thyself", which through the ages inspired people to organize into collective groups in order to lead UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA - SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STU Dl ES UNIVERSITE DOTTAWA ECOLE DES GRADUES INTRODUCTION ix mutually loving helpful lives of social justice. In ancient times the Essene communities attained fame in Palestine. Essene tradition had a strong influence on Christianity. Through Christianity it handed down its ideas to the communal movements during the Middle Ages and in pres­ ent times. In our century the Jewish pioneers in Israel laid the foundation for an important communal enterprise - the kibbutz. In both these cases - the Essenes and the kibbutz - the tension created by the crises which overtook the Jewish people played a major role. During the Second Temple period the Jews were a small people who tried to retain their inde­ pendence in the world-wide struggle between opposing powers. Palestine was located on the crossroads of three continents. Here the Roman Empire clashed with the crumbling Hellenistic civilization. The small, predominantly rural Jewish people tried to defend themselves against the inroads of alien cul­ tures. In this time of external danger and internal stress there arose extremist revolutionary forces. Among these were the Essenes, who laid the foundation of the commune. Against the background of the great national move­ ments of the nineteenth century, a national movement began to emerge among the Jewish people, particularly the Jews of Eastern Europe. Jewish pioneers went out to Palestine in order to build a new homeland for their people.

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