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Architects of a Jewish Nation: a Historical Reading of Dominique

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Architects of a Jewish Nation: a Historical Reading of Dominique Journal of Xi'an University of Architecture & Technology ISSN No : 1006-7930 Architects of a Jewish Nation: A Historical Reading of Dominique Lapierre’s A Thousand Suns J. Sreethi Krishna, Dr. N. U.Lekshmi, Research Scholar Part-time Internal, Assistant Professor and Research Guide, Reg. No. 19223184012004 Department of English, Sree Ayyappa College for Women, Sree Ayyappa College for Women, Chunkankadai, Chunkankadai. Affiliated to Affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Abishekapatti, Tirunelveli. Abishekapatti, Tirunelveli. Abstract Texts have universal significance. The French author Dominique Lapierre’s works are closely linked to the American, Isreal and Indian history, politics, ideology, and culture. A Thousand Suns by Dominique Lapierre chronicled some of the great historical moments with personalities from all walks of life in a very extraordinary way. These historical moments and encounters are analysed in the light of new historicism. In the book, Lapierre explored the birth of the Jewish nation of Israel, through the eyes of its heroes like Ehud Avriel, David Ben-Gurion and Golda Meir whose destinies have been world news. He shared the stirring encounters with David Ben-Gurion in his kibbutz in the Neguev, and Prime Minister Golda Meir in her two- roomed flat in Jerusalem. He narrated how Golda Meir saved the future state of Israel by collecting more than fifty million dollars in a few weeks of a passionate trip throughout the United States. He also shared the story of a relatively unknown Israeli named Ehud Avriel, who revealed how he had been able to snatch tens of thousands of Jews from Eichmann’s death camps and saved Israel by buying arms and ammunitions from Czechoslovakia which permitted the Jews to survive the onslaught of five Arab armies in the spring of 1948. The paper attempts a new historical reading of several adventures in A Volume XII, Issue IV, 2020 Page No: 4221 Journal of Xi'an University of Architecture & Technology ISSN No : 1006-7930 Thousand Suns by unfolding some of the extraordinary episodes of the architects of the Jewish nation. Keywords: Crusades, Jerusalem, Israel, and history New historicism is the representative historiography of significant historical events – of events joined together by a narrative formation. Literature is simply a medium for the expression of historical knowledge. It is an active part of a particular historical moment. The French author Dominique Lapierre’s works are more or less like a collage of historical snapshots. Regarding Lapierre, it is not the literary text that has integrated history, but history in its turn has become the literary text. Dominique Lapierre in A Thousand Suns talks about his visit to Jerusalem. He refers to Jerusalem as The Queen of cities, Capital of Abraham, David, and Solomon. The city is also the place where Jesus was born so it is important for Christianity and being formerly a part of the Ottoman Empire it is also significant for the Arab Muslims. It is also the city for whose control Christians, Muslims, and Jews have been fighting each other for centuries and for which several crusades have been fought by great warriors like Godfrey de Bouilon, Richard the Lion Heart, Saladin and so on. Lapierre remembers the great sacrifices that have been inflicted upon the city in the name of God during the course of its long history. During the journey from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, Lapierre sees the evidence of the city’s violent past first hand. He sees wrecks of dozens of burnt out trucks some decorated with flowers, inscriptions in Hebrew and commemorative plaques. Upon questioning his driver, Lapierre comes to know that these were the result of an event which took place in the spring of 1948 just weeks prior to the birth of the state of Israel. Jerusalem was besieged by Palestinian Arab leader Abd el-Kader el_Husseini. David Ben Gurion, the then Leader of the Jewish community in Palestine and the first Prime Minister of the future Israel State had sent a convoy of three hundred trucks driven by immigrants who had just arrived from Europe to help the Jewish inhabitants inside the city who were on the Volume XII, Issue IV, 2020 Page No: 4222 Journal of Xi'an University of Architecture & Technology ISSN No : 1006-7930 verge of surrendering. The Arab troops ambushed the convoys massacring the drivers, burning and pillaging the vital supplies they were carrying. Not even an ounce of food or pint of water had reached the inhabitants of the city. The remains that littered the roadside serve as a stark reminder of the terrible days when the future Jewish state was nearly wiped out before it had even come into existence. New historicism pays attention to whether the events derive historical significance or not. In A Thousand Suns, Lapierre’s description of Ehud Avriel is historically more important. Lapierre met Ehud Avriel the protagonist at a party hosted by the Israeli couple Miles and Guita Sherover. He was also introduced to other top Israeli leaders like Vivian Herzog, Ezer Weizman, Moshe Dayan and Yigael Yadin. Ehud Avriel, although unknown to Israeli public at that time was one of the founding fathers of the state. He was the Israeli ambassador to Rome.This was an official posting that was the pretext for two other epic tasks crucial to the birth and survival of the Jewish state -Clandestine mass immigration of European Jews to Israel and procuring the First arms that would save the country. Ehud was of Austrian Descent. He was born in an old merchant family in the city of Vienna. He was an aspiring lawyer, But deep down in his heart he wanted to build a future far away from Vienna. He had been actively involved with a Zionist organization that ran agricultural schools in Austria where young Austrian Jews were being taught how to work the Land upon their return to the Promised Land. The only physical link that Ehud had with the Promised Land was the Scent of Etrog, the Jasmine Scented Jaffa Lemon that Travelling friends used to bring home. New historicists pay significant attention to the place where the narrative account derives its historical significance. In the book, extraordinary life epic had begun on a glittering spring day in 1938. From Ehud Avriel’s Family’s living room on the Marcus Aurelius Strasse, a twenty year old Avriel watched the arrival of Hitler’s troops to his city, Volume XII, Issue IV, 2020 Page No: 4223 Journal of Xi'an University of Architecture & Technology ISSN No : 1006-7930 the First stage of Nazi conquest of Europe. It was not long before that Ehud and the 220000 Austrian Jews discovered the fate that was reserved for them. The Nazis were Planning to swiftly get rid of the Jewish Vermin that was infecting the Third Reich. Openly taking the road to Palestine was out of question . The British authorities who were administering the region under pressure from their Arab allies reduced the immigration quotas, On March 22 1938 President Franklin D Roosevelt proposed an international conference of thirty three nations including France, Great Britain and Italy to determine a common policy to help political refugees driven out of Germany and Austria . The conference was opened on July 6 1938 in a ballroom at a Royal hotel at Evian-les-Bains. No Jewish leader had been invited to Evian to speak for those suffering persecution. All the participating countries with the exception of Dominican republic turned a blind eye to the Plight of the Jews. This event made young Avriel realise that Jews could only look to themselves for their survival. The unbearable situation altered the life of many including young Avriel. Immigration by clandestine means had to be organized at once. This led to the formation of Mossad. It is also a major historical event when Ehud Avriel and Mossad team returned from Evian. They are convinced that Jews’s only chance was a clandestine mass exodus to Palestine. Agents were dispatched to Romanian, Bulgarian ports on the black sea and to Turkish coast and Greece to procure boats. All this had to be done without alerting the British secret agents. Smaller boats had a greater chance of beating the British Surveillance on June 12 1938 sixty six young Austrians landed on David’s Creek. Emboldened by their success Avriel and his companions spotted a boat of bigger capacity at the Greek port of Piraeus. The Russian boat Attrato was capable of transporting six hundred passengers. In order to reach Palestine the refugees needed a transit visa to cross Hungary, Yugoslavia, Romania and Greece, however, these were granted only upon the production of a passport duly stamped with an entry visa for the country of destination. In the end it was not for Palestine that the Volume XII, Issue IV, 2020 Page No: 4224 Journal of Xi'an University of Architecture & Technology ISSN No : 1006-7930 passengers of Attrato would set sail but to Mexico. It is due to this boat that thousands of Jews escaped Nazi Persecution. The British eventually hardened their attitude to Jewish migration. On May 17 1939 London announced the end of all Jewish Immigration and prohibited the Jews in Palestine from buying further land. David Ben-gurion had replied “only Bayonets would stop Jewish immigration” (156) this was taken as an open declaration of war. On September 2, 1939 a rust bucket known as Tiger hill with Fourteen hundred Jews reached Tel Aviv from Romania, the British Coast Guard opened fire. The British intercepted another boat off Istanbul, which they took to Haifa under escort. They announced that the Refugees would be deported to Paraguay which unleashed an immediate revolt.
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