Israel from within : navigating political identity polorization

Abstract

This thesis explores the dialectical relationship between political identity and religious polarization in light of the utilization of religious texts in the formulation of political conflicts in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in particular. The study examines Jewish religious texts from the Torah and the Talmud and how they are employed in constructing collective identities with completely opposing ideologies within Israeli society. How these texts are subsequently exploited to legitimize extremism, policies of violence, and settlement expansion. Through an analysis of both the discourses of Neturei Karta and the Hilltop Youth, the study reveals that the consequences of this selective interpretation extend beyond religious polarization and division within to fueling and complicating the conflict on the regional level with the Palestinians. The thesis is based on a qualitative methodology that includes both discourse and textual analysis, which reveals the depth of the dynamics of the relationship between religion and politics. Religious texts are not treated and interpreted as a fixed truth, but rather as an open field for the production of political meanings that in turn affect the reshaping of the political and social reality. The research finally clarifies that the process of interpreting texts is part of an ideological struggle that seeks to impose certain perceptions of the structure of national identity and the political scene.