Theodor Herzl: Difference between revisions
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== His “Judenstaat” and “Altneuland” == | == His “Judenstaat” and “Altneuland” == | ||
His “Judenstaat,” admirable for its central thought, the unity of the Jewish people, is vague and weak in its want of historic grasp. When that element had been supplied, Herzl found himself combated by a large Jewish element, whom he depicted in his play “Das Neue Ghetto.” Whereas his first brochure and his first congress address lacked all religious thought, and his famous remark that the return to Zion would be preceded by a return to Judaism seemed at the moment due rather to a sudden inspiration than to deep thought, subsequent events have proved that it was a true prophecy. His latest literary work, “Altneuland,” is devoted to Zionism. The author occupied the leisure of three years in writing what he believed might be accomplished by 1923. It is less a novel, though the form is that of romance, than a serious forecasting of what can be done when one generation shall have passed. The key-notes of the story are the love for Zion, the insistence upon the fact that the changes in life suggested are not utopian, but are to be brought about simply by grouping all the best efforts and ideals of every race and nation; and each such effort is quoted and referred to in such a manner as to show that “Old-Newland,” though blossoming through the skill of the Jew, will in reality be the product of the benevolent efforts of all the members of the human family. | His “Judenstaat,” admirable for its central thought, the unity of the Jewish people, is vague and weak in its want of historic grasp. When that element had been supplied, Herzl found himself combated by a large Jewish element, whom he depicted in his play “Das Neue Ghetto.” Whereas his first brochure and his first congress address lacked all religious thought, and his famous remark that the return to Zion would be preceded by a return to Judaism seemed at the moment due rather to a sudden inspiration than to deep thought, subsequent events have proved that it was a true prophecy. His latest literary work, “Altneuland,” is devoted to Zionism. The author occupied the leisure of three years in writing what he believed might be accomplished by 1923. It is less a novel, though the form is that of romance, than a serious forecasting of what can be done when one generation shall have passed. The key-notes of the story are the love for Zion, the insistence upon the fact that the changes in life suggested are not utopian, but are to be brought about simply by grouping all the best efforts and ideals of every race and nation; and each such effort is quoted and referred to in such a manner as to show that “Old-Newland,” though blossoming through the skill of the Jew, will in reality be the product of the benevolent efforts of all the members of the human family. | ||
== Influence == | |||
Herzl was beyond question the most influential Jewish personality of the 19th century. He had no profound insight into the problem of Judaism, and there was no lasting validity in his view that the problem—the thousands of years’ old mystery—could be solved by a retrogression to local nationality. But he brought home to Jews the perils that confronted them; he compelled many a “semi-detached” son of Israel to rejoin the camp; he forced the “assimilationists” to realize their position and to define it; his scheme gave a new impulse to “Jewish culture,” including the popularization of Hebrew as a living speech; and he effectively roused Jews all the world over to an earnest and vital interest in their present and their future. Herzl thus left an indelible mark on his time, and his renown is assured whatever be the fate in store for the political Zionism which he founded and for which he gave his life. | |||
== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
This article was taken from the public domain ''Jewish Encyclopedia''. | This article was taken from the public domain ''Jewish Encyclopedia''. The Influence section was taken from the 2011 ''Encyclopædia Britannica.'' | ||