Vague and unworkable: The fuzziness of the archipelago as a concept and its unsuitability as model for a 21st century Palestinian nation

Bebawi, S; Fleury, C; Hayward, P

Vague and unworkable: The fuzziness of the archipelago as a concept and its unsuitability as model for a 21st century Palestinian nation

Bebawi, S

Fleury, C Hayward, P

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Publisher:: Island Studies Journal
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Island Studies Journal

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Bebawi, S https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4402-6013
dc.contributor.author	Fleury, C
dc.contributor.author	Hayward, P
dc.date.accessioned	2022-01-15T08:55:54Z
dc.date.available	2022-01-15T08:55:54Z
dc.identifier.citation	Island Studies Journal
dc.identifier.issn	1715-2593
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/153153
dc.description.abstract	<jats:p>While it is frequently invoked, the archipelago is such a vague concept that its deployment in fields such as island studies is only productive when the contingency of its use is specified. In this article, we examine the concept itself and then consider the use of the archipelago as a metaphor and/or model for a future Palestinian state. The creation of the modern nation-state of Israel in Palestine in 1948, various Israeli military actions, and (often related) public and private developments of former Palestinian lands has resulted in a substantial proportion of Palestinians fleeing to neighbouring countries (chiefly Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria). Those Palestinians who have remained have largely been confined to territorial isolates within the Jewish state. These isolates have frequently been understood and analogised as ‘islands’ within Israel, and the aggregation of these isolates has been variously referred to and/or represented as an archipelago. This article examines the development of this metaphoric interpretation of the Palestinian community within Israel in Anglophone, Arabic, and Francophone discourse, and characterises the contortions necessary to imagine Palestinian territories as archipelagic. The conclusion returns to consideration of the notion of the archipelago itself and of its usefulness in island studies and other contexts.</jats:p>
dc.language	en
dc.publisher	Island Studies Journal
dc.relation	http://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/DE180100428
dc.relation.ispartof	Island Studies Journal
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.24043/isj.182
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience, 1402 Applied Economics, 1604 Human Geography
dc.title	Vague and unworkable: The fuzziness of the archipelago as a concept and its unsuitability as model for a 21st century Palestinian nation
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.for	0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
utslib.for	1402 Applied Economics
utslib.for	1604 Human Geography
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences/Journalism Program
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.date.updated	2022-01-15T08:55:53Z
pubs.publication-status	Published online

Abstract:

While it is frequently invoked, the archipelago is such a vague concept that its deployment in fields such as island studies is only productive when the contingency of its use is specified. In this article, we examine the concept itself and then consider the use of the archipelago as a metaphor and/or model for a future Palestinian state. The creation of the modern nation-state of Israel in Palestine in 1948, various Israeli military actions, and (often related) public and private developments of former Palestinian lands has resulted in a substantial proportion of Palestinians fleeing to neighbouring countries (chiefly Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria). Those Palestinians who have remained have largely been confined to territorial isolates within the Jewish state. These isolates have frequently been understood and analogised as ‘islands’ within Israel, and the aggregation of these isolates has been variously referred to and/or represented as an archipelago. This article examines the development of this metaphoric interpretation of the Palestinian community within Israel in Anglophone, Arabic, and Francophone discourse, and characterises the contortions necessary to imagine Palestinian territories as archipelagic. The conclusion returns to consideration of the notion of the archipelago itself and of its usefulness in island studies and other contexts.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/153153