Beloved Emblem Of A Conflicted Israel

The following blog is about the article Beloved Emblem of a Conflicted Israel written by Daniel Gordis.

Gilad Schalit is an Israeli soldier who was kidnapped, along with two other soldiers, back in 2006. He was voted as the person of the year, for 5770, by The Jerusalem Post. The author of this article, Daniel Gordis, claims that Gilad “has become a metaphor for Israel, and for Israel’s condition.” Gordis begins his article by connecting with the reader, and attempting to create a sense of sympathy with Schalit’s parents and for all of Israel. Schalit’s parents are not the only ones who are suffering: we all are. The author combines all of Israel: the political left, the political right, parents, siblings, even Americans. He expresses the idea that the kidnapping has brought us all together to find one common cause, to bring Gilad Schalit home safely, unlike the outcome of the other two soldiers that were taken with him.

The author then begins to write about Schalit’s parents. He states that Israel’s media is “heartless” sometimes and his parents have not hid anything from the media. They want their son to be brought back home. They have not fought with the Israeli army. In contrast, they sent their daughter to go to the army without asking for media coverage on the issue. They are not abusing the media or using to gain fame. Gordis shows that this family has good virtue and has what most Israelis strive to have. They are good people who believe in their country, even after their son was kidnapped.

Gordis then makes a really good point. As much as we want Schalit to be brought home and many have his picture posted on Facebook and on their computer desktops, we really do not know who he really is. We might now some facts that can be found online, but his feelings, hopes and dreams are not known to the general public. Even though we know so little, we care so much about his safe bringing and the outcome of the scenario. This is how he ties together Gilad Schalit’s situation to the situation of Israel.

The inability to recover him and bring him home is eerily connected to the fact that Israel is having troubles keeping peace. Gordis states that the fact that Israel cannot find Schalit just makes it harder for Israel. He also mentions that although it would be nice to make the trade and bring Gilad home, the stakes are too high. How many more people will die from freeing the murderers that the ransom wishes? Is the death of one soldier equal to the possible deaths of many?

Gordis’ point of view is interesting. Comparing one person to the entire state of Israel is a tough job, but I think he nails it perfectly. When reading the article, I felt connects to Gilad Schalit and although I already have dog tags of the three kidnapped soldiers’ hanging in my rear view mirror, I felt more attached to the soldiers and their families. This article has so much imagery that the author really makes the reader feel that they have something to relate to the kidnapped soldier. Towards the end of the article, Gordis creates a picture of a ceremony for Schalit in Israel and explains that there were tourists present that were unaware of the situation. He shows that although they were ignorant to the kidnapping, they understood what it meant to the Israelis during the ceremony. Gordis uses Gilad Schalit to show a situation in Israel, which I believe can be solved. In the article, he claims that Israel is failing at finding peace and it might not ever happen. I do not believe in this section of his article.

I believe this article is mostly based off of opinion. There are some facts, but as the author states, they all can be found on the internet.  I believe Gordis is a reliable author because he is an Israeli who has experienced the situation of Gilad Schalit and who better to write a piece on it than someone who was affected. He also is the senior vice president of the Shalem Center in Jerusalem and he wrote a book titled Saving Israel: How the Jewish People Can Win a War that May Never End (Wiley, which won the 2009 National Jewish Book Award. He is knowledgeable in the history of Israel and also in modern day Israel and the war in the Middle East. Gordis wrote an interesting and inspiring article that connects Gilad Schalit to the conflict in Israel and brought a new viewpoint on Israelis in general.