Love, Pride, Fear, and Happiness: Zionism as a Case Study for 'National Emotions'
What emotional traits are essential for building a nation? More broadly, are there such things as ‘national emotions,’ and if so, what are they? In this lecture, I will explore these questions by analysing the Zionist case through the lens of the history of emotions. I will examine emotions where the national dimension is evident, such as honour and love of the homeland, alongside emotions that may seem less directly national, like fear and happiness.

Yair completed his PhD through the Program for Hermeneutics and Cultural Studies at Bar-Ilan University, focusing on religious emotions in the Lithuanian Haredi community. He is currently a British Academy Newton International Fellow at the University of Cambridge and a Research Associate at Sidney Sussex College. His research focuses on the emotional dimensions of the Zionist ‘negation of the diaspora.’
Date: 6 May 2025, 14:15
Venue: St Anne's College, Woodstock Road OX2 6HS
Venue Details: Seminar Room 1
Speaker: Dr Yair Berlin (University of Cambridge)
Organising department: Oxford School of Global and Area Studies
Organisers: Dr David Borabeck (University of Oxford), Professor Yaacov Yadgar
Organiser contact email address: charlotte.guillain@area.ox.ac.uk
Host: Dr David Borabeck (University of Oxford)
Part of: Israel Studies Seminar Trinity Term 2025
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://forms.office.com/e/GFnpG8TT0g
Audience: Members of the University only
Editor: Charlotte Guillain