Israel in the American Mind The Cultural Politics of US-Israeli Relations, 1958–1988 Cambridge Studies in US Foreign Relations Series

This book examines the changing meanings Americans and Israelis invested in the relationship between their countries from the late 1950s to the 1980s. Bringing to light previously unexamined sources, this study is the first to investigate the intricate mechanisms that defined and redefined Israel's place in American imagination through the war-strewn 1960s and 1970s. Departing from traditional diplomatic histories that focus on the political elites alone, Shaul Mitelpunkt places the relationship deep in the cultural, social, intellectual, and ideological landscapes of both societies. Examining Israeli propaganda operations in America, Mitelpunkt also pays close attention to the way Israelis manipulated and responded to American perceptions of their country, and reveals the reservations some expressed towards their country's relationship with the United States. By contextualizing the relationship within the changing domestic concerns in both countries, this book provides a truly transnational history of US-Israeli relations.

List of figures; Acknowledgments; Introduction: 'did I see only America?'; Part I. The Disciple State: 1. 'Lie without blushing': manipulation and friction in the courtship of patronage, 1958–60; 2. 'Might as well be the Midwest': visions of Israel as a development project, 1961–67; Part II. The Citizen Soldier: 3. Envying 'indomitable citizenry': the zenith of US fascination with the Israeli citizen-soldier, 1967–73; 4. Reforming Sparta: the October war and the collapse of the citizen-soldier idyll, 1973–76; Part III. Processes of Peace and War: 5. 'We ARE moral leaders in the world': the popular foundations of the Camp David Agreement, 1976–79; 6. 'Recollections and regrets': Israel and the conservative-liberal divide, 1980–88; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.

Shaul Mitelpunkt is a Lecturer in US History at the University of York. Shaul obtained his B.A. in history at Tel-Aviv University before moving to Chicago where he received his Ph.D. in history in 2013.