Charles D. Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Charles D. Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict political science book reports offer a comprehensive detail and analysis of the social, political, religious and economic elements that have contributed to the Arab-Israeli conflict.  Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict examination is clearly derived from the Palestinian perspective however the author provides an equitable assessment of the Israeli standpoint, not only on significant historical events but also on the prospects for the future as they will be affected by this centuries old conflict.

Smith offers no preface or introduction to the book.  Rather, he moves immediately into an examination of the ancient history of Palestine and the Kingdom of Israel, which was originally known as Canaan.  It was here that the distinctions between the Jews and the Palestinians were first drawn.  Smith's Palestine Israeli Conflict focuses on events affecting the Jewish population during Roman and Byzantine rule to the point when Palestine and the Middle East as a whole was dominated by the Arabs, after which the religion of Islam and “the revelation from God that [Muhammad] delivered to the Arabs” (Smith 5) followed.  Smith briefly defines the similarities between Islam, Judaism and Christianity, and establishes that Palestine remained under Muslim control even after the Ottoman invasion.  Smith prefaces the development of Ottoman society in Palestine with a brief examination of the Ottoman’s global reach into the nineteenth century.  He reveals that European intervention in the Middle East ultimately worked to undermine Ottoman authority, at which time the Muslim and Christian religions first experienced conflict, especially in Lebanon.  Already split into different entities while under Ottoman rule, Palestine was also vulnerable to the gradual influx of Jews and the Zionist ideology during the second half of the nineteenth century and into the twentieth century.  Arabs responded by protesting Zionist immigration and land purchases. 

Book Reports and Book Reviews on Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict from Paper Masters

A book report on Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict typically begins by identifying the author, title of book and publishing details in the introduction. Then a student should continue with the book report by stating the thesis or controlling idea of Smith’s Palestine and the Arab-Israeli Conflict. Typically, in a book report, the first paragraph is the summary of events that develop the thesis. In the body of the report, a student should include the key characters and concepts of at least three characters or personalities. Finally, end with a conclusion of at least 1/2 page with final thoughts about the book and an interesting ending.