Sartre's analysis of anti-semitism and Jewish identity

Sartre's Anti-Semite and Jew

The cases of racial, religious and ethnical hatred remain to be the major issues of public concern nowadays. A lot has been argued about equality, tolerance and reconciliation, but still hatred and hostility based on stereotypes exist nowadays.

The stereotypes described by Jean-Paul Sartre in his book Anti-Semite and Jew exist nearly in every nation, as the spread of active anti-Semitism is increasing: "worldwide incidents of attacks on Jews and vandalism against Jewish sites increased 15% in 2003 from the previous year." (from Wiesel: Anti-Semitism Increase) for some people it may seem like a simple statistics, but for those who live in Europe, South America and especially Eastern Europe it has to say a lot.

The origins of anti-Semitism are developed in one's consciousness, usually at immature age when a person has nothing to be similar to his own viewpoint on things, when his outlook is not developed and when he simply lacks life gained experience. At this age sensitive human psychics is very influential, especially it accepts the ideas that justify one's behavior, his faults and mistakes. Justification is made on unconscious level in many cases, as the person first has to convince and justify himself in his own eyes and then in the eyes of significant others. In many cases he perceives information not objectively, but subjectively from the perspective he wants to hear it. This distortion later turns into distorted system of values, beliefs and stereotypes.

Pro-religious stereotype about Jews laid into origins of anti-Semitism as it was used as evidence by generations of religious people to accuse Hebrews in Christ's crucifixion. Later it was enriched by other legends and transformed into stereotype, which exists nearly in every society and is spread actively from generation to generation, usually in a form of social myth.

The paradox of this social phenomenon lies in human's nature. Person in many ways lives in fears and oppression in the surrounding world; everything he does is a reaction for the actions from the side of aggressive environment. In order to survive and succeed person develops a "shield of myths" or a shield of his personal beliefs in order to protect from the actions of environment: abstract concept of good and evil, religion (where God is always opposed to Satan) and so on. Somehow these ideas are vague, abstract and do not spread over the limits of one's mind, as he fails to find of these types in real world. The myth about "Jews being guilty in everything" was composed with this very purpose to put personal failures and misfortunes on the shoulders of others, to justify themselves, and accuse somebody. it's not a definite person, it's not an abstract concept (as universal evil, Satan) but it's a definite ethnical community, as it doesn't make the accuse personal or it doesn't make the accuse impossible. Such approach simply generalizes it.

Sartre made a very interesting observation about the nature of anti-Semitism "If there were no Jews anyways Anti-Semitism would be invented," as people need to blame somebody for their direct or indirect mistakes. To research the origins of anti-Semitism we have to research the origins of cynicism as these concepts are very familiar in understanding of modern moral and ethics. Person shows aggression in most of cases when he feels oppression, abuse, fear and misunderstanding in the eyes of society, his aggression is a simple reaction to unjust treatment. Justice and injustice vary, as everyone accepts them in his own way, but the social group, which has similar background, similar present and past experiences and values may react in general to the event that equally touches everyone in the community nearly in the same way altogether. It happens during the time of economical crisis, depression, inability to realize ambitions, inability to influence the course of some events. And it often results in anti-Semitic moods of certain social groups: mostly radical working-class youth. We see this tendency now as the economical recession had penetrated into many spheres of life and touched nearly everyone, in addition there exist a conflict in Israel between Israelites and Palestinians, which still has no reference to the essence of the problem, but is used as a justification.

The Jew I am belongs to a traumatized generation. We have antennas. Better yet, we are antennas," he said. "If we tell you that the signals we receive are disturbing, that we are alarmed... people had better listen." says Elie Weisel (from Wiesel: Anti-Semitism Increase, article)

Most of Jewish organizations in Europe insist to make protective legislature, use educational instruments in order to protect Jewish minorities from different forms of anti-Semitism and possible violence. Understandably a person has to be forced to escape from alienation, he has to be forced to accept general norms and beliefs as a member of democratic society, but what has to be really done is nearly impossible to do. The person has to be liberated from the chains that imprison his mind, his perception of the world and which lock his options to freedom. Anti-Semitism is one of such chains that paralyze human mind; it's not a simple stereotype. Even though it's often compared to racism, it has something more in it than a simple physical dislike; it includes mental dislike, hostility and mistrust. Its origins are in narrow-mind, philistine morality and lack of social and international experience especially in mono-national societies: Poland, Russia, Greece, and Britain.

Modern anti-Semitism has little to do with past violence, today it's observed in the form of passive discrimination, private personal beliefs shared in the circle of close people, etc. But it exists and its very existence may create a case when society will "sit on the gun-power barrel" which can explode and lead to visible social conflict easily.