On a Different Path: New Cooperative Communities in 21st Century Israel - A Generational Perspective
Author: Orly Ganany, orlyganany@gmail.com
Department: Education
University: Tel Aviv, Israel
Supervisor: Prof. Hanna Herzog & Prof. Yuval Dror
Year of completion: 2014
Language of dissertation: Hebrew
Keywords:
Gender
, Community
, Generation
Areas of Research:
Family Research
, Senses and Society
, Regional and Urban Development
Abstract
Can a new cooperative community in Israel established at the end of the 20th?and beginning of the 21st?century be defined as a generational phenomenon? This study examines the life experience and historical events which formed the world view of the members of the cooperative communities, with regards to who and what they oppose in choosing their lifestyle, the content of the discourse taking place among them and with their surroundings and with Can a new cooperative community in Israel established at the end of the 20th?and the beginning of the 21st?century be defined as a generational phenomenon? This study examines the life experience and historical events which formed the world view of the members of the cooperative communities, with regards to who and what they oppose in choosing their lifestyle, the content of the discourse taking place among them and with their surroundings and with the practices they have established in daily life. These questions are examined in this qualitative research conducted in a 'multi case study' method based on primary and secondary sources.
This study claims that the examination of cooperative groups with the generational theory, tools will enable the telling of the groups’ story who are active at the margins of Israel 's society, and show how they have a unique voice?in life, practice, challenging the prevalent social order and offering an alternative?commentary?to social agenda, as a community of knowledge. The study points that human knowledge is founded on the social conditions, structure of opportunities and existential term which defines the social experience and with which individuals and groups contend, interpret and?identify. This study supports?Herzog’s (2010) approach, that the generational point of view does not produce a cohesive, unified story; rather it makes it possible to simultaneously view the realms of continuing existing discourse, in the spirit of previous generations. Adopting this approach contributes to the study of the new cooperative groups in Israel, whose roots is planted in the nation's history, the Kibbutz Movement and the pioneering youth movements. The study examines the phenomenon of the cooperative communities’ renewal in their new position in time and place, within Israeli society, in?accordance with past and present with the biographical background and existential?purpose of the communities to social action on Israel’s social periphery.
The study breaks new ground in understanding the growth of the cooperative groups as knowledge communities that having a social language and a message of their own.?The studies are concerned Examination of the phenomenon through the generational theory presents the state of mind and daily life of a minority group which does not perceive itself as being in a weakened position in Israeli society, thus adding another pillar to the multiplicity of Israeli society's current narratives. The theoretical discussion and empirical study of the new cooperative group communities in Israel sheds light on a rejuvenated phenomenon differentiating itself from the mainstream and indicates the complexity and multiplicity prevalent in present day Israeli society.
