Altneuland: Ein utopischer Roman

by Theodor Herzl

Old New Land forever altered the face of the Middle East. The book was a nineteenth-century utopian blueprint for a modern state of Israel. There were Jewish settlers in Palestine, and Zionist ideas had existed in Eastern Europe before Herzl, but Herzl made Zionism into a cultural and political movement acceptable to Western governments and intellectuals. His prophecy at the end of this book became "If you will it, it is not a fable." The author, founder of the Zionist movement, considered this utopian story his best literary an expression of his art, with a political message. His biographer, Amos Elon, placed Old New Land "in the mainstream of fin-de-siecle art. Its pursuit of arcadian bliss within a mystic community and its haunted preoccupation with dreams recall Gustav Mahler's music."

Genres: Israel, Fiction, Jewish, Politics, Literature, Novels, Ebooks

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1902

About the author

Theodor Herzl, born Benjamin Ze’ev Herzl was a Jewish Austro-Hungarian journalist and the father of modern political Zionism and in effect the State of Israel.

Reviews

[Clay Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This work had the hallmarks of a classic. Enjoyed the mix of social commentary and sci-fi. The story had shades of Plato's Republic and Washington Irving's Rip Van Winkle. Learned about this book in the Zion's Fiction anthology.

[Hamza · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel, the story of two men of the early 20th century who stay on a remote island for 20 years and then find a Utopian Jewish state in Palestine, was the second of my "Herzl Trilogy" after The Jewish State. While I found this book a lot more fun than that boring screed, it too definitely has its issues.

For one, the book is mostly exposition given to Friedrich and Kingscourt, the main characters, by members of the New Society in Palestine. Granted, it's necessary in order to make both those two characters and us, the audience, understand how Palestine turned from an allegedly barren and swampy place to a Utopia within 20 years, but that doesn't make it any less dull to read. The worst part is when Joe Levy, who nearly single-handedly started the whole process, just gives pages and pages of exposition over a record player to the other main characters sitting in a living room. Ugh.

The book does have some interesting characters and events in it, but it really suffers from Herzl's colonial European mindset. He seemed to have little regard for the non-Jewish people already living in the land i.e. Palestinians, despite the nearly inconsequential inclusion of one character named Reschid Bey. That character really annoyed me as well, being the archetypal sycophant to his colonial overlords, stating that Zionism made everything better and showing a very Perennialist view of religion. Clearly, Herzl didn't have much experience with speaking to non-Europeans in his quest to create a Jewish state in Palestine.

Perhaps I'm being too hard on Herzl. After all, contrary to the actual founders of the State of Israel, he seemed to have no concept of Palestinians being expelled in mind for his Utopian vision of a Jewish state. Though he did have an extremely colonial, European mindset and almost completely ignore Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews - never mind the native Arabs - Dr. Herzl did have some good ideas that could, in theory, be beneficial to any society. We can't know what would've happened had he lived longer, but I don't think he'd be happy with what's happened especially since 1948.

There's really no reason for anyone to read this book unless, as I was, they're interested to see what Herzl's ideal Jewish state would look like. It's not great, it's not bad, it's just there - and it's somewhat irrelevant nowadays. Read it if you don't mind a lot of exposition, but otherwise just skip it.

[إيمان إيمان · Rating 1 out of 5]

The biological mother of Belford promise... The promise of the UNOWNING to the UNDESERVING... This book is not just a book... It is the opener of the eternally new wound UNLESS...

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only four stars because, let's face it, utopian novels always have way too much exposition. But Altneuland has more plot and more character development than most; the main character, Friedrich Loewenberg, is a flat, boring character, but his friend, Kingscourt, is an amusingly obstreperous fellow, and some of the secondary characters are distinctive. There's also more plot than is usually found in a utopian novel, and the device by which Friedrich and Kingscourt wind up in this utopian Zionist land is better than most.

As for the novel as a work of literature, the description above would warrant only three stars, but the historical significance of the novel is a five; the average comes out to four. I read this novel before going to Israel for the first time, and I thought I was being kind of precious in doing so -- reading this utopian novel by Herzl when I could have spent that time doing more reading about contemporary politics, etc. But actually, the novel was incredibly relevant! Among other things, the city of Tel Aviv is directly named after Altneuland/Old-New-Land. (A tel is an artificial hill formed by generations of detritus left by multiple civilizations = old; "aviv" is the Hebrew word for spring = new.) And the Israeli Declaration of Independence was signed underneath a huge portrait of Herzl. Herzl only wrote two books -- this novel and the earlier Der Judenstaat / The Jewish State -- and the novel is clearly considered just as important as the book-length essay by Israelis.

But avoid the WLC 2009 edition, which is printed from public domain texts and is riddled with printing errors! It's shocking to me that there's not a critical edition of the novel.

[Fania · Rating 5 out of 5]

My rating is not for this novel's literary merit, which, historical context considered, stands at around three stars. However, Herzl's readable utopia certainly belongs in the list of books that changed the world. It is less influential than the Koran, but longer-lived than Das Kapital. It was the Jewish people's version of The Little Engine That Could.

[Ilya · Rating 4 out of 5]

הייתי חייב את זה לעצמי, והספר לא איכזב. זה ספר פנטזיה מרתק ולעתים משעשע. מעניין לצלול לעולם הפנטזיה של הרצל, כשציונות רק התחילה לשאת פירות מעשיים ראשונים, ולראות איך חלק מהדברים שהוא דמיין התגשמו, וחלק כנראה לא יתגשמו לעולם. דווקא הדברים שהתגשמו היו היותר מעניינים בעיניי. החברה החדשה שהקימו היהודים בארץ ישראל מתוארת בצורה חיה מנקודת מבטם של שני נוסעים.
אוסיף הערת אגב, שנראה שלהרצל היו השקפות תואמות לזמנו על תפקידם של נשים וגברים בחברה והסיפור מסופר מנקודת מבט מאד גברית ואפשר לומר שוביניסטית.

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think Theodor Herzl would be blown away by modern Israel. With its electric cities, nuclear power, mechanized agriculture and messy democracy I think he would recognize in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and the Jordan river valley the utopia he had envisioned.

“Old New Land” is a true utopia; like Aldous Huxley’s “The Island” or Thomas More’s “Utopia” or Plato’s “Republic”. It is about how the Jews of Europe returned to their ancient land to build a modern state upon the same hills and valleys where David and Solomon walked. But unlike More and Plato and Huxley, Herzl’s vision came true. Even the criticisms. One of the most significant detractions of the book was that Herzl’s Palestine resembled Europe (Herzl was an Austrian Jew). But even that, given the fact that modern Israel really is a construct of the Jews of Europe after the Holocaust (and of America, where many of the Jews of Europe stopped over before embarking upon the creation of their epic utopia), turned out to be true. The atmosphere of modern Israel has been much more heavily influenced by American scientism than by Sephardic wanderings or Yemeni mysticism.

I think Herzl would be thrilled that Israel, after so short a time, has become such a remarkable place. The only thing that has not come true is the reconstruction of the Temple (the novel on purpose does not say where it was rebuilt) and the advent of world peace emanating from Jerusalem. Utopias often go overboard, and anybody who knows anything about the bubbling tensions in the Middle East that go back millenniums knows that is just a leap too far.

[Amir Nakar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Israeli citizen (and probably jew) should read this.
This is the "dream/Prophecy" of Theodor (Binyamin Ze'ev) Herzl. It tells the story of a sad Austria-Jewish lawyer who decided t quit the world and goes off to a desolate island. On his way there he stops to see Israel (Palestine) as the land of his fathers. He finds it dirty, poor and full of bandits.

20 years later he returns to see how the world changes, stopping again in Israel. He finds a 1900s Utopia. Cities, railways, electricity and phones. Equality, cooporation, cultural diversity. He finds and describes this land as he wishes it to be - 100 years ago.

Today, as a citizen of modern-day Israel, it is amazing to read this book, written almost as a science fiction novel, completely realized. It is jaw-dropping to read Hertzl's dream of Jerusalem, with it's modern rails and cooperation between Jews and Arabs - IN the modern Jerusalem, with it's rail, wifi, top university and (you may not believe this if you're abroad) cooperation between Jews and Arabs.

I was highly influenced by this book. It is incredible to seehow accurate the prophecy was, and see us as a society not even notice.

Also, the language is a strange old dialect of hebrew, which is very clear to read but also very strange. It "smells" of Yiddish and trying very hard to write in a new language. Areal pleasure for language lovers.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a number of reasons this book is fun, even if not exactly good.

There’s something appealing about a 100-year old, futurist utopia, set eighty years ago in a still-future alternate past where The Great War never happened, much less its sequel and attendant horrors, the Ottomans continued their benign neglect, and even European socialists learned from American trusts de Tocquevillian concepts like the superiority of communal care and cooperation to command and control. There are the things Herzel guessed right. The things he guessed comedically wrong. There’s the dream, unsullied by the harsh realities of encounter with rejectionism and violence.

And there’s Kingscourt, who’s a great character who makes the whole thing worthwhile. I recommend assigning him a voice in your mind — preferably one that sounds like Harry Mudd from Star Trek.

[Loren Picard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a hard book to rate. Read as literature it should be rated very low. The characters are two-dimensional, the plot plods along and is painstakingly obvious, and the long diatribes by the characters are annoying. Now, if you can set all that aside and read it as a utopian dream, though the dream is not perfect, of an extraordinary person named Theodor Herzl, then this is a very moving book. This book was written well before the British had a Palestinian Mandate. Herzl, the founder of political Zionism, has created a book that would not be of much significance if not for the fact that the state of Israel had been created after his death. This book should be read in conjunction with his pamphlet/book titled "The Jewish State."

[Lior Gigi · Rating 5 out of 5]

apparently, just a story about Israel and the pioneers that came to build the country.
only at the end, the main character sees the temple in Jerusalem, then you understand that everything that you have read is the author's fantasy and that non of it actually happened when this book was written.
It is amazing to see that this was his dream, read about it now when this dream came to life.

[Patrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Herzl's jewtopic novel of a mutualist multicultural jewish state under Turkish rule, where everyone speaks German. The technical details tend to get boring and the part where a character talks about how mutualism works, reads like if you ask a Internet-Libertarian how the NAP magically will work.

[Rita Li · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh mine... it's boring yet comical. Still glad I read it but never again.

[Emmett Dubnoff · Rating 1 out of 5]

boo boo boo tomatoes. I mean. It’s kinda comforting that this book is rly poorly written and is just a bad novel in general I’m glad that I can’t even give it props for being a good piece of literature. but yeah nothing more to say yall know how I feel. I hope hell exists for Herzl to live in it.

[Leinades Cheb · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very mediocre novel. The characters are flat and dull, especially Friedrich. The plot is nonexistent, and tends to be more cumbersome than entertaining or interesting. The extreme description of all the details becomes exhausting very quickly. Where the book really stands out is the inspirational vision Hertzel had for the new Jewish nation as a multicultural, secular, libertarian utopic society. The modern state of Israel is amazing in both the ways it embodies Hertzels vision, and the ways he completely missed the mark. Israel was built on war and conquering, not the mutually beneficial pact from the book. Israel of 2018 is a divided nation, religiously, politically, culturally. Israel's political system is the embodiment of the disgust expressed throughout the novel. Israel is a land with extreme economic inequalities that are just growing, no sign of the social policies, the egalitarianism from the book. It is a both a very inspiring and a sad read.

[Max Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

While not a particularly sophisticated novel literarily, particularly when reading a translated version with often times several printing and spelling/grammatical errors per page, this is a deeply moving book that must be considered one of the most impactful ever written.

Herzl's promise of an Old-New Land is remarkably progressive, even by modern standards (with a few exceptions). It is easy to see both inspirations for the modern state of Israel, as well as areas these inspirations haven't been reached. A must-read for anyone who is at all interested in Zionism, especially those who consider themselves opponents of it, and for those who believe the modern state of Israel is the perfect manifestation of it.

[Isaiah · Rating 3 out of 5]

in terms of literary value, meh. in terms of gaining a better understanding of zionism also meh. Herzl is both an average writer, and a peculiar member of the early zionist movement who seems kinda detached from the rest of the movements motivations and actual desires. that being said i think it is interesting in that it refutes a lot of the modern claims that Herzl was some sort of raging white supremacist. is the book a little paternalistic toward Palestinians and non-ashkenazi jews? like a tiny bit, but altogether it’s not really objectionable.

[Zack Babins · Rating 2 out of 5]

Riddled with exposition and self-congratulatory boasting, this utopian novella bears little resemblance to the reality of the formation of the state of Israel. It’s colonialist, Eurocentric, and fairly plotless. And this edition is so rife with printing and spelling errors - to be fair, not the fault of the author - that it’s a slog to read.

The two stars came solely from the work’s historical significance and my own weakness for the memory of an idealized Zionism.

[Wolfgang · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting book, but from a different perspective as I expected it to be. I expected a straightforward laying out of Zionist aspirations in the 19th century, a program. Yes, the book provides that, too, but it is much more interesting as a window into the thought processes of Viennese Jewry at the end of the 19th century.

It is a science fiction book of the late 19th century. It reminds me with its language and tone of Karl May adventure stories. It describes the desperation of the Jew, despised by society and outmanoeuvred by rich compatriots. There is the sudden emergence of hope and after an idyllic stay on an island for 20 years a trip to Jaffa. Jaffa and the Middle East is described as one hoped it would be back then at the beginning of the 20th century. All hopes of this era like e.g. mutualism are described as fulfilled in a utopia of the Middle East, which encompasses todays Israel and the surrounding regions.

Unfortunately the ME does not exist like that today. The book anticipates nothing of the hostility of the Arabs which has emerged since then. It presents a peaceful, rose tinted glasses view of a prospering Middle East with Jews running only a big organisation (head organisation of mutuals) in it. They are the most important citizens of this part of the world and dominate politics and economy. The land is flowering. This is true today of Israel only.

[Shay · Rating 1 out of 5]

As if this book wasn't bad enough -- a mix of flat characters and long monologues/exposition that fully veered from fiction to manifesto -- this edition was also riddled with typos and grammatical errors. It was a rare miracle to find dialogue with both the opening and closing quotation marks present and where they were supposed to be. The letter "n" became "ri", spellings of Hebrew names were inconsistent, and on two separate occasions, entire paragraphs were copied twice. Also, yeah, it's a terrible piece of fiction. I don't think that propaganda fiction is bad, necessarily. I wrote an entire paper hailing Kanafani's "Returning to Haifa" as a piece of propagandistic fiction that is incredibly literary and compelling. But it has to actually be interesting and seamlessly weave in its argument with the narrative devices of fiction to work. Herzl cannot do this. He's a boring nonfiction writer and a terrible fiction writer, and this bizarre attempt to meld the two was perhaps worst of all.

[bxa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Noch immer revolutionär und relevant - gerade weil Theodor Herzl, der Begründer der zionistischen Bewegung, die dann tatsächlich in der Gründung des Staates Israels mündete, eigentlich nur bereits bestehende, auch heute noch gültige ethisch-moralische Prinzipien wie solche der wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Teilhabe als Grundlage der Funktionsweise (administrativ wie gesellschaftspolitisch) des von ihm visionierten Judenstaates bemüht.

In Form eines "Bildungsromans" legt Altneuland, dem in der späteren Benennung von TelAviv ein Denkmal gesetzt wird, dar, wie Israel nach der Vorstellung Herzls als Staat aufgestellt und von seinen Bürger:innen mit Leben gefüllt werden soll.

Gerade besteht, leider einmal mehr, realpolitischer Anlaß, dieses Buch zur Hand zu nehmen.

[Simon Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Thoughtful Exploration with a Plot That Falls Short
"Altneuland" offers valuable insights into Zionism, providing a compelling lens into the ideology's early roots. While it serves as an informative read on the subject, the plot feels somewhat hollow, lacking the depth needed to fully engage the reader. At times, the narrative struggles to maintain excitement, making it a bit tedious in certain passages. Despite these drawbacks, the book remains a worthwhile exploration of its historical context and ideals.

[Herrholz Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

One could shelve this book under sci-fi. It is a utopian/idealist vision of an imaginary society yet to be realised. Yet the technologies employed in the forming of this fictional society are nascent and attainable and would be put to use in the ensuing real-world act of nation building.

This book ought to be read alongside The Jewish State, which sets out Herzl`s plans and ideas for the new state. So Altneuland is a work of fiction which works closely in conjunction with this other non-fictional proposal or manifesto.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Herzl's Altneuland was a great read. God vision of what he the future state of Israel would be like was so right in many ways and so wrong in others.

The book was well written and the storyline was very easy to follow.

Anyone who wants to get a better understanding of what and where Herzl was coming from in regards to what he thought the future state of Israel would be like should read this book.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strange book. A frustrated young Jewish man in 1902 Vienna cannot find meaningful work because he is Jewish. He answers an ad that takes him away for 20 years. Early in his voyage he visits Palestine, which is in horrific shape. 20 years later he revisits Palestine and finds Jews have transformed it into a socialist paradise. Such was Herzl’s dream for a Jewish homeland in Palestine. Certainly Herzl’s heart was in the writing but the style makes the reading difficult.

[Erika Dreifus]

As with Glikl: Memoirs 1691-1719, I read this one to fill a gap in my Jewish reading. Fascinating.

[Josh Marks · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s not really a work of art, is it?

[Guy Seri · Rating 4 out of 5]

מרשים ביכולת שלו לתאר את חזונו בתקופה בה נכתב, אך עם זאת הכתיבה לא טובה במיוחד הדמויות דיי שטוחות ולא מעניינות במיוחד. עדיין מקסים

[Michale · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find it very interesting that he gives the last word to God.

[Joshua Glucksman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shows "humane zionism" and still talks all about how arabs are inferior and the grounds for colonization. Pretty weird that this mainstream zionism is so explicit w the racism... or not weird at all.