Yehoshua Kenaz

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Yehoshua Kenaz (Hebrew: יהושע קנז) (2 March 1937 – 12 October 2020) was an Israeli novelist who studied at the Hebrew University and at the Sorbonne. Kenaz is best known for his novel Infiltration, published in 1986.

Biography

Yehoshua Glass (later Kenaz) was born in

Othniel Ben Kenaz, a Biblical name with a similar sound.[1]

He studied

Hebrew University, and French literature at the Sorbonne.[2] He wrote his first story in Paris and sent it to Aharon Amir's Keshet journal under the name of Avi Otniel (literally "father of Othniel"). He became famous in Israel in 1986 when his novel Infiltration became a best seller.[1]

Kenaz died on 12 October 2020, in Petah Tikva, after a COVID-19 infection. He was 83.[3][4]

Literary career

He translated many

Dover Koshashvili
, released to critical acclaim at the Jerusalem Film Festival 2010.

Kenaz said he was not a

Zionist because he did not believe a Jewish state would solve the problem of antisemitism. He supported a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict because he wanted the Hebrew language and culture to be hegemonic and more cultivated in Israel.[1]

Published works

After the Holidays (1964) is about the disintegration of a family in a small farming community in Palestine during the British Mandate.[5] The Great Woman of the Dreams (1973) depicts the lives of the tenants of a rundown apartment house in Tel Aviv.[6] Musical Moment (1980) is a collection of four stories dealing with themes of the rites of manhood and the disruption of innocence.[7] Infiltration (1986) is the story of a platoon of young recruits with minor physical disabilities during their basic training at an Israeli army camp in the 1950s.[8] The Way to the Cats (1991) tells the story of pensioners in an old-age home, who engage in a pathetic power struggle.[9] Returning Lost Loves (1997) runs several plots in parallel form, sharing common characters.[10] Landscape With Three Trees (2000) is two stories about the changes undergone by the Israeli society from the pre-state days to the present-day era.[11]

The sociologist Dafna Hirsch uses Kenaz's 2008 short story, "The Black Briefcase", to illustrate the culture and performance of Zionist masculinity through the consumption of hummus.[12]

In Hebrew

  • After the Holidays (novel), Am Oved, 1964; 1987 [Aharei Ha-Hagim]
  • The Great Woman of the Dreams (novel), Dvir, 1973 [Ha-Isha Ha-Gedolah Me-Ha-Halomot]
  • Musical Moment (stories), Hakibbutz Hameuchad/Siman Kriah, *1980;1995 [Moment Musicali]
  • Infiltration (novel), previously entitled Heart Murmur, Am Oved, 1986 [Hitganvut Yehidim]
  • On the Way to the Cats (novel), Am Oved, 1991 [Ba-Derech La-Hatulim]
  • Returning Lost Loves (novel), Am Oved, 1997 [Mahzir Ahavot Kodmot]
  • Landscape with Three Trees (2 novellas), Am Oved, 2000 (Nof Im Shlosha Etzim)
  • Between Night and Dawn (novella), Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 2006 [Bein Laila ve-Bein Shashar]

Translated into English

  • Kenaz, Yehoshua (1987). After the Holidays. Harcourt. p. 216.
    ISBN 0-15-103959-3
    .
  • Kenaz, Yehoshua (1998). The Way to the Cats: A Novel. Zoland Books. p. 325.
    ISBN 1-883642-48-5
    .
  • Kenaz, Yehoshua (1998). Musical Moment: And Other Stories. Zoland Books. p. 176.
    ISBN 1-883642-47-7
    .
  • Kenaz, Yehoshua (2001). Returning Lost Loves: A Novel. Zoland Books. p. 250.
    ISBN 1-58642-013-5
    .
  • Kenaz, Yehoshua (2003). Infiltration: A Novel. Zoland Books. p. 608.
    ISBN 1-58195-205-8
    .

References

  1. ^ a b c Lev-Ari, Shiri (2008-09-19). "Infiltrating". Haaretz (in Hebrew). Archived from the original on 2008-09-23. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  2. ^ a b "Yehoshua Kenaz". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
  3. ^ "Famed author Yehoshua Kenaz dies at 83". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  4. ^ Yehoshua Kenaz, One of the Greats of Hebrew Literature, Dies of COVID at 83 - website of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz
  5. ^ "After the Holidays". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  6. ^ "The Great Woman of the Dreams". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  7. ^ "Musical Moment". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  8. ^ "Infiltration". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  9. ^ "The Way to the Cats". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  10. ^ "Returning Lost Loves". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  11. ^ "Landscape With Three Trees". The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. Retrieved 2008-09-23.
  12. S2CID 156331309
    .
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