Inspired by the usage of the term ‘enclosure’ to describe the Separation Wall in Israel-Palestine on a visit he made to the West Bank, Gary Fields in Enclosure: Palestinian Landscapes in a Historical Mirror (University of California Press, 2017) draws upon the past to speak to the Palestinian present and explain Palestinian dispossession. We talk through why Fields thinks it is necessary to use a long lens to think about the discourses framing the conflict in Israel/Palestine, specifically the English enclosures, which changed the nature of access to common land across the English countryside and Amerindian dispossession in colonial America. As land, discourse, and people themselves shape the practice of enclosure, we hone in on the politics of writing about Palestine and Palestinians, as well as how Fields’ other work fits into his academic work. Enclosure is on the short-list for the Palestine Book Award for the 2018 year.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/middle-eastern-studies