1. Historical Trauma and Repetition Compulsion
Freud’s concept of repetition compulsion—the unconscious drive to reenact unresolved trauma—resonates with Israel’s response to collective suffering. The Holocaust and subsequent wars have ingrained a national narrative of existential threat, culminating in the trauma of the October 7 attacks, which Bartov describes as a "tremendous shock" that shattered Israel’s sense of security . This trauma has not been processed but instead weaponized, driving a militarized ethos that mirrors Freud’s notion of repressed pain resurfacing as destructive behavior.
The Israeli historian and former IDF soldier Omer Bartov draws parallels between the dehumanizing rhetoric of far-right Israeli activists and the ideological indoctrination of Nazi soldiers, where fear of annihilation justified extreme violence . Similarly, Israel’s current policies in Gaza—marked by disproportionate force and a refusal to acknowledge Palestinian suffering—reflect a repetition compulsion: inflicting the pain of historical victimhood onto others to regain control.
2. Projection and the Collapse of Empathy
Freud’s theory of projection—attributing one’s own unacceptable emotions to others—explains the societal shift Bartov observes in Israel: a widespread inability to empathize with Gazans. After October 7, Israeli society became dominated by "rage and fear," viewing Palestinians not as fellow victims but as existential threats . This mirrors Freud’s analysis of how unresolved guilt (e.g., over occupation or civilian casualties) can manifest as vilification of the "other."
Bartov notes that even Israelis critical of the government share this emotional disconnect, a phenomenon Fromm might attribute to the fear of freedom—a retreat into authoritarianism and violence to avoid confronting moral complexity . The IDF’s actions in Gaza, framed as self-defense, become a collective defense mechanism to externalize internalized trauma.
3. The Slippery Slope of Militarized Identity
Bartov’s comparison of IDF conduct to the Wehrmacht’s role in Nazi atrocities underscores how trauma can corrupt institutional ethics. He recounts his 1987 warning to Yitzhak Rabin about the IDF’s descent into oppression, drawing on his research into Nazi indoctrination . Like Freud’s patients, Israel’s militarized identity—forged through mandatory conscription and decades of conflict—has normalized violence as a "solution," blurring the line between defense and vengeance.
This aligns with Fromm’s critique of societies that equate strength with aggression. The Israeli far-right’s rhetoric, which Bartov likens to "the darkest moments of 20th-century history," reflects a pathological need to dominate, rooted in unhealed historical wounds .
4. The Illusion of Security and Moral Annihilation
Freud’s later work on religion as an "illusion" (e.g., Moses and Monotheism) finds a parallel in Israel’s pursuit of absolute security—a myth that, as Bartov warns, risks "self-annihilation" . The belief that military dominance can erase vulnerability ignores the psychological toll of perpetual war, both on the occupier and the occupied.
Fromm’s analysis of destructiveness as a response to existential anxiety further clarifies this dynamic: Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and expansion of settlements are not merely strategic but symbolic acts of asserting power to mask deep-seated insecurity.
5. Pathways to Healing: Breaking the Cycle
Psychoanalysis emphasizes the need to confront repressed truths to break destructive cycles. Bartov hints at this possibility in Rabin’s eventual turn toward peace negotiations, however flawed . For Israel to heal, it must reckon with its role as both victim and perpetrator—a process akin to Freud’s "working through" trauma.
This requires dismantling the narrative of exceptionalism and engaging with Palestinian narratives, as relational psychoanalysis advocates . Only by acknowledging mutual trauma can both societies begin to imagine a shared future beyond violence.
6. Western Complicity: The Price of Silence
The cycle of violence in Gaza cannot be disentangled from the moral abdication of Israel’s Western allies. Nations that pride themselves on democratic ideals and human rights have repeatedly bowed to financial and geopolitical interests, enabling Israel’s traumatized aggression. Arms deals, economic partnerships, and strategic alliances have rendered the U.S. and EU complicit in Gaza’s devastation, prioritizing realpolitik over justice. Freud might frame this as a societal disavowal—an unconscious refusal to confront uncomfortable truths—while Fromm would condemn it as a surrender to the pathology of power, where profit trumps principle.
By turning a blind eye to war crimes and apartheid-like policies, Western democracies erode their own foundational myths of equality and rule of law. Their rhetoric of “shared values” rings hollow as they fund bombs that flatten schools and veto UN resolutions demanding accountability. This hypocrisy mirrors Israel’s own fractured psyche: both cling to illusions of moral superiority while perpetuating systemic violence. The West’s silence is not neutrality but collusion—a betrayal of the vulnerable that discredits the very institutions meant to safeguard global justice. Until these nations confront their role as enablers, they remain trapped in Freud’s repetition compulsion, recycling the same empty condemnations as Gaza burns.
Conclusion: A Nation in Crisis
Viewing Israel as a "disturbed patient" is not a moral indictment but a diagnostic lens. Its actions in Gaza reflect a society trapped in a feedback loop of trauma, where unresolved historical pain manifests as collective dissociation and aggression. As Bartov’s account reveals, the parallels to past genocidal ideologies are unsettlingly clear . Yet psychoanalysis also offers hope: by confronting its shadows, Israel—like any traumatized individual—might yet find a path to redemption.
Final Call to Action (added to conclusion):
Healing requires more than introspection from Israel; it demands accountability from those who profit from its pain. The West must choose: Will it remain a bystander, or finally align its actions with the democratic ideals it claims to defend? The answer will define not only Gaza’s future but the soul of the modern world.
Contrarian view by Rafael Medoff : Stop Psychonanalyzing Israel
Further Reading:
Daniel Gordis's book "Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn":
Amazon linkBret Stephens' article "The Secrets of Jewish Genius" (New York Times):
NYTimes link
(Note: Subscription may be required.)Yossi Klein Halevi's book "Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor":
Amazon linkDara Horn's essay "The Resentment That Never Sleeps" (The Atlantic):
The Atlantic link
(Note: Subscription may be required.)Ronen Hoffman and Gil-Li Vagman's paper "The Psychological Roots of Anti-Zionism" (Israel Studies Review):
DOI link
(Note: Academic access may be required for full text.)