Peace in the Middle East Essay

Edmund Burke once said “Those who don't know history are destined to repeat it.” Unfortunately, it seems that many people who have impacted the world have had a bad history teacher, as history continues to repeat itself to this day. One of the most prime examples of this is seen in the Middle East; where the Palestinian people are fighting against the Israelis over territory in which they both believe belongs to them. It has been a dispute which has resulted in loss of homes, loss of life and loss of money. However, this is nothing new. Eugene O’Neill’s statement, “There is no present and no future, only the past happening over and over again, now” applies strongly to the situation of the past 70 years in the

The role of the Middle East has been very crucial to the United States, especially after WWII. The U.S. had three strategic goals in the Middle East and consistently followed them throughout various events that unfolded in the region. First, with the emergence of the cold war between the Soviet Union and the U.S., policymakers began to recognize the importance of the Middle East as a strategic area in containing Soviet influence. This also coincides with the U.S. becoming increasingly wary of Arab nationalism and the threat it posed to U.S. influence. Secondly, the emergence of the new Israeli state in 1948 further deepened U.S. policy and involvement in the region while also creating friction between the U.S. and Arab states which were

"Your surroundings may change but your essence and your personality pretty much stay the same" (Dewan). The setting of the novel A Separate Peace is at an all boys school located in New Hampshire. The characters and plot are finely woven into the fabric of this institution. However, would events in this novel turn out differently if the story was set in a public high school, with a diverse environment? The characters and plot of A Separate Peace are not solely driven by their surroundings because the boys would still break the rules, Gene would have internal conflicts, and the war would affect the students.

Betrayal, one of the most horrible things you could do to anyone your family, a friend anyone. To me it’s one of my all time most hated things a person could do and it’s almost unforgivable. In this book A Separate Peace by John Knowles two boys Phineas and Gene who are best friends at a boarding school in New Hampshire experience some of the worst kinds of Betrayal you could think of. Gene commits a very bad betrayal when he jousts the tree limb they are both standing on ending up with Finny falling and badly breaking his leg. This was no accident because Gene can’t stand the guilt.

At the Devon School in New Hampshire, in 1942, during World War II, the main character, Gene, becomes closer with his adventurous roommate, Finny, whose elemental charisma distracted them from the reality outside of the school. Throughout the novel the realness of the war becomes present and the war’s continuation parallels the growth of Gene, from a young innocent boy, to a man. These changes happen to align with one another and that coordination represents the theme of a loss of innocence in the novel. Due to the contradictory interactions with the war and the pursuit of adulthood, Genes development as a person runs alongside the progression of the war. In the novel, A Separate Peace by John Knowles, the relationship between the author’s use of war impacts the maturing of the main character Gene and further develops the theme of the loss of innocence.

The Palestinian-Israeli conflict has been in existence since the end of 19th century. The conflict became an international concern when Israel got its independence in 1948. This conflict has resulted in a lot of minor conflicts and 5major wars.

The United States has had some international issues with Middle Eastern countries in the past. It goes without saying; the most recent is the current gulf war led by George W. Bush and of course the previous gulf war led by his father George H.W. Bush. With neighboring Iran, there have been quarrels such as the Iran-Contra affair. This involved a political scandal in which Ronald Reagan's administration sold military arms to Iran. At this time they were in the midst of the Iran-Iraq War, while the United States had hostages held in Lebanon by Hezbollah. The United States hoped that Iran would influence Hezbollah to release the American hostages, but didn't. Finally, with Saudi Arabia also part of the Middle East, the United States

were chosen by God to set up a state of Israel where they could not be

Is peace possible in the Middle East? This question weighs heavy on the minds of many individuals and international players. Turmoil and conflict in the Middle East not only affects the people inhabiting this region, but also has global consequences. To answer this question, one must analyze the sources of conflict in the Middle East, historically, currently, and in the future. The limited amount of natural resources in this region has arguably served as the most major source of conflict in the Middle East. Other contributing factors to conflict are the leadership styles of the key players in positions of power, and religious strife. History is often the best indicator for the future. Unfortunately, the Middle East has had a history of

According to Dr. Bacevich, “The Greater Middle East was to serve—indeed, was even then already serving—as the chosen arena for honing military power into a utensil that would maintain America’s privileged position and, not so incidentally, provide a continuing rationale for the entire apparatus of national security.” However, rather than helping either the Middle East or America, this approach has actually caused a great amount of harm and only creates more dictators, internal strife, and terrorist groups. The interests of the United States and the Islamic World have never aligned and the Middle East is resistant to shaping.

The current conflict in the Middle East between the Israeli Jews and the Palestinian Arabs has many historical roots. Several events in the history of this conflict have been very important and also have a strong connection with the current situation between the two sides. One of these important events was the Nazi Holocaust. During the Second World War the Jews were persecuted by the Nazis and sent to concentration camps.

The region of the Middle East and its inhabitants have always been a wonder to the Europeans, dating back to the years before the advent of Islam and the years following the Arab conquest. Today, the Islamic world spreads from the corners of the Philippines to the far edges of Spain and Central Africa. Various cultures have adopted the Islamic faith, and this blending of many different cultures has strengthened the universal Islamic culture. The religion of Islam has provided a new meaning to the lives of many people around the world. In the Islamic world, the religion defines and enriches culture and as a result the culture gives meaning to the individual. Islam is not only a religion, it is in its own way a culture. It may be this very

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the most controversial conflicts in modern history. The expansion of Israel since 1947 is seen as the beginning of the conflict, although its origins go back to the end of the 19th century, when Jewish immigration to Palestine began to increase. Since the start of the conflict, several peace negotiations have been carried out, resulting in variable degrees of success.

Keeping these thoughts in mind I will investigate some key issues that affect the progress towards peace in the region including the relationship that exists between the United States and Israel; the 2002 Road Map to Peace and why it failed; and finally the effect of Arafat?s death and the implications for the future.

Over the last century, the Middle East has been the location of ethnic rivalry, political and economic instability, religious conflict, territorial dispute and war. Much of this tension in the Middle East comes from the various interpretations of Islam and how the religion should be applied to politics and society. Over the last ten years, the United States and their allies have pushed to promote democracy in the Middle East. However, they too have many obstacles they must overcome. They face problems such as the compatibility of Islamic law and democracy, the issue of women’s rights, and there is always the problem of how to go about implementing a democratic reform in these countries. Many initially would assume that it is only the