Article Review

Theorising Politics and International Relations, UOW 12.11.2019

1

Karma Nabulsi: ‘Being Palestinian’ How does a people scattered around the world remain a people? This question is what Karma

Nabulsi (2003) seeks to answer throughout her article ‘Being Palestinian’. With a point of departure

in the Palestinian people, she applies the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s (1999) term ‘the

general will’ to describe the Palestinians’ connection and identification with their country. She

argues that this general will is based on an identification with the people of the country, rather than

on geography. Nabulsi refers to the Palestinian Declaration of Independence from 1988 as a direct

expression of the general will – it succeeded in capturing all that the Palestinian people stood for

and shared at the time.

Nabulsi presents various interesting points, but this paper will focus on her description of the

general will as the ‘glue’ that holds all Palestinians together. Furthermore, the paper will look at

Nabulsi’s description of the relationship between Palestine and Israel in relation to Rousseau’s

proposal for a constitution for Poland, conducted in the 1770s, at a time where the country was

threatened by Russia.

When Rousseau talks about the relationship between the state and the people, he introduces the

concept of the social contract; this is when people come together, and each person transfers himself

and all his rights to the community. Rousseau further argues, that if everyone gives everything of

themselves, they all have the same conditions and are in the same situation. Every person will then

act according to Rousseau’s term ‘the general will’, and every individual will become an indivisible

part of the totality. (Rousseau, 1712-1778;1999)

The point Nabulsi makes about the general will being based on people’s identification with their

homeland and their fellow-citizens can be argued to be important in today’s society, as it points to

a different interpretation of a people – one, not based on geography and national borders. One

could argue that this statement is convincing due to a number of reasons. First of all, one has to

acknowledge that people are dispersed around the world due to globalisation, which results in a

need for the feeling of belonging to be based on something else than actually living inside a country.

Theorising Politics and International Relations, UOW 12.11.2019

2

Furthermore, Nabulsi’s inclusion of statements from Palestinian citizens strengthens her

argumentation, as she displays direct examples of people feeling this shared general will and pride

of being Palestinian, no matter where and how they live. Lastly, her curiosity, her experience as a

representative for PLO and her conversations with various Palestinian people makes her a reliable

source with a broad knowledge and experience in the area.

But how would Rousseau like her idea of the general will? In her article, Nabulsi further argues, that

under this general will, the state will become “...a place of quiet and calm, of peace and

compassion…” (Nabulsi, 2003, p. 485) This is very relevant in relation to Rousseau’s use of the term

‘amour-propre’, which is about how people’s self-esteem is dependent on the approval and

recognition of others. Rousseau argued that with the development of civilisation this amour-propre

becomes inflamed, resulting in a society where people have no compassion for each other, because

they are all seeking other people’s approval, no matter the cost. Therefore, his social contract is

about overcoming this amour-propre so that people can have meaningful relations to each other.

(Delaney, 2017) Nabulsi says that Palestine, as a state under the general will, is one where people

are compassionate. She also says that the general will is “the basis for the creation of the social

contract.” (Nabulsi, 2003, p. 479) What Rousseau says is that with his social contract people are

supposed to be compassionate and have meaningful relations to each other. So maybe Nabulsi’s

interpretation of Palestine is exactly the state Rousseau talks about here?

When assessing whether Rousseau would approve of Nabulsi’s arguments, it could be interesting

to examine Rousseau’s proposal for a constitution for Poland - a practical version of the social

contract. In this piece of work, Rousseau argues that as Poland is defenceless and unstable, the way

to regain stability in the country would be “to infuse…the spirit of the Confederation throughout the

nation” and “to establish the Republic so firmly in the hearts of the Poles.” (Rousseau, 1772, p. 5)

Rousseau emphasised the importance of the bond between the citizens and the national character

that can inspire people to be loyal to their country and their fellow citizens. (Dent, 2008, p. 174 +

23) This emphasis on fellow-citizenship and cohesiveness can be said to be exactly the main points

of Nabulsi’s work. What she has witnessed in Palestine is the people’s creation of a stable, common

ground to stand on, when the country is shaken; here she looks at the Israeli military occupation of

Theorising Politics and International Relations, UOW 12.11.2019

3

Palestine and its effect on the Palestinians. This includes the spirit created among the people. The

strength Nabulsi points to in the Palestinian people seems to be what Rousseau wanted to establish

among the Polish people. On the basis of this, Rousseau would maybe be fascinated and supportive

of Nabulsi’s interpretation of the Palestinian general will, as they both talk about this strong feeling

of pride and commitment amongst the citizens as a way of resisting outside powers. Despite the

fact that the Palestinians have lost control of their land due to the Israelis, the general will enables

them to not lose control of themselves and who they are – Sarafandi, a Palestinian citizen expressed:

“…we resisted the powers that sought to destroy our identity.” (Nabulsi, 2003, p. 493) This

perspective is seen in Rousseau’s work, when he discusses a state’s capability of resistance: “You

may not prevent them from swallowing you up; see to it at least that they will not be able to digest

you.” (Rousseau, 1772, page 5)

One could argue, that a similar case of the general will functioning as the ‘glue’ of a people can be

seen in relation to the Jews and how they, throughout history, have been fighting for their rights as

a people due to antisemitism and have been without a country. With pressure from someone from

the ‘outside’ and without a state, they showed that they could still remain a people. A Jewish rabbi

expressed it herself: “‘a sense of peoplehood has long been the defining characteristic of the Jews.”

(Jabobs, no date)

In conclusion, Nabulsi’s text is a very relevant text in today’s society, as it reflects on globalisation’s

impact on our understanding of a people and a homeland. Furthermore, it presents a great example

of how the thoughts of Rousseau, a great philosopher of the 1700s, are still relevant in today’s

society.

Word count: 1.100

Theorising Politics and International Relations, UOW 12.11.2019

4

Bibliography Delaney, J. (2017). Rousseau, self-love, and an increasingly connected world. Oxford University Press. Available from https://blog.oup.com/2017/06/rousseau-self-love/ (Accessed 09 November, 2019). Dent, N. J. H. (2008). Rousseau. London; New York: Routledge. Jacobs, J. (no date). The Importance of the Community (Kehilla) in Judaism. My Jewish Learning. Available from https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/community-focused/ (Accessed 09 November, 2019). Nabulsi, K. (2003). Being Palestinian. Government and Opposition, 38(4), pp. 479-496. Rousseau, J. (1772). Considerations on the Government of Poland and on its Proposed Reformation. ETH zürich. Available from: https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/125482/5016_Rousseau_Considerations_on_the_Government_of_Poland.pdf (Accessed 09 November, 2019) Rousseau, J. (1999). Discourse on political economy and The social contract. Oxford: Oxford University Press.