ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book concentrates on the Palestinian people, society, and politics; their communal structures and economic roles; their political culture and dynamics; and their future. It provides a general and comprehensive formulation of Palestine and the post-1948 Palestinian communities that links their social transformation to regional and global restructuring. Significant as it is in the international context, the question of Palestine is far more critical in the Middle East and Arab regions. In the West the most misunderstood element within the question of Palestine is the Palestinian people. Kathleen Christison traced the perceptions of Palestine and the development of the Jewish-centered, later Israeli-centered, frame of reference in American popular and political culture and the derivative policy toward the country and its people.
