ABSTRACT
The kibbutzim and moshavim of the Arava are in many ways different from their cousins in other regions. This chapter examines the forces that brought about different reactions between the kibbutzim and the moshavim, and among the different kibbutzim. Both the kibbutz and the moshav movements were founded on the ideal of self-labor, but demographic changes in the communities and in Israel as a whole during the 1950s and 1960s led to at least partial abandonment of that ideal. The kibbutzim remained agricultural, with relatively little industry, and the moshav members nearly all farmed their own land, preventing the situation of having a plot too large for one family. The moshav members had no choice but to develop highly professional intensive agriculture, because their economic structure did not allow them to invest in new enterprises that did not yield immediate profits. Technological advancements could reduce the amount of labor involved in hothouse agriculture.
