ABSTRACT
This introductory chapter begins by presenting the terms Occupation Normalization Discourse and Occupation Estrangement Discourse. The chapter explains that Occupation Normalization Discourse portrays Israeli control of the territories as a “normal” part of life, while Occupation Estrangement Discourse portrays this situation as a phenomenon distant from Israeli reality, culturally, ideologically, and geographically. The chapter then provides a brief background and rationale to the volume explaining the key roles that competing discourses regarding the Israeli occupation of the West Bank have regarding the fate of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We then portray an illustration of normalization versus estrangement discourses, showing how these discourses feed off one another. The chapter concludes with a brief outline of the chapters that comprise this volume.
