A Bottle in the Gaza Sea

This section shows Tal and Naïm building a tenuous connection as they intersperse discussions about The Impact of Geopolitical Conflict on Individual Lives with banal commentary about singing competition shows and relationship troubles. In these emails, they demonstrate very different attitudes, and the tone is distinctly different between them: He is sarcastic and distant, posing rhetorical questions and calling her names that suggest she is foolish to be so hopeful. She is patient with his insults, but only to a point, as she tells him that she understands his insults and seeks to diffuse the tension. She states of Israelis, “A people that has suffered for two thousand years inevitably builds up ammunition against despair” (44). Her hope—and the humor in her responses that Naïm begrudgingly recognizes—is a defense against this despair. Further, the challenges she poses for him by continuing to engage directly and showing their likenesses convey her determination to break through his use of despair as a defense. This Hope Versus Despair represents two different but valid approaches to lives that are surrounded by constant conflict: Anger can protect in the same way hope can, providing a shield from the violence and political unrest around them. These defense mechanisms, which speak to the theme of The Complexities of Identity and Belonging in a Divided Society, are two sides of the same coin, foreshadowing the complementary nature of their budding relationship.

Naïm and Tal’s descriptions of the Israeli and Palestinian viewpoints on Rabin’s assassination further demonstrate a shared history and perspective between them; they also serve the expository purpose of providing additional historical context, explaining what caused the fragile peace of the Oslo Accords to end, which disappointed both Naïm and Tal, as well as their families. Their shared shock at the killer being Israeli also highlights their quickness to assume that violence is more common amongst Palestinians, which helps to explain Naïm’s tendency toward anger regarding the larger conflict. The text further emphasizes the effects of violence in conflict that relates to religion and leads to the destruction of mutually sacred sites, as well as exploring The Complexities of Identity and Belonging in a Divided Society. Through Tal and Naïm’s descriptions, there were people on both sides of the conflict who loved and hated Rabin. Naïm points out that many Palestinians had hoped for peace as well:

[T]here was this man, an Israeli, who first saw the light of day twenty-five years after our land was occupied, forty-five years after the war that gave you a country. [...] And he made up his mind that he would get you to accept the idea, to give us a little something, a hint of autonomy, a scrap of independence (41).

Both characters demonstrate how such major events and their impacts live alongside the more trivial aspects of daily life, and both Naïm and Tal use verbal irony to point out the absurdity of some situations: Tal says it’s “funny” that Eytan is closer to Naïm while stationed in Gaza, but Tal and Naïm are learning things about each other that defy distance; in fact, it is their distance in Jerusalem and Gaza, respectively, that allows them to share many of the same conflicts and emotions but through entirely different lenses. Further, Naïm describes the Palestinian response to the cancellation of a singing competition for religious reasons, “I thought there was going to be a big uprising among young Arabs but it didn’t happen; everyone kept their heads down. And some people secretly started watching your program, Kohav nolad” (51). Israeli boys are soldiers in Gaza, while in Gaza, Palestinians are watching an Israeli television show.

Naïm’s wariness and the physical boundaries between them keep Tal at a distance for now, but together, they are bridging the distance in their perspectives and beliefs surrounding the events they both experience. These similarities and ironies suggest the two are closer than they think, foreshadowing an even deeper connection. And while this section in particular captures the push-and-pull nature of their initial relationship, it is necessary to their building of mutual trust. Despite Naïm’s annoyance with Tal, and particularly with her unwavering hopefulness, his continued engagement shows that he is interested and already sees some common ground, as a truly angry recipient of such a letter would destroy it, report it, or forget it completely.