Hebrew Literature

Oz, Amos

Biography | Texts | Interviews

Amos Oz (b. 1939, Jerusalem, Israel) went to live on a kibbutz at the age of fifteen. After completing his army service in 1961, he returned to the kibbutz, where he worked in agriculture. His first short stories were published when he was in his early twenties. Oz studied Philosophy and Literature at the Hebrew University. For twenty-five years he divided his time between writing and teaching in the kibbutz high school. In 1986 he left the kibbutz and now lives in the southern town of Arad and teaches literature at Ben Gurion University of the Negev.

Since the 1967 Six Day War, Oz has published numerous articles and essays about the Israeli/Arab conflict. He is one of the leading figures in the "Peace Now" movement. Oz has served as visiting fellow at Oxford University, author-in-residence at the Hebrew University and writer-in-residence at Colorado College. He has been named Officer of Arts and Letters of France, and in 1997 President Jaques Chirac awarded him the "Legion d' honneur." In 1991 he was elected a full member of the Academy of the Hebrew Language. He has been honored with the French Prix Femina and the 1992 Frankfurt Peace Prize. He received the 1986 Bialik Prize and the 1998 Israel Prize for Literature. Oz has rooted his writing in the tempestuous history of his homeland. A common thread runs through his fiction and nonfiction, examining human nature, recognizing its frailty but glorifying its diversity. Oz consistently pleads for an end to ambivalence, for dialogue, for a channeling of passions towards faith in the future. Economic in his use of language, Oz presents the people of Israel, its political tribulations and the biblical landscape.

Books Published in Hebrew

Where the Jackals Howl (stories), Massada, 1965; Am Oved, 1976 [Artzot Ha-Tan]
Elsewhere, Perhaps (novel), Sifriat Poalim, 1966; Keter, 1989 [Makom Aher]
My Michael (novel), Am Oved, 1968; Keter, 1990 [Michael Sheli]
Unto Death (novellas), Sifriat Poalim, 1971; Keter, 1991 [Ad Mavet]
Touch the Water, Touch the Wind (novel), Am Oved, 1973 [Laga'at Ba-Mayim Laga'at Ba-Ruah]
Different People (selected works), Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 1974 [Anashim Aherim]
The Hill of Evil Counsel (novellas), Am Oved, 1976 [Har Ha-Etzah Ha-Ra'ah]
Soumchi (youth), Am Oved, 1978; Keter, 1990 [Soumchi]
Under this Blazing Light (essays), Sifriat Poalim, 1979; Keter, 1990 [Ba-Or Ha-Tchelet Ha-Azah]
A Perfect Peace (novel), Am Oved, 1982; Keter, 1992 [Menuhah Nechonah]
In the Land of Israel (essays), Am Oved, 1983 [Po Ve-Sham Be-Eretz Israel]
Black Box (novel), Am Oved, 1987 [Kufsah Shorah]
The Slopes of Lebanon (essays), Am Oved, 1987 [Mi-Mordot Lebanon]
Color Separation (stories), Am Oved, 1989 [Hafradat Tzva'im]
To Know a Woman (novel), Keter Am Oved, 1989 [Lada'at Ishah]
The Third Condition/Fima (novel), Keter, 1991 [Ha-Matzav Ha-Shlishi]
The Silence of Heaven (literary criticism), Keter, 1993 [Shtikat Ha-Shamayim]
Don't Call It Night (novel), Keter, 1994 [Al Tagidi Layla]
A Panther in the Basement (novel), Keter, 1995 [Panter Ba-Martef]
Beginning a Story (non-fiction), Keter, 1996 [Mathilim Sipur]
All Our Hopes (essays), Keter, 1998 [Kol Ha-Tikvot]
The Same Sea (Let Her) (novel), Keter, 1999 [Oto Ha-Yam]

Copyright © The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature.
Reprinted by kind permission of The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature. First published on the website of The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature: www.ithl.org.il

Texts

Reading Practice:

The Same Sea

Interviews

Interview with Amoz Oz (in English; video/audio/text)