Kenneth Levin

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Kenneth Levin (born 1944) is a Newton, Massachusetts psychiatrist and historian and the author of The Oslo Syndrome: Delusions of a People Under Siege.

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Levin is a clinical instructor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, a B.A./M.A. in English language and literature from Oxford University, an M.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania, and a Ph.D. in history from Princeton University. His thesis was on "Sigmund Freud's Early Studies of the Neuroses, 1886–1905."

In an article entitled, "Transforming the Jewish Psyche," journalist Warren Kozak discussed Levin's analysis of the modern "penchant for self-denigration among Jewish people." Kozak summarized that "Dr. Levin, no sixth grade thinker, tells us that after centuries of hearing grotesque lies about Jewish people, that narrative hasn't just rubbed off on anti-Semites, but on some Jews as well." [1] In an interview with the Jerusalem Post, Manfred Gerstenfeld praised Levin's Oslo Syndrome for bringing to light "this phenomenon of identifying with one's besiegers." [2]

Following the 2005 publication of his book The Oslo Syndrome: Delusions of a People Under Siege, Levin became a frequent commentator on Middle East affairs. [3] [4] [5] [6]

According to Levin, the Oslo syndrome is a corollary of the Stockholm syndrome. Levin's original contribution is that the syndrome can afflict an entire people. The concept has passed into common usage in discussions of the Middle East. [7]

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Related Research Articles

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This is a list of writings published by Sigmund Freud. Books are either linked or in italics.

The Oslo Syndrome: Delusions of a People Under Siege is a 2005 book by Kenneth Levin, a psychiatrist with doctorate in history. The book applies psychiatric insights to the Arab-Israel conflict by arguing that Israel's reaction to Arab hostility is a corollary of the Stockholm syndrome in which hostages come to identify and empathize with their captors.

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References

  1. Warren Kozak (July 20, 2006). "Transforming The Jewish Psyche". New York Sun.
  2. The Oslo Syndrome: Delusions of a People Under Siege – Middle East Forum
  3. "Jt-050317-11". Archived from the original on 2006-02-28. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
  4. Gabrielle Birkner (October 19, 2007). "Conference Focuses on Israel's Jewish 'Defamers'". New York Sun. Archived from the original on December 23, 2007. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  5. Adam Kirsch (November 23, 2007). "Israel's Jewish Defamers". New York Sun.
  6. Zilber, Uzi (25 December 2009). "The Jew Flu: The strange illness of Jewish anti-Semitism". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 7 January 2010. Retrieved 25 December 2009.