Moshe Shamir (; 15 September 1921 – 20 August 2004) was an Israeli author, playwright, opinion writer, and public figure. He was the author of a play upon which Israeli film ''
He Walked Through the Fields'' was based.
Biography
Shamir was born in
Safed. He went to the Tel Nordau School and graduated from the
Herzliya Hebrew High School in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
.

In the
1948 Arab-Israeli War he served in
Palmach. He began his political career as a member of the movement
Hashomer Hatzair, in which he filled a leadership role. He was one of the editors of their official newspaper ''Al Ha-Homa'' from 1939 to 1941. From 1944 to 1946 he was a member of
kibbutz
A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...
Mishmar HaEmek. He was founder and editor of the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
official newspaper ''
Bamahane'' ("In the Camp") from 1947 to 1950. During the 1950s he was a member of the editorial board of the newspaper ''
Maariv'' and the editor of its literature section.
Literary and journalism career
Shamir began writing stories at a young age. They immediately attracted attention, and not only for his literary ability. He was always engaged with political problems, always arousing opposition. The first opposition came from
Meir Ya'ari, leader of the left-wing movement to which Shamir belonged, concerning what was perceived as "ideological aberration" in his stories. In hindsight it is difficult to understand what the fuss was about. The stories seem completely innocent and certainly are not hostile or injurious to the kibbutz movement. However, the anger that was aroused against Shamir was so strong that he decided to leave his kibbutz in 1947 for ideological reasons.
Shamir's first story, appearing in print in 1940, dealt with
Abraham
Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...
and the
binding of Isaac. The story was published in the youth movement newspaper ''Al Ha-Homa''. In his 1947 novel ''He Walked Through the Fields'', which became the first play performed in the established State of Israel, the hero is a native-born Israeli, a "Sabra". The book won the
Ussishkin Prize. It was adapted as a
movie
A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...
directed by Yosef Millo, who also directed its theatrical debut. In 1947, he became the chief editor of the
Haganah (later
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
) newspaper ''
Bamahane''. He edited it until he was dismissed at the request of
David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion ( ; ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary List of national founders, national founder and first Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister of the State of Israel. As head of the Jewish Agency ...
for publishing an article about a celebration of the disbanding of
Palmach. Thereafter he continually aroused scandals, more than any other Hebrew author of that time.
The hero of ''With His Own Hands: Elik's Story'' (1951) is his brother Elik who fell in the War of Independence. The book became an
icon of that war. ''Alik's Story'' was translated into English, adapted into radio plays, and even merited an adaptation for television. It is one of the greatest Israeli bestsellers of all time, selling to date over 150,000 copies. It became part of the program of study in schools.
''Under the Sun'' (1950) and ''That You Are Naked'' (1959) are
autobiographical
An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...
pieces based on his life in the thirties and forties. Shamir wrote additional books about the members of his family: ''With His Own Heart'' about his father, and ''Not Far From the Tree'' about his family history.
Besides ''The King of Flesh and Blood'', his most translated book was a children's book, ''The Fifth Wheel'' (1961). It is about the adventures of a kibbutznik, dispatched to bring a tractor from the port, who at every step meets various and sundry obstacles and adventures.
Joseph Klausner was critical of ''The King of Flesh and Blood'', whose central character is the
Hasmonean king
Alexander Jannæus.
Menachem Begin
Menachem Begin ( ''Menaḥem Begin'', ; (Polish documents, 1931–1937); ; 16 August 1913 – 9 March 1992) was an Israeli politician, founder of both Herut and Likud and the prime minister of Israel.
Before the creation of the state of Isra ...
recalled Klausner's words in a later day when Moshe Shamir, as a member of the
Knesset, crossed the political lines from left to right to oppose the
Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. As the prime minister at the time, Begin spoke out against Shamir in the Knesset, indicating that Shamir's objections showed a lack of awareness of the historic moves taking place. He said to Shamir (in Hebrew):
:Certainly you recall that, in his day, the late Prof. Joseph Klausner wrote, when you published your book ''The King of Flesh and Blood'', these words: "There may sometimes be a writer who is not a historian, but to such an extent?" And now I say: "There may sometimes be a politician who does not recognize the rustling wings of history, but to such an extent?"
Moshe Shamir also wrote poetry. However, most of his trade was in prose. He was a prolific author, publishing more than 25 books in the course of his life.
He died in
Rishon LeZion at the age of 83. He was survived by his wife Tzvia.
Political career
He was active in
Mapam. After the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
, similarly to the songwriter
Naomi Shemer, he changed his political leaning. He became one of the creators of the
Movement for Greater Israel (''Eretz Israel HaShlema'', literally "Whole Land of Israel"), a part of the
La'am faction in the
Likud. He was elected to the Knesset in the legislative elections of 1977. He was among the founders of the "Bnai" faction (acronym for a phrase meaning "Union of Eretz Israel Faithful") that opposed the
Camp David Accords (1978). In late 1979, after the Israel-Egypt peace treaty, he broke away from Likud, along with Knesset member
Geula Cohen, and found the
Tehiya Bnai party. He supported the
settling
Settling is the process by which particulates move towards the bottom of a liquid and form a sediment. Particles that experience a force, either due to gravity or due to Centrifuge, centrifugal motion will tend to move in a uniform manner in the ...
of the
West Bank
The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...
after its capture.
His shift from left to right took a toll on him as the main literary societies banned him from membership.
Awards
Among the various prizes received by Shamir for his work were the following:
* In 1950, the Ussishkin Prize;
[(April 10, 2010)]
He Walked Through the Fields
Ynet.
* In 1953, the
Brenner Prize;
* In 1955, the
Bialik Prize for literature;
* In 1988, the capstone was the
Israel Prize
The Israel Prize (; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor.
History
Prior to the Israel Prize, the most significant award in the arts was the Dizengoff Prize and in Israel ...
, for Hebrew literature.
Works in English translation
* ''He Walked Through the Fields'' (1959, as a play), translation of ''Hu Halach Ba-Sadot'' (1947)
* ''Taking the Mountains'' (1948, play)
* ''With His Own Hands'' (1970), translation of ''Be-Mo Yadav'' (1951)
* ''The King of Flesh and Blood'' (1958), translation of ''Melech Basar Va-Dam'' (1954)
* ''David's Stranger'' (1965), also with title ''The Hittite Must Die'' (1978), translation of ''Kivsat Ha-Rash'' (1956)
* ''The Fifth Wheel'' (1961), translation of ''Ha-Galgal Ha-Hamishi'' (1961)
* ''My Life With Ishmael'' (1970, political autobiography), translation of ''Hayai Im Ishmael'' (1968)
See also
*
List of Bialik Prize recipients
*
List of Israel Prize recipients
This is an incomplete list of recipients of the Israel Prize from the inception of the Prize in 1953 - 2025.
List
For each year, the recipients are, in most instances, listed in the order in which they appear on the official Israel Prize website ...
References
External links
Moshe ShamirInstitute for Translation of Hebrew Literature
*
Jewish Agency for Israel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shamir, Moshe
1921 births
2004 deaths
People from Safed
Jews from Mandatory Palestine
Jewish Israeli writers
Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium alumni
Palmach members
Jewish writers
Brenner Prize recipients
Israel Prize in literature recipients
Israeli male dramatists and playwrights
Israeli novelists
20th-century Israeli novelists
20th-century Israeli dramatists and playwrights
Members of the 9th Knesset (1977–1981)
La'am politicians
Recipients of Prime Minister's Prize for Hebrew Literary Works
Burials at Kiryat Shaul Cemetery
Israeli military personnel of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War
Bialik Prize recipients