Memel-Ifs 'Portrait Sketches' Views
Racism as Sum Total of Oppression

Albert Memmi, the Tunis-born
scholar who teaches and lectures
extensively, who, from his home
in Paris, has guided many pro-
jects involving research in and
concern over world affairs affect-
ing Jewry, addresses additional
thought-provoking questions to his
readers in his new collection of
essays, "Dominated Man—Sketch-
es for a Portrait," published by
Orion Press and distributed by
Grossman Publishers (125A E.
19th, NY3).
It is, in its totality, a study of
racism, of black versus white or
black and white relationships, de-
lineating a portrait of the oppres-
sed, reaching the conclusion that:
"Racism is, I believe, the sym-
bol and the sum of all oppres-
sion."
In these notes towards the por-
trait he has defined, Memmi deals
with the roles of the proletariat,
women, the colonized, the black
man, the domestic servant, the
Jew.
In his attempt at a definition he
analyzes racist attitudes and re-
sort to aggression and offers the
definition:
"Racism is the generalized and
final assigning of values to real
or imaginary differences, to the
accuser's benefit and at his vic-
tim's expense, in order to jus-
tify the former's own privileges
of aggression."
In his thorough review of the
racist practices, Memmi also
treats the "surprising racism prac-
tices by the oppressed man him-
self," and asserts:
"If the French proletarian wants
to feel a little taller, whom is he
to step on if not on the immigrant
worker, who has been North
African so far but might also be
Italian, Spanish or Polish—in other
words, of the same so-called race
as Himself? Proof, if proof were
needed, that racism is not always
directly connected with race. If the
modest colonizer, himself so taken
advantage of and so disinherited,
wanted to take revenge, what
other target was there than the
colonized, whom he could look
down upon from the limited
height of those meager privileges
which the colonial system gave
him? So it is that the American
Jew may be tempted to scorn the
American black, who reciprocates
heartily."
Extensively reviewing the atti-
tude of Sigmund Freud on the
Jewish question. Memmi expresses
the view that "Freud wants to lib-
erate the modern Jew from Juda-
ism" and, on the other hand.
Kafka "was so obsessed with his
Jewishness that he dedicated his
whole work to it."
"J u d a i s m" is distinguished
from "Jewry" and Memmi of-
fers an explanation: "Judaism
is the sum total of doctrines,
beliefs and institutions. Jewry is
the sum total of existing Jews.
Freud discusses Judaism, he
never questions the fact that he
is part of Jewry."
In the course of his evaluative
review of "Jews and Christians."
Memmi emphasizes that "if the
problem of the relations between
Jews and Christians, and between
Jews and Moslems, could be ex-
pressed only in theological terms,
then it would be insoluble."
His view is that "historically.
the Jew occupies a negative place
in the Christian drama: he is the
counterpoint, the somber anti-
thesis of the Christian."
"One thing is certain," he de-
clares, "and that is that Juda-
ism and Jewry have for cen-
turies been the Christian's stum-
bling-block, and this persistent,
living reminder of their incom-
plete victory, and their con-
tinuing weakness, has exasperat-
ed them. The Jews have suffer-
ed horribly as a result of this
exasperation."
On this score, Memmi has very

definite views which, he says, call
for Christian acceptance of the
, reality of the Jewish condition,
and in his summary emphasizes:
"If I were asked what I hope
from the Christians and from
Jewish-Christian dialogue s, I
I should say that I want them to
help me effectively to avert the
threat (and, of course, for them
not to oppose me any more them-
selves); and for them really to
accept me as I am, and finally to
acknowledge our difference s,
which are not only theological, but
social, historical and cultural; for
them to recognize my right to all
the different aspects of my nature.
"To my way of thinking this is
the only true ecumenism, the
touchstone of the new spirit of
goodwill animating Christians to-
day, I hope I may be forgiven this
whimsical notion; I think the theo-
logians will come round to it later.
"The problem is the same with
regard to the Muslims: theology
teaches us that Ismael was driven
into the desert with his mother
Hagar, their only means of subsis-
tence a little gourd of water. From
this iniquitous expulsion Islam was

born: how could this mythical act
ever be expiated?
"On the other hand, we can,
and we must, come together to
study present-day relations be-
tween Jews and Muslims, and on
the basis of them establish new
rules of conduct."
Several translators participated
in rendering the Memmi essays
from the French into English.
They included Jane Brooks, Ghis-
laine Boulanger, Howard Green-
feld, Eleanor Levieux and Carol
Martin-Sperry.

Ignorance
Mankind has a great aversion
to intellectual labor; but even sup-
posing knowledge to be easily at-
tainable, more people would be
content to be ignorant than would
take even a little trouble to acquire
it. —Samuel Johnson

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