Sabras Don't Age

The book "Sabras don’t age" explores the inner world and identities of 23 senior officers from the founding Israeli 1948's generation, at their seventies. As human representations of the "Sabra" – the mythological "new Jew" – these officers embody the extreme opposition between youthfulness and old age; between hegemony and marginality. Those persons who once constituted the ultimate symbols of the Hebrew youngster, the agile commander, the powerful masculine body, and the Western ideal of eternal youth – are presently facing the deterioration of their bodies, their approaching death, and most painfully – the current cultural meanings of being old. Their personal aging process is accompanied by major changes that took place in the Israeli society, primarily the move from collectivistic toward individualistic ideologies, with the consequent undermining of their status.
How do these Israeli heroes settle the wide contradiction between the values which they have symbolized throughout their lives and their present situation? Are they able to preserve their status as national pantheon heroes, while coping at the same time with the various demands posed by their advanced age?
Already at their eight life decade, the Israeli officers identify themselves – in their "narrative identity cards" – as Sabras, men and heroic commanders who have dedicated their lives to their homeland, and above all –as non-old. Yet, as opposed to the ceased time in the narratives, time incessantly flows in their private lives. Indeed, the officers do not deny their aging. Rather, they are completely aware of the changes that took place in their lives and bodies and directly cope with the new needs. Through the mechanism of compartmentalization, they are able to preserve a public heroic young self, while coping - in private - with old age. In this way, they succeed to maintain a valued identity in a world that worships youth.
These officers' identity management sheds light not only on the first Israelis at their advanced years, but also on the founding ethos of the Israeli collective identity. However, as the youth ideal is by no means bounded to the Israeli case, but encompasses the Western world as a whole, the identity strategies employed by the Sabra Generals possess major implications for all elders, and especially for older men, in the post-modern era. Thus, this book is aimed not only at readers interested in the Israeli society and culture, and not only at those concerned with the aging of army officers, but to anyone that wonders how is it possible to age keeping a respected and continuous self in a world that relates to old people as the ultimate "other".