Amos Oz
A master storyteller who wove the personal and political into novels that defined the soul of a nation and argued tirelessly for peace.
1939–2018 (age 79)·Israeli writer, journalist and intellectual·Birthday: May 4·The Silent Generation
Biography
Born Amos Klausner in Jerusalem in 1939, his life was irrevocably shaped by the early suicide of his mother and his subsequent move to a kibbutz at fourteen, where he changed his surname to Oz, meaning 'strength'. His literary voice emerged from this soil of personal and collective struggle, producing novels like 'My Michael' and 'A Tale of Love and Darkness' that explored the intimate tensions within Israeli families as a mirror for the national conflict. More than just a writer, Oz became a central intellectual figure, his pen a tool for political engagement. From the aftermath of the 1967 war, he was a founding voice of the Peace Now movement, advocating for a two-state solution with a moral clarity that made him both a beacon and a lightning rod. His work, translated into dozens of languages, offered the world a complex, human portrait of Israel far beyond headlines.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Amos was born in 1939, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Amos Was Born
The biggest hits of 1939
#1 Movie
Gone with the Wind
Best Picture
Gone with the Wind
Amos's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1939Born
World War II begins; The Wizard of Oz premieres
Gas: $0.19/galMin wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Over the Rainbow" — Judy GarlandBest Picture: Gone with the Wind
1944Started school
D-Day: Allied forces land at Normandy
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $3,400Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Swinging on a Star" — Bing CrosbyBest Picture: Going My Way
1952Became a teenager
Queen Elizabeth II ascends the throne
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,350Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Blue Tango" — Leroy AndersonBest Picture: The Greatest Show on Earth
1955Could drive
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1957Could vote
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1960Turned 21
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1969Turned 30
Apollo 11: humans walk on the Moon; Woodstock festival
Gas: $0.35/galHome: $15,550Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Sugar, Sugar" — The ArchiesBest Picture: Midnight Cowboy
1979Turned 40
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1989Turned 50
Berlin Wall falls; Tiananmen Square protests
Gas: $1.00/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Look Away" — ChicagoBest Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
1999Turned 60
Columbine shooting; Y2K panic builds
Gas: $1.17/galHome: $113,900Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Believe" — CherBest Picture: American Beauty
2009Turned 70
Michael Jackson dies; Bitcoin created
Gas: $2.35/galHome: $148,500Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Boom Boom Pow" — The Black Eyed PeasBest Picture: The Hurt Locker
2018Died at 79
Royal wedding of Harry and Meghan; Parkland shooting
Gas: $2.72/galHome: $211,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"God's Plan" — DrakeBest Picture: Green Book
Key Achievements
- Authored the internationally celebrated memoir 'A Tale of Love and Darkness', a poignant exploration of his family and the birth of Israel.
- Was a co-founder of the Peace Now movement, shaping decades of Israeli political discourse on peace with Palestinians.
- Awarded the prestigious Goethe Prize in 2005 for his lifetime contribution to literature and intellectual engagement.
- Served as a professor of Hebrew literature at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, influencing generations of writers.
Did You Know?
He changed his surname from Klausner to Oz, meaning 'strength' or 'courage' in Hebrew, when he moved to Kibbutz Hulda.
Oz served in the Israeli Defense Forces during both the Six-Day War and the Yom Kippur War.
He was a longtime friend and correspondent with Palestinian intellectual Sari Nusseibeh, with whom he debated peace.
His work has been translated into over 45 languages worldwide.
“When two people fight, it's not that one is right and the other wrong. Both are right and both are wrong.”
