Biography
Derek Penslar is the William Lee Frost Professor of Jewish History at Harvard University. He takes a comparative and transnational approach to the study of Jewish history, which he studies within the contexts of modern capitalism, nationalism, and colonialism. Penslar’s most recent books are Jews and the Military: A History (2013) and Theodor Herzl: The Charismatic Leader (2020). He is currently writing a book titled Zionism: An Emotional State and is beginning work on a global history of the 1948 Palestine War.