Includes bibliographical references and index.

Discusses the origins of antisemitism and especially its development in the modern world. Traces antisemitism to religious origins, to the fact that Christianity and Islam are both derived from Judaism and therefore have an Oedipal relationship to Judaism. Argues that non-religious antisemitism is all the more potent because of its unacknowledged religious roots. The modern world never quite emerged from the medieval world, and one of its unwanted legacies is its burden of antisemitism. Some of the chapters in this book are adaptations of articles published in "Midstream" (February & November 1970, May 1973, and March 1976), the "Times Literary Supplement" (25 June 1999), and "The Critical Survey" 3 (1967). Contents: