FasminaSherinT Second Semester M.A English KAHM Unity Women’s
College, Manjeri
Turkish culture is marked in the
world history for its intricacies and convolutions in the political, religious
and artistic domains.Faith in God and religion had an obtrusive role in the
Turkish history since time immemorial. Religion is aforethought and validated
as an ideology or collection of beliefs and practices generally agreed by a
group of people or sects that helps man to move on in his life. But, once
religion is donned in the garb of a political authority, it loses its serenity
and intimidates the progression of the nation. Freedom of art and expression
too was denied in a society where politicized religion has stood all ears
listening to every whisper and murmurs that were spoken and delivered.
The focus of my dissertation is to
the ‘corrupted politics’ or ‘corrupted religion’ that resulted out of the
assimilation of politics and religion. What made religion in Turkey grow out of
its premises as a private sentiment into a political or radical force? Why was
one painting chosen over another? Why were some works sidelined? The trouble
that afflicts both artistry and spirituality, and thus creates a kinship
between them, is the problem of representation and its political consequences.
It is to this hidden agenda of spiritual opportunism, the exploitation of
spiritual ideas for selfish political interests that I would like to focus with
special reference to Orhan Pamuk’s Snow
and My Name is Red.
This dissertation also draws its
concern to show how power and influence has become the fundamental prerogative
and priority of an entire community. Nothing, even art could bestow happiness
and satisfaction to a society that longs for the luxuries of political power
and authority. It also aims to examine the social and political conflict
between secularism and Islamism which is the root cause of the cultural strife
that predominates in Turkey. To conclude with, the paper draws a clear picture
of modern Turkey that has literally stuck between the past and the future; the
secular modernists and the conventional traditionalists who engaged in constant
duels to access control over the political attitudes of Turkey.
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