The Multiple Modernities in Turkish Literature: A. H. Tanpınar’s Liminality or Terkip

Abstract

Traversing disciplinary boundaries between literary studies, cultural studies and sociology, this study aims to explore modernity and modernization discussions in relation to Turkey to understand whether Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar’s uneasiness arose from the idea of modernity itself, its dialogue with tradition, its application in Turkish society or from a combination of all of these. The study presents an outline of the central themes of Multiple Modernities; then it continues with a study of contemporary views of modernity and modernization in Turkey to be able to elaborate on how Tanpınar as a novelist and thinker approaches modernity and understands Turkish modernization project. Most importantly, the study aims to underscore and explore the relationship between Tanpınar’s idea of modernity or terkip (co-existence of dichotomies) and the Multiple Modernities approach by referring to Henri Bergson’s influence on Tanpınar’s ideas and to the parallelisms between Walter Benjamin and Tanpınar.

Keywords

• ahmet hamdi tanpınar
• ҫoklu moderniteler
• kültür ҫalışmaları
• türk modernitesi
• eşik
• ahmet hamdi tanpınar
• multiple modernities
• cultural studies
• turkish modernity
• liminal