Books by Turkish writers worth reading.
Keep it to yourself so you don't lose it!
1. Elif Shafak "Apprentice Architect"
XVI century. #Ottoman Empire. The era of Suleiman the Magnificent.
By the will of fate, twelve-year-old Jahan and his ward, a white elephant named Chota, find themselves in #Istanbul, at the court of a powerful sultan. Here, Jahan is destined to experience many amazing adventures, find friends, meet love and become a student of the outstanding architect - the architect Sinan.
An amazing story about the freedom of creativity, about the battle between science and fanaticism, about the clash of love and loyalty with brute force...
2. Yasmine Gata "Night of calligraphers"
Türkiye, 1923 The government bans the Arabic language and reforms the writing system, introducing an adjusted version of the Latin alphabet. Calligraphers, servants of Allah and sultans, are no longer needed, schools of scribes are closed one after another. Rikkat, the main character, ends up as a girl in one of these schools, where she meets Selim, an old virtuoso calligrapher, acquaintance with whom will forever connect her with the mysterious art - #calligraphy. An amazingly beautiful oriental novel that tells about the fate of a woman who became disillusioned with men and devoted herself to the noblest art of depicting the Divine word. This book plunges the reader into an absolutely unknown, strange and mystical world of Arabic calligraphy.
3. Sabahattin Ali "Madonna in a fur coat"
The novel "Madonna in a Fur Coat" is the story of Raif Effendi, the offspring of a wealthy Ottoman family, who by the will of fate turned into a petty employee, a typical "little man" of Turkey in the first half of the 20th century. A significant part of the novel is the hero's diary - the story of Raif-efendi's life in Turkey and Germany, his love for the German artist Maria Puder, spiritual searches and torments. The hero's life in Europe takes place against the backdrop of a masterfully portrayed Germany of the period after the defeat in the First World War. The author of the novel brought out many vivid, psychologically accurate types of Germans and Turks of the 1920s and 1930s (the writer himself lived in Germany for several years).
4. Serdar Ozkan "Key of Life"
In his new philosophical work, Turkish writer Serdar Ozkan, who is considered by many to be Paolo Coelho's successor, tells the story of a child who found a friend and, thanks to him, came to know the light of true Love. Omer is helped by magical creatures: a mermaid, a Red-handed Old Woman, an old man looking for a new keeper for the Book of Hope, and even the Angel of Death. For if you choose the Light, the author claims, even the Angel of Death will do everything to save your life ...
5. Kemal Orhan "Thrown into the Abyss"
The novel belongs to the pen of the largest writer of modern Turkey. The author is a master of a sharp fascinating plot.
The beginning of events refers to the 1920s, i.e. to the era of the Kemalist revolution in Turkey, and the last scenes are played out in the 1950s.
Before the reader passes a string of people standing at different levels of the social ladder: officials, the rich, big swindlers and petty swindlers, drug dealers and pious bigots.
6. Reshad Nuri Gyuntekin "Korolok - songbird"
A novel that has become for Turkish literature about the same as `Jane Eyre` for English literature, `Gone with the Wind` for American literature, and `Love Page` for French. Before you is the story of a woman's fate, both deeply lyrical and very significant. A story in the seeming poetic simplicity of which very, very much is hidden ...
7. Orhan Pamuk "My name is red"
The prose of Orhan Pamuk - "Turkish Umberto Eco", as the writer is called in the West - is rightfully considered the most striking phenomenon of Turkish literature throughout its existence. Surprising ethnographic details, complex narration, conducted on behalf of different characters, give the novel "My Name is Red" a unique oriental charm.
8. Perihan Magden "The Messenger Boy Murders"
The events described in this book took place in an ancient city, which the inhabitants themselves compare to a labyrinth. The city is so rich, and its Council is so wild, that many years ago a genetic experiment was started here to breed the perfect messenger boys. Thanks to special injections, these boys look like six-year-olds, although they may be twelve or thirty, and they talk like little lords, or maybe like little robots. The protagonist, who returned to the City from a trip to distant countries, has to take on the investigation of the murders of messenger boys, and at the same time get to know the townspeople, their oddities, habits and secrets.
9. Nedim Gursel "The Conqueror"
"The Conqueror" is a classic "novel within a novel", where the action develops along two parallel storylines. The first is the story of the narrator, Fatih Khazinedar, who, secluded in an old mansion on the banks of the Bosphorus, writes a historical novel about the capture of Constantinople by Mehmed Fatih (the Conqueror) and keeps records of current events. The second is the chapters of the novel itself, in which the militant sultan himself, his entourage, palace dwarfs, dervishes, eunuchs, janissaries, defenders and destroyers of the great city come to life. Suddenly, a woman hiding from persecution after the 1980 military coup breaks into the narrator's life and destroys the measured rhythm of his existence. The protagonist, like his namesake many centuries ago, is forced to make a choice between passion and creativity.
10. Perihan Magden "Companion"
What is the difference between an adult and a child? How capable of love is a person who does not recognize any restrictions on freedom? Is the egoist who is present in each of us capable of hearing another and loving? "To accompany a child on a long sea voyage, a companion is required." A newspaper advertisement for a job was the beginning of a thorny relationship between a cheeky twelve-year-old girl and a young woman who managed to melt the ice of a small heart. "She is an animal, a wild animal without fear and memory...". However, this spoiled teenager, tormented by adult loneliness, is a sad artist who has something to say to the world.
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The list was compiled by the administration of the Vostok community... So mysterious and beautiful! . Join if you're not with us yet!
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When mentioning Turkish literature, few people can offhand name a dozen authors or works. But Türkiye actually has a huge literary heritage. We present to your attention a list of books by Turkish writers translated into Russian.
Among them there are both modern novels and those that have already become classics, but all of them will definitely not leave you indifferent.
1.. Reshad Nuri Güntekin "King - songbird" (Reşat Nuri Güntekin "Çalıkuşu") Everyone has probably heard of this piece. And if you haven’t read the book, then you definitely watched the movie or series of the same name. Reshad Nuri Gyuntekin on the pages of his novel told us the love story of a young teacher Feride and her aunt's son Kamran. From early childhood, Feride and Kamran are brought up in the same house, and when they grow up, they decide to get married. But a few days before the wedding, the girl finds out that her lover has another ... Dumbfounded by this news, Feride leaves her home and decides to run wherever her eyes look. The girl faces many obstacles and problems, envy and intrigue, but still she manages to realize herself, find friends and eventually return to her beloved. “King is a singing bird” is to some extent naive, but at the same time a touching and beautiful story about love and fate, from which no one has yet been able to escape.
2.. Aziz Nesin "King of Football" (Aziz Nesin "Gol kralı") Aziz Nesin is an amazing author who makes readers laugh and think at the same time. His satirical works ridicule vices, both in politics and in society, stand up for freedom and independence. The protagonist of the novel is Said, a kind of stupid simpleton who is laughed at and mocked. Said falls in love with a beautiful woman, for whom he is ready to do anything, including becoming a football star... Plastic surgeries that girls go through to get a guy, "speaking" names, obvious hyperbole and humor bordering on vulgarity - all this is about a great romance Aziz Nesina "King of Football".
3.. Orhan Pamuk "My Strange Thoughts" Of course, a story about Turkish novels could not do without the mention of Orhan Pamuk, the Nobel Prize-winning author in literature. Pamuk's novels have their own style, as a rule, in his style you either fall in love forever, or you cannot accept it at all. My Strange Thoughts is a remarkably fluid and lyrical story of Turkey, the story of Istanbul, told through the lens of the life of street vendor Mevlut. Rulers and customs change, people and streets of the city change, and Mevlut still slowly rolls his cart with booze through the narrow back streets of Istanbul, having “strange” conversations with the city and not wanting anything more for himself. “My Strange Thoughts” is, to some extent, a nostalgic novel by the author for the elusive old Istanbul, which will never be.
4.. Orhan Kemal "Thrown into the Abyss" (Orhan Kemal "El kızı") A heavy book about the life of an oriental woman, one of the many thousands who shared this bitter fate with her. Oppression - that's what became the main component of the life of poor Nazan. An unloving husband, a cruel mother-in-law, humiliation and anger on the part of others ... But does the heroine do the right thing, submitting to all adversity, submitting to her bitter fate? Do Eastern girls absorb this resignation and willingness to obey with their mother's milk, or is the struggle for happiness always possible? The reader will decide for himself whether to sympathize with Nazan or not, but this novel will definitely make you think.
5.. Elif Shafak "The Architect's Apprentice" (Elif Şafak "Ustam ve ben") Elif Shafak is a Turkish writer who lives in both Turkey and the United States and writes her novels in English and Turkish. The Architect's Apprentice is the story of a poor boy Jahan and his friend, a white elephant named Chota, who, by coincidence, end up in Istanbul during the reign of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. Jahan will have to go through many adventures, he will be destined to meet the Sultan himself, fall in love and become a student of the famous architect Sinan. This novel raises the eternal questions of science, religion, friendship and love, which nothing is subject to.
6.. Sabahattin Ali "Madonna in a Fur Coat" (Sabahattin Ali "Kürk Mantolu Madonna") A novel about love, which to this day enjoys unprecedented popularity among the Turkish reader. This work is not like oriental tales, on the contrary, it tells about life in the west, in Berlin and Ankara in the 1920s. The main character Raif-efendi is first described from the perspective of a familiar person, and then from the perspective of himself. What was the reason for the endless loneliness of the hero, what made him so sad, secretive, nondescript? An unhappy love for a German woman, for which Raif pays for the rest of his days, a love that broke the hero's life forever. The amazing style with which the novel is written allows you to plunge headlong into the inner world of the unfortunate hero in order to understand and live through his life tragedy together with him.
7.. Elif Shafak "Honour" (Elif Şafak "İskender") Honor- the only thing that sometimes remains with a person. In life, you can lose everything, but to the last fight for honor. It is about this, as well as about cruelty towards women, that the novel by Elif Shafak tells. "Honor" is the story of two twin sisters born in a village somewhere on the border of Turkey and Syria, where family values and traditions are valued more than human life itself. The fates of the sisters will disperse, one of them will go to live abroad, but she will not find happiness there either ... The most difficult choice in the world will have to be made by the son of the heroine Iskender - to stand up for the honor of the family or to hurt a loved one. In this novel there is no division into "bad" and "good" - each reader makes a decision for himself.
8.. Orhan Pamuk "Red-haired Woman" It would seem that the plot of the novel is simple - a young lyceum student Jem falls in love with a mature woman, a married actress of a traveling theater. The result of this wild passion is a tragedy that claimed the life of a person. Many years later, Jem meets his son by chance - the fruit of his first love for the Red-Haired Woman. And again this meeting will lead to tragedy. What is the role of the Red-Haired Woman, is she guilty, or is she herself a victim - these questions will have to be answered by the reader for himself. Pamuk's work intertwines the eternal theme of fathers and children, the confrontation between east and west, the torment of sin and redemption, as well as numerous parables, including those about child and patricide.
9.. Nazim Hikmet “Life is beautiful, my brother” (Nazim Hikmet “Yaşamak güzel şey be kardeşim”)- the great Turkish writer and poet, a communist who lived for many years in the USSR and died there. For a long time, Hikmet's poems were banned in Turkey, the author himself spent many years in prison. In his novel “Life is beautiful, my brother,” Hikmet describes the years of the revolution in Russia and the formation of the Turkish Republic. But the historical events in the book are organically intertwined with passion, love, devotion and faith in ideals. Despite the tragic events that befell the heroes of the novel, they manage to maintain faith in their ideals and optimism.
MK-Türkiye, Ksenia Kara
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"Extracurricular reading: in Russian about Turkey
Do you read Turkish literature?
Most likely, you are familiar with the work of Orkhan Pamuk and immediately remember the "Singing Bird". Of course, you know the poems of Nazim Hikmet and the funny stories of Aziz Nesin. Meanwhile, there are many good writers and beautiful works in Turkish literature. But how accessible is it to us? What can a Russian reader read from this, unfortunately, not yet sufficiently translated literature? Today I will introduce you to several writers whose works have been translated into Russian.
But first, a little history.
Turkish literature - what is it like?
The history of Turkish literature, unfortunately, is little known to Russian readers. And it, of course, went through the same long and interesting path as other literatures: from the first poems and fairy tales close to folklore, through the influence of Islam and medieval Arabic and Iranian literature and the subsequent struggle for originality, Turkish literature has grown to classical realism and wonderful postmodern prose of Oguz Atay, not yet known in Russia.
As in Russian literature, the most interesting for the modern reader began in it in the 19th century. This was the period of the so-called "Tanzimat" reforms, as a result of which the Ottoman Empire began to move closer to Western, especially French culture, and profound changes began to occur in literature. A new generation of intellectuals, who studied Western works and was influenced first by romanticism and then by realism, introduced forms and genres new to the Turkish tradition into literary use. A special place in the history of Turkish literature is occupied by Servet-i-Funun (Wealth of Knowledge) - this was the name of the avant-garde magazine founded by Halit Ziyya Ushaklygil. At the end of the 19th century, the famous poet Tevfik Fikret became its editor, and he, along with his supporters and followers, sought to create a new Turkish literature, imbued with the spirit of decadence.
At the beginning of the 20th century, a flurry of activity began in Turkey to simplify the language and cleanse it of foreign borrowings and influences. The so-called literature of "Cumhurieta" emerged - the new Republic created by Ataturk. It was a period of idealistic-romantic realism, novels full of patriotism, describing victories in the war and the formation of a new state - doesn’t it, is it reminiscent of the inspired “socialist realism” of early Soviet times that glorifies the exploits of the revolutionaries? In the 1950s-70s, this direction turns into a kind of Russian "critical realism" with a social, democratic, and sometimes Marxist orientation. It is not surprising that Soviet translations from Turkish mainly refer to this period: Turkey had its own “village workers”, its own military prose, its own writers who raised socio-political issues. However, during these same years, other literature developed in Turkey and interesting writers appeared with an individual style and glimpses of modernism.
Today, Russian readers can start their acquaintance with Turkish literature with the following names.
1. Sami Pashazade Sezai (1860-1936)
Sami Pashazade Sesai was an outstanding intellectual writer of the "Tanzimat" period. His two main works are the novel "Adventure" (Sergüzeşt/1888) and the collection of short stories "Miniatures" (Küçük Şeyler/1891). "Adventure" was erroneously considered for many years to be the first realist work of Turkish literature. The novel tells the tragic story of the Caucasian slave Dilber, who ended up in a wealthy Istanbul family and, of course, fell in love with the son of her masters. “Miniatures” (however, this name is more appropriately translated as “Trifles”) are the first experiments in the Turkish literature in the genre of a story, in which the theme of a small person, well known to Russian readers, appears.
2. Reshad Nuri Guntekin(1889-1956)
Despite his passion for dramaturgy, Guntekin is known as a novelist who actively criticizes Turkish society, and as the creator of amazing romance novels. Everyone knows the novel "Korolek - Singing Bird", but he has other works that are worth reading. Green Night (Yeşil Gece/1928) is about a teacher who has to overcome many difficulties in the village where he goes to work. He will have to fight the regressive-religious education system that covered the country with "green darkness" in the last years of the Ottoman Empire. In Falling Leaves (Yaprak Dökümü/1930), Güntekin depicts the family tragedy of a man who refuses to work, not wanting to compromise his idealistic principles in favor of a dishonest boss. When he retires, he hopes that his son will support the family. However, the peace of the family is disturbed, and each member dries up like an autumn leaf, unable to bear the hardships of life. And for those who are more interested in love stories, we can recommend the novels "Stigma" (Damga), "Enemy of Women" (Bir Kadın Düşmanı), "Night of Fire" (Ateş Gecesi) and "Old Disease" (Eski Hastalık).
3. Yakub Kadri Karaosmanoglu (1889-1974)
In his youth, fond of the literature of French decadence, Yakub Kadri after the formation of the republic changed his artistic style towards realism, directing his attention to social problems. The Outsider (Yaban/1932) tells of the suffering of an intellectual who cannot blend in with his people and understand their feelings. Talking about the observations of his protagonist, who went to the countryside during the civil war and met there a world completely alien to him, Yakub Kadri criticizes the intelligentsia (including himself) for being remote from the people and their problems.
4. Sabahattin Ali (1907-1948)
Sabahattin Ali is one of the first (and one of the best in terms of artistry) realist writers in Turkish literature. Despite his assertion that art should serve as an instrument of ideas, his works are notable for their meticulous aesthetic treatment. All three of his novels (as well as some short stories) have been translated into Russian. His first novel Yusuf of Kuyucak (Kuyucaklı Yusuf/ 1937) tells the romantic and tragic fate of Yusuf, who, having fallen in love with Muazzez, meets with cruel obstacles. Personal problems are shown against the background of the general problems of the then village: the power of local power and the influence of money. The Devil Within Us (İçimizdeki Şeytan/ 1940) is a novel about the struggle between good and evil in the human soul, written in the psychological style of Dostoevsky. The plot of the novel is built around the smart student Omer and his love, but also includes hidden political overtones. And the latest novel, Madonna in a Fur Coat (Kürk Mantolu Madonna/1943), is a beautiful love story that takes us not to Turkey at all, but to Germany during the Second World War.
5. Yasar Kemal (1922-2015)
One of the largest and most famous writers and public figures in Turkey, a realist prose writer, poet and human rights activist, repeatedly nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature, Yasar Kemal died in February this year. His work, which flourished in the 1950s and 1960s, is dedicated to the villages of Eastern Anatolia - places whose folk tales and sayings he collected. A man of difficult fate, who has been persecuted by the authorities more than once, he is considered a classic of modern Turkish literature.
Kemal's most famous novel, "Skinny Memed" (İnce Memed/1955), tells of the struggle of Anatolian peasants for their rights - against poverty, violence and feudal rule. Hiding in the mountains, the main character of the novel Memed organizes a rebellion against the head of the village... this novel has been translated into forty languages, including Russian.
6. Melih Cevdet Andai (1915-2002)
Melih Cevdet is known in Turkey, first of all, as a poet and one of the founders of the Garip school of poetry (from the Turkish word for “strange”), so named because its new, different from the traditional style seemed unusual to everyone. However, Melih Cevdet also has several novels that stand apart from the popular social prose of his time. The Doomed (Aylaklar/1965) is a novel about the life and fall of a large aristocratic family left over from the Ottoman court bureaucracy. The heroes of the novel, who are used to living in their fantasies and not thinking about money, are absolutely not adapted to life in Turkey in the 60s of the twentieth century.
7.Bilge Karasu(1930-1995)
Bilge Karasu is a contemporary Turkish writer who is considered one of the founders of Turkish postmodernism. In his mysterious, surreal, strange and deeply philosophical works, Bilge Karasu raises the themes of life and death, fantasies and feelings of people. In The Garden of Dead Cats (Göçmüş Kediler Bahçesi/1979), he takes the reader into an unusual fantasy world: the events of the novel take place in an ancient city where a mysterious game similar to chess is played every ten years. While the protagonist takes part in this game, numerous parables are interspersed in the plot, and the reader can enjoy the writer's games with subtext and language.
Of course, for those who speak Turkish, completely different names may enter the TOP-7. These are, of course, Ahmet Mithat Efendi, Khalid Ziyya Ushaklygil, Ahmet Hamdi Tanpinar, Sait Faik Abasyyanik, Oguz Atay and many others. Let's hope that someday their works will be available to those who read Russian.
Enjoy reading!"
(With)
On my own behalf, I’ll add that, although many of the names mentioned in the article are already known to me in one way or another, I’m just one of those who really know only Reshat Nuri Gyuntekin (in addition to Chalykush, I also read the novel The Stigma, published with Russian interlinear by the method of Ilya Frank - no less interesting thing with an unexpected ending!), and, of course, modern celebrities - Orhan Pamuk, as well as, of course, with Nazim Hikmet (Love love love !!!) and a little - with the very same funny stories of Aziz Nesin (thanks to the textbook "Turkish language. Practical course" by Dudina, where they played the role of a textbook for many lessons!). By the way, I am currently finishing one book by Aziz Nesin. It is as if for children, and as if about children - for adults: "Şimdiki çocuklar harika!", and it can be recommended to those who do not speak Turkish perfectly, the language is quite simple and understandable.
Onur loves Sabahattin Ali very much, probably he will be the next Turkish author for me, besides, we have his books (in Turkish; I don’t know if I can do it, I haven’t tried to read something really serious yet). Sezai Onur recently read "Sergyuzesht" as part of his own educational program in the field of his native literature :).
Also, I remember, I tried to read (in Russian), "Stranger"; but it went very hard for me, and I quit. Merging in ecstasy with the peasants, whether Anatolian or Russian, I never had the desire to do anything - and feelings about this too. But the "Garden of Dead Cats" intrigued, frankly! This entry was originally posted at
Gazelle 11
Literal translation from the original:
1. The roses of your cheeks have turned my tongue into a nightingale.
I lost my head from the passion for your curls.
2. If the fruit of love for lovers is pain and anxiety,
Praise be to Allah, we have many fruits of your love.
3. The wind is powerless to untangle your curls.
No, it is not at all easy to overcome difficulties!
4. What kind of relationship has come between us? After all, nectar from the sweet lips of a loved one,
This poison of sadness is like halvah for me, but for an opponent it is like the poison of murderers.
5. How many wise people have gone mad with love for you!
How many intelligent men have gone mad wanting you!
6. What is the meaning of the words "Let the knives of his eyelashes kill you"?
They are unreasonable people, if they speak like that.
7. Oh Avni! If one day you will be on a pilgrimage to the temple of the Magi,
In the square you will see the fire of this candle, illuminating the entire assembly!
Poetic translation:
The blush of your cheeks gives rise to the eloquence of the nightingale in me,
From passion for your curls, I completely lost my head.
If for lovers the fruit of love is sadness and pain,
Praise be to Allah, I plucked the fruits of your love in plenty.
The spring breeze is powerless to untangle your curls,
No, it is not at all easy to master difficulties!
What happened between us? From the sweet lips of a beloved nectar,
To an opponent like the poison of murderers, but to me like a sweet gift.
How many wise ones went mad, loving you,
How many intelligent people, striving for you, have gone crazy!
No need to say "Let the arrows of his eyelashes kill you"
These are the words of people who do not know, because those who love will give everything to him.
Avni, if one day you visit the shrine of the fire-worshippers,
You will see the light of a burning candle that illuminates the entire assembly.
Gazelle 15
Literal translation:
1. If handsome men didn’t flirt, they wouldn’t fall in love with them,
And the hearts of lovers will be indifferent.
2. You can say briefly about your mouth
And about your long hair - a lot.
3. Your look is a robber, and curls are like thieves,
I don't know what they are looking for in the city of my heart.
4. The price of my reunion with you is life,
Eyewitnesses let us know about it.
5. At night, my heart from your curls
And from a gloomy look news come.
6. And anyone who still follows your curls,
And passionately wants to love your hair - he goes crazy.
7. Avni, the Rose of the World is not sweet in its fragrance,
For only (one breath) will give you a headache.
Poetic translation:
If the handsome men did not flirt, it would be difficult to fall in love with them,
The hearts of lovers will not want to finally achieve them.
You can briefly talk about your little lips,
But your hair is so long to describe will be long.
Your look is like a robber, and curls are thieves to match.
What are they looking for in the city of my heart? I don't know.
Life is the price of intimacy between you and me
Once they heard about it, they saw it with their own eyes.
At night, news knocks from you in my heart,
From your curls dark and cruel look trouble,
After all, anyone who is faithful to your curls,
And the one who longs for your curls becomes a madman.
Avni, the fragrance of this Rose of the World will not ease your sorrow.
Inhaling its heady aroma, you will feel only a headache.
Gazelle 29
Literal translation:
1. Seeing these lips like a rosebud, we tear our collars.
Remembering this face, like a rose, we scream in pain like nightingales.
2. What if my thirsty heart is at your door waiting to be healed?
After all, only there is a cure for this pain.
3. My light *, oh, incomparable handsome man with lips as sweet as rubies,
Our legend will be a banner, like the legend of Hamza.
4. No matter how our desire for your body, like a flag, would not be in sight,
We will hide the secret of your mouth in our hearts.
5. Oh Avni, it is very difficult to leave this world, *
But the look of this stealer of hearts will make it easier for us.
Poetic translation:
Seeing his lips - these rosebuds, we tear our collars;
Remembering his face, like a rose, we sob like nightingales.
And what, since my ailing heart is waiting for healing at your door?
After all, only there he will find the best cure for pain.
My light, oh, handsome incomparable with lips as precious as a ruby,
The tales of Hamza, our legendary epic will be worthy.
No matter how high our desire for your body would tremble,
We will hide the secret of your lips in our hearts deeply.
Oh Avni! Leaving the world for love is so hard
But it will be gratifying to make the look of the stealer of hearts.
Gazelle 30
Literal translation:
1. With such beauty among lovers, Juveys is the most beloved.
The sherbet of his ruby lips is a medicine for a suffering heart.
2. Do not cry, my dear nightingale, from now on I cry,
For Juveys has opened with beauty like a rose in the garden of my heart.
3. How can the heart of the country of justice flourish?
When all these years, who was on the throne of the heart of the Sultan, if not Yuveis.
4. Tears in the eyes, like wine, and everything inside the chest burns ...
O foolish heart! For only for one night Juweis is a guest,
5. For Avni, if luck were in hand, then he is the favorite guest
Don't miss this opportunity, as Juweis is worth a thousand lovers!
Poetic translation:
With such beauty, Uveys is the most desirable among the beloved.
The drink of his ruby lips is medicine for a suffering heart.
Don't cry, dear nightingale, hear my mournful groan,
For Juveys beautifully, like a rose of paradise, opened up to my heart.
Will the center of the state be able to flourish with dignity?
When did Yuveis sit on the throne of the heart of the sovereign all the time?
Tears of intoxicated eyes, in the chest the flame burns so painfully ...
Hey crazy heart! For only for one night did Juveys become your guest.
Luck for Avni is he - the very long-awaited,
Do not miss this opportunity, for Juveys is more precious than a thousand lovers!
Gazelle 61
Literal translation:
1. Those who saw Galata, their hearts will not want to be in paradise.
Seeing his heart-pleasing figure, they will forget about the most beautiful cypresses.
2. I saw a Frank, eloquent, like Jesus,
And for those who saw this Christ, his mouth is life-giving.
3. You will lose your mind and understanding of truth and faith,
Seeing this Christian, oh Muslims, you will become infidels!
4. Having drunk the wine of this messenger, they will not drink from the river of paradise,
Seeing the church he went to, they will not come to the mosque.
5. Oh Avni! And everyone will know that he was an unfaithful Frank,
Seeing a belt around his waist, and a cross around his neck.
Poetic translation:
Those who have seen the beauty of Galata will not want to stay in paradise in their hearts.
No one will remember the slender cypresses, having fallen in love with his graceful figure.
My eyes do not lie - I saw him, how this Jesus Frank was eloquent.
Those who see that young man like Christ, his lips resurrect them.
You risk losing your mind and knowledge of truth and faith forever,
O Muslims, you will become unbelievers when you see this Christian!
They will not accept Kavsar after drinking the wine of this messenger,
When they see the church he went to, they will not come to the mosque.
Avni, and everyone will know that he was a kafir of the Franks,
Noticing a chastity belt around his waist, and a cross around his neck.
Translation: Elfira AKHMETOVA
TURKISH LITERATURE- literary works created in the 15th-20th centuries. in Anatolia in Turkish.
The Turkish language goes back to Oguz, the language of the Eastern Turkish tribes that inhabited Central Asia and were forced out in the 8th-10th centuries. to the west by the Uighurs. The Oguzes used the Turkic runic script for writing. In Turkish folklore, pre-Islamic myths about the creation of the world and the origin of man have been preserved, the heroic epic - the cycle Oguzname.
The introduction of the Oghuz, or Eastern Turks, to Islam dates back to the 10th century. During this period, the Oguzes adopt the Arabic script with the addition of individual characters from the Persian language.
After the adoption of Islam, new forms appeared in the Oguz epic - a cycle about grandfather Korkud, in the 13th century. - legendary cycles on a historical basis, dastans about Ker-oglu, romantic stories of Khikiai, works of popular literature, fairy tales, everyday and comic tales and fables about Khoja Nasreddin, about animals, proverbs, sayings, riddles, popular ditties - mani, songs "turkuy nightmare" (lyrical) and "hula tashlama" (tragic).
In the first state of the Seljuk Turks, Rum, several languages were in use: Arabic - used in writing religious and scientific texts, Farsi, characteristic of court poetry, and Turkish - the language of daily communication and oral folk art.
During the period of establishment and strengthening of the Ottoman Empire in the 13th-15th centuries. the first works of the so-called Old Anatolian literature appeared in Turkish. It was a fusion of classical Persian, Arabic and Turkic styles; poetry dominated the genre. In poetic works, there was a conflict between the syllabic and syllabotonic metrics, characteristic of the Turkish folk speech manner, reflected in folklore, and the Arab-Persian metric aruz, which subsequently dominated Turkish poetry for six centuries. The Turks also mastered Persian poetic forms - mesnevi, qasida, ghazal. ().
The first Turkish poets were the Sufi poets Ahmed Fakih (d. c. 1250), author Books of Destiny; his student Sheyad Hamza, the author of the poem Yusuf and Zeliha. The dervish poet Yunus Emre (1240–1320) was known for his emotional and inspirational hymn-poems, which reflected his freedom-loving and oppositional views dressed in a religious-mystical form. The famous Persian Sufi poet Jalal-ad Din Rumi (1207–1273) and his son Sultan Veled (1226–1312) also have several poems in Turkish. The most significant work of this period is the Mesnevi poem by Ashik Pasha Wanderer's Book (1330).
In the 14th-15th centuries. new genres come to Turkish poetry - romantic mesnevi, a kind of novels in verse based on scenes from Pyateritsy Nizami. Of these, the most famous Khosrow and Shirin Yusuf Sinan Sheikh (1371–1431), as well as his satirical donkey poem, where we are talking about a donkey that went to look for horns, and returned without ears. For some time, the development of court poetry went in the direction of complicating the style and piling up epithets and comparisons. In the 15th–17th centuries the development of classical forms continues, standard techniques and images are endlessly varied. Author of the first complete Pyateritsy in Turkish - Hamdi Celebi (1449-1503). Later, an infinite number of variants appeared in Turkish literature. Pyaterits, many of which, unlike the original, were saturated with Epicurean motifs. Within the framework of existing traditions, they tried to reflect the modern life of Ahmet Pasha (d.1497), Necati (d.1509), Mesihi (1470–1512), Mahmud Abdul Baki (1526–1600), who wrote graceful ghazals, imitations of Hafiz. In the divan poems of the poetess Mihri Khatun (1456–1514), the daughter of a qadi (judge), there is a personal protest against the position of women in medieval society, but in form her poetry is sustained in Sufi traditions.
From the beginning of the 17th century more and more satirical and didactic works appear, aimed at admonishing the nobility and those in power, mired in vices, which, however, was not safe. Thus, the satirist Omer Nefi (1572–1634), known for his collection of satires Arrows of fate was executed by the offended vizier. In Mesnevi Yusuf Nabi (1642–1712) Khairie the hypocrisy of bribe-takers and embezzlers is described. In his poem Ascension Allaeddin Sabit (1650-1712) for the first time in humorous tones described the flight of the Prophet Muhammad to the seven heavenly spheres.
In the 18th century genres of court poetry continue to develop. Poet Ahmet Nedim (1681–1730) in imitation of Turkish folk songs created a new poetic form - sharki (songs); Sufi motifs resound in the work of Sheikh Ghalib (1757–1799).
At the beginning of the 19th century there is a stagnation in Turkish literature. Some poets (Vasif Enderunlu, Izzet Molla) strive to bring poetry closer to life, expanding the subject of poetry, enriching the poetic language with colloquial elements.
Mid 19th century was marked in the Ottoman Empire by a large-scale reform program - Tanzimat (from Arabic tanzim - streamlining). The reforms prepared by Reshid Pasha and approved by Sultan Abdulmecid in 1839 were designed to accelerate the economic development of Turkey, the growth of the Turkish bourgeoisie, the improvement of the financial system, the creation of conditions for bourgeois development, as well as the development of science, literature and the formation of the Turkish intelligentsia. At the first stage of the reform, they concerned the structure of the tax, financial, and power systems. At the second, announced in 1856, the innovations met to a large extent the interests of foreign capital. In the spiritual sphere, this involved the development of a system of secular education, a deeper acquaintance with Western European culture, and the creation of conditions for interaction with Western states not only in the economic but also in the cultural sphere.
Thanks to the reforms of the Tanzimat, Turkey managed to take a leading position among the countries of the Near East and Asia Minor.
The Tanzimat period was marked by a struggle between supporters of feudal culture, on the one hand, and publicists and writers who promoted the ideas of bourgeois enlightenment, proximity to real life, and criticized feudal despotism, on the other. This period became a transition period for Turkish literature - a sharp and rapid transition was made from the medieval tradition to the literature of the new time.
The literature of the Tanzimat period took on new reformist trends and was their conductor, combining European cultural traditions with the folk form of the Turkish language. The extraordinary interest of Turkish writers and readers was aroused by the works of European, in particular, French writers, their influence on the development of new Turkish literature was extremely great. Under the influence of French literature, new genres appear - a short story, a novel - historical, adventure, social. Western tendencies were traced throughout the 19th century. and reached their peak before the First World War.
Poet Ibrahim Shinasi (1826–1871), studied in Paris in the pre-revolutionary years, became the first professional journalist in Turkey, published a newspaper, was the author of the first Turkish dramatic work - a comedy The poet's marriage(1860). The plot of the comedy resembled Reluctant marriage Moliere, but all types, orders, customs, folk language were taken from Turkish life: it was about marriage with the eldest daughter instead of the beloved younger.
Namyk Kemal (1840-1888) - the ideologist of the "New Ottomans" society (1865), who fought for the establishment of a constitutional monarchy in Turkey and the implementation of bourgeois reforms, lived in exile in France and England due to the persecution of the Sultan, died in exile. As a poet and writer, he was influenced by the romantic aesthetics and educational ideas of Victor Hugo. He was fond of the theater, appreciated its educational impact, was the author of patriotic and everyday plays ( poor child 1873,Gulnihal 1875,Motherland, or Silistria 1873,Jelyaleddin, Shah of Khorezm, 1885,The Adventures of Ali Bey 1876 and the first household and historical novels.
The progressive orientation of Tanzimat literature - the writers opposed violence, despotism, oppression of the individual - was combined with the propaganda of pan-Islamic and pan-Turkist ideas. Other literati of the Tanzimat period - Ahmet Midhat (1844–1913), Shamsettin Sami (1850–1904). Ahmet Midhat is the founder of the novel genre, playwright and prose writer reformed the Turkish language in the direction of proximity to the people. Author of journalistic works, more than 40 novels - original and translated, many of which were devoted to the theme of forced marriages, survivals that cripple people's lives, the theme of blind admiration for the West - novels Slavery, Marriage, Eflatun Bey and Rakim Effendi, Volunteer.
In the second half of the 19th century under the influence of Victor Hugo, Musset, writers appear in Turkish literature, looking for new plots of lyrical themes, referring to the inner world of heroes - Abdulhak Hamid Tarkhan (1852-1937), Rejaizade Ekrem (1847-1913). The action of the plays of the former diplomat, poet and playwright Abdulhak Hamid Tarkhan often takes place in India, Afghanistan, and other countries whose life he knew well. He was interested in the behavior of heroes in moments of choice between love and duty ( Nesteren,Daughter of India), the psychology of the conqueror and the vanquished ( Ashber). In his poems, the theme of the confession of a fallen woman appears for the first time.
During the Tanzimat period, the first articles and works on literary criticism, collections of folklore were published. Censorship was introduced in the country, and mystical moods spread in literature. In the circle of writers of the Serveti-funun magazine, which played a big role in the development of new Turkish literature, they were fond of French authors - Zola, Maupassant, the Goncourt brothers, Stendhal, Balzac (writers Tevfik Fikret (1867–1915), Nazim Nabizade (1862–1893) , Huseyin Rahmi Gürpinar (1864–1944)) . The early works of the poet Tevfik Fikret were filled with motifs of romantic sadness. Later, he transformed the rhythm of aruz, civic motives and sympathy for ordinary people appear in his poetry. Nazym Nabizade one of the first to study the life of the urban lower classes - disadvantaged and lost people, often replacing social factors with biological ones (family drama Zehra). Huseyin Rahmi Gurpinar - one of the founders of critical realism, the first professional writer, author of 35 novels, plays, collections of short stories, critical articles, in 1935-1943 he was a member of the Mejlis. In his most famous novels Mirror, or Chic(1888),Governess(1898),unheard of(1919),whim of fate(1925) and others, he realistically described the vices of Turkish society - thoughtless admiration for the West, the greed of officials, the collapse of the patriarchal family, the clash of fathers and children, etc. The writer believed that the description of vices could conscience and encourage those in power to self-improvement.
The closest in content and form to European works are the novels and stories of Ushaklygil (1866–1945), Mehmet Rauf (1875–1931), Hussein Cahid Yalcin (1874–1957) and others. They raised new topics, criticized the depravity of people in power, explored the influence of money on human relations, and reflected on the difficulty of defending one's civic position.
After a period of stagnation in the literature of the early 1900s, a rise in public self-awareness began in Turkey, which ended with the Young Turk Revolution of 1908. Realist tendencies develop in literature, and the struggle between various literary trends revives. Supporters of democratization advocated the simplification of the Turkish language, its purification from foreign words. This led to the rejection of the old poetic forms and metrics, which was reflected in Turkish verses Mehmet Emmina Yur-dakula, which were written in the size of hedge folk poetry. However, in the future, the themes of Mehmet Emmin - war and Turan (the mythical homeland of all Turks) - began to be obsessively repeated in the works of his followers, who built their work on the exploitation of nationalist sentiments.
Poets Orkhan Seyfi Orkhon (1890–1972), Yusuf Ziya Ortach (1895–1967), Faruk Nafiz Chamlybel (1898–1973), Khalid Fakhri Ozansoy (1891–1971) experimented with the syllabic improvement of poetic rhetoric and its modernization. On the other hand, such great masters of the word as Ahmet Hashim (1885–1933), who was fond of French symbolist poets, and Yahya Kemal Beyatli (1884–1958), poetizing the past of the Ottoman Empire.
Turkish prose of the early 20th century. realistic tendencies develop. The attention of writers is attracted by the life of the province - Refik Khalid Karay, Aka Gunduz, Hussein Rahmi Gurpinar (1864-1944), Omer Seifeddin (1884-1920). Their descriptions of the life of ordinary inhabitants of Anatolia are concise, concrete, meaningful, and critical. The short stories of the satirist Omer Seyfeddin influenced the development of prose in subsequent decades. In his work, as well as in the work of his followers, nationalist ideas are clearly traced - novels New Turan Khalide Ediba Adiwar (1884–1964) and Last night Karaosmanoglu (1885–1974).
After World War I, Turkey was occupied by foreign (French and British) troops. In literary magazines, which were under double censorship - occupational and sultanic, works of a salon nature were published.
In the 1920s, the center of the national liberation movement was formed in Anatolia. The newspapers appear calls for resistance to foreign occupiers. The struggle for Anatolia develops into a struggle for the independence of Turkey. The most active part of the writers joins the Anatolian Center. Many writers took part in the national liberation war, which had a wide response in literature after the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923. There are well-known novels by Halide Edib Adivar, Reshad Nuri Gyuntekin, the novel Sodom and Gomorrah(1928) Yakub Kadri, play blue lightning(1933) Aka Gunduz. Writer Khalide Edib Adivar (1884–1964) was an active figure in the pan-Turkist movement, a deputy of the Mejlis. In his famous novels fiery shirt(1922),Kill the harlot(1926) she described the vicissitudes of human destinies and love against the background of the national liberation war, the atrocities of the invaders, the intrigues of traitors, etc. Novelist and playwright Reshad Nuri Guntekin (1892–1956), famed for the novel Singing bird(1922) about the misadventures of a young teacher in an Anatolian village, also wrote about the events of the national liberation war (novel green night, play The tragedy of one night) and how difficult it is to achieve high dreams and to follow the ideas of honor in the capitalist world (novels Stigma, Falling leaves, story Have pity).
Since over the past centuries the Turkish language has been significantly influenced by Farsi and Arabic (the number of borrowings reached 20%), after the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923, the process of replacing foreign borrowings with native Turkish words was inspired. In early 1926, the leader of the Young Turk Revolution, Kemal Atatürk, took part in a congress of Turkologists in Baku, at which a demand was made for the creation of an alphabet for the Turkic languages based on Latin. Since 1928, a variant of the Latin script began to be used for the Turkish language, in the development of which Atatürk took part. The basis of the new spelling of words, as well as for the general reform of the language, was the Istanbul dialect.
In 1932, the state Turk Dil Kurumu (Turkish Language Society) was created, which was supposed to deal with the returkization and modernization of the Turkish language. This process continues to this day, because. in the Turkish language one can find words not only of Persian-Arabic origin, but also of European, primarily French, which appeared in the 20th century.
After 1923, Turkish writers and writers seriously thought about the problem of Turkey's future - which way it would go after the Kemalist revolution. The first path is national unity, in which, as expected, the main class contradictions will be removed by themselves, and efforts will need to be focused on educating and raising the general cultural level of the people, overcoming inertia and reactionary moods and traditions. This position, which underlay the revolution of 1908, was held by the writers Yakub Kadri, Khalide Edib, Mehmet Rauf.
The other path assumed the inevitable class struggle directed against the arbitrariness of officials, bribery, unemployment, class stratification, since the bourgeois transformations did not affect these "eternal" social contradictions. The closest to this position were Sadri Ertem (1900-1943), the author of the first realistic socio-historical novel in Turkish literature. When the spinning wheels stop (1931) – about the riots of Turkish handicraftsmen in the second half of the 19th century, as well as Reshad Enis Aigen (b. 1909) and Sabahattin Ali (1907–1948). In his story Yusuf from Kuyucak(1937) and a collection of short stories glass palace(1947) Sabahattin Ali shows how a protest against the existing state of affairs is formed in a simple person and he comes to an understanding of the need for a revolutionary struggle. The theme of the fate of a person in a capitalist society is also touched upon in the plays of Nazim Hikmet Wound,forgotten man(1935) and Musainzade Celal Selma (1936).
The most striking figure among writers, staunch supporters of revolutionary changes was Nazim Hikmet Ran. His work and the path of struggle for the realization of his ideals subsequently led him to political emigration to the Soviet Union. He was one of the most daring reformers of Turkish literature - he introduced into poetry avant-garde, dissonant rhythms, vers libre, which he adopted from Russian avant-garde artists - Mayakovsky and others. Today he is considered the head of a whole poetic trend in Turkish literature. The oratorical manner of writing and pathos, characteristic of the early period of his work, later gave way to deep lyricism. There are many songs written on Hikmet's verses. Books, studies, memoirs are devoted to his life path. Hikmet's works have been translated into many languages of the world, plays are staged in theaters in Europe, America and Asia.
Closer to the beginning of World War II, aggressive nationalist sentiments are activated in Turkey, and all kinds of pan-Turkic societies are expanding their activities. Leading writers call for the fight against fascism - in the novel The devil is inside of us(1940) Sabahattin Ali tells about the fate of the Turkish intelligentsia, gives expressive portraits of ardent adherents of pan-Turkic ideas and Turkish fascists. At a time when Turkish society was paralyzed by impending events, three poets - Orhan Veli Kanyk (1914–1950), Melih Cevdet Andai (b.1915) and Oktay Rifat Khorozcu (b.1914) from group "Trenozhnik" perform with a literary Manifesto of three in the book strange(1941). They call for making the worker the hero of poetry, for writing in the common language of the city and the countryside, and for abandoning rhyme and meter. This approach, as well as the work of Nazim Hikmet, determined the search for Turkish literature of the post-war period.
The experience of the Second World War once again caused controversy around the question of understanding the national liberation struggle. In prison in 1941-1946 Nazim Hikmet writes an epic Destan about the liberation struggle, accompanying it with a translation of the work of V.I. Lenin On the national pride of the Great Russians. The novels of Kemal Tahir (1910–1973) are devoted to the same theme. People of the captive city(1958)and tired fighter(1965).
In the late 1940s and early 1950s, a new hero appeared in Turkish literature - an intellectual who went to the countryside to help the peasants resist the dictates of the landowners and the clergy. Usually such heroes are defeated in an unequal battle, but the seeds thrown by them into the people's consciousness, as the authors assumed, should later give good shoots. Novels are devoted to this topic. Notes of a rural teacher(1948) and Our village Mahmud Makala (b. 1923) Skinny Mamed And Tin(1955) Yashar Kemal (b. 1922), Dark world(1951) Orhan Khancherlioglu, Revenge of the snakes(1959)Fakir Baykurt(b. 1929) and others.
Two trends were traced in Turkish poetry of the 1960s: formalistic experiments with words and meter (Ilhan Berk, b.1916) and civic lyrics that continue democratic traditions (Fazıl Hyusnü Daglarca, Behçet Necatigil, Bedri Rahmi Eyuboğlu, Zia Osman Saba). Similar tendencies also developed in prose, refracting in modernist attempts to describe what is happening from the position of an "outsider". After a decade of rule by the Democratic Party in 1950-1960, which ended in a coup d'état, the so-called "literature of despair" began to develop, full of motives of despondency - the novel Alone with myself(1955) Vedat Turkali.
However, already in the works of writers of the generation of the 1970s–1990s, the theme of responsibility for the fate of the country, for solving the key problems of politics and the economy - unemployment, religious fanaticism, the land issue (Erdal Oz, Bekir Yildiz, Mehmet Seyida, Muzaffer Buyrukchu, Tarik Dursun , Kemal Bilbashar (1910–1983), Mukhtar Kerukchyu, Yasar Kemal, Samim Kojagyoz and others). Popular in Turkey is Aziz Nesin, whose witty satirical works describe ugly social relations.
In the early 1960s, drama began to develop actively, containing sharp criticism of the Turkish bureaucracy - the play Guilty Chetina Altana, State is me(1965) Bilginer, Kilogram of honor(1958) Erduran, Savior of the motherland(1967) Khaldun Taner and others. For the first time in Turkish drama, it was staged in the spirit of Brecht's theater Tale of Ali from Keshan(1974) Tanera. Plays by Nazim Hikmet, as well as plays by Russian and Soviet playwrights, are very popular. Beginning in the 19th century, literary criticism developed in Turkey.
The most famous in the West is the modern Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk (b. 1952). He is considered a classic, his works have been translated into more than 12 languages (three of his books have been published in Russia). In their novels Mr Kevdet and his sons(1982),Black book(2002),Snow(2002),istanbul romance (2003),white fortress(2005) and others . Pamuk continues the best traditions of the European novel, his writings intertwine reflections on the relationship between the West and the East, stories about the search for a beloved who has left and a description of the colorful, eventful life of modern Istanbul. The writer has received many international awards and is a living confirmation of the "competitiveness" of Turkish literature in the global book market.
As the history of Turkish literature shows, at first its development was slow, literary experience accumulated gradually. A rapid transition to modern literature took place in the 19th century. during the Tanzimat period, when Turkish society made significant efforts to reform all aspects of society and the economy. The most important component and condition of such a breakthrough was the dissemination of educational ideas and the experience of interethnic Turkish-European contacts. In the 19th century the nature of relations with Europeans is changing, they are becoming deeper and more meaningful, which is also reflected in cultural exchange. The Turks became actively interested in Western culture and literature, in particular French. Thanks to this, it was possible to transform medieval traditional literature.
The peculiarities of Turkish literature are largely due to the country's geographical proximity to Europe and its genetic belonging to the Islamic cultural tradition. Despite the fact that the origins of Turkish literature begin to emerge only in the 13th-14th centuries, modern Turkish literature, due to its ability to perceive the advanced impulses of world literature, is now largely ahead of the literature of many countries of the Near and Middle East.
