THE INFLUENCE OF BYZANTINE LITERATURE ON THE TURKISH LITERATURE

1. THE INFLUENCE OF BYZANTINE LITERATURE ON THE TURKISH LITERATURE

2. PRESENTATION SUBTITLES • Byzantine Literature • Byzantine and Ancient Greece Literature • A General View Of Turkish Literature • Western Literature Influence On Turkish Literature (Tanzimat Era) • The Pioneers of The Tanzimat Era • Two Well-known Writers In Turkish Literature Orhan Pamuk and Mevlana • Famous Wise Sayings by Mevlana • A Multivision Show of Sema

3. BYZANTINE LITERATURE Byzantine literature may be defined as the Greek Literature of the Middle Ages,whether written in the territory of the Byzantine Empire or outside its borders.It forms the second period in the history of Greek literature,though popular Byzantine literature and early Modern Greek Literature,which begin in the 11th century, are indistinguishable.

4. Characteristics Many of the classical Greek genres, such as drama and choral lyric poetry, had been obsolete by late antiquity, and all medieval literature in the Greek language was written in an archaizing style, which imitated the writers of ancient Greece.This practice was perpetuated by a long-established system of Greek education where rhetoric was a leading subject.A typical product of this Byzantine education was the Greek Church Fathers, who shared the literary values of their pagan contemporaries. Consequently the vast Christian literature of the 3rd to 6th centuries established a synthesis of Hellenic and Christian thought. As a result, Byzantine literature was largely written in a style of Atticistic Greek, far removed from the popular Medieval Greek that was spoken by all classes of Byzantine society in their everyday lives. In addition, this literary style was also removed from the Koine Greek language of the New Testamentt, reaching back to Homer and the writers of ancient Athens.s Inthis manner, the culture of the Byzantine Empire was marked for over 1000 years by a diglossy between two different forms of the same language, which were used for different purposes. However, the relations between the "high" and "low" forms of Greek changed over the centuries. The prestige of the Attic literature remained undiminished until the 7th century AD, but in the following two centuries when the existence of the Byzantine Empire was threatened, city life and education declined, and along with them the use of the classicizing language and style. The political recovery of the 9th century instigated a literary revival, in which a conscious attempt was made to recreate the Hellenic-Christian literary culture of late antiquity. Simple or popular Greek was avoided in literary used and many of the early saints' lives were rewritten in an archaizing style. By the 12th century the cultural confidence of the Byzantine Greekslead them to develop new literary genres, such as romantic fiction, in which adventure and love are the main elements.Satire made occasional use of elements from spoken Greek.

5. The period from the Fourth Crusade to the Fall of Constantinoplesaw a vigorous revival of imitative classicizing literature, as the Greeks sought to assert their cultural superiority over the militarily more powerful West.At the same time there was the beginning of a flourishing literature in an approximation to the vernacular Modern Greek. However the vernacular literature was limited to poetic romances and popular devotional writing. All serious literature continued to make use of the archaizing language of learned Greek tradition. Byzantine literature has two sources: Classical Greekand Orthodox Christian tradition. Each of those sources provided a series of models and references for the Byzantine writer and his readers. In occasion, both sources were referred to side by side, for example when emperor Alexius Comnenus justified his actions of seizing church property to pay his soldiers by referring to the earlier examples of Pericles and the biblical king David.

6. BYZANTINE AND ANCIENT GREECE LITERATURE The oldest of these three civilizations is the Greek, centered not in Athens but in Alexandria and Hellenistic civilization. Alexandria through this period is the center of both Atticizing scholarship and of Graeco-Judaic social life, looking towards Athens as well as towards Jerusalem.This intellectual dualism between the culture of scholars and that of the people permeates the Byzantine period. Even Hellenistic literature exhibits two distinct tendencies, one rationalistic and scholarly, the other romantic and popular: the former originated in the schools of the Alexandrian sophistsand culminated in the rhetorical romance, the latter rooted in the idyllic tendency of Theocritusand culminated in the idyllic novel. Both tendencies persisted in Byzantium, but the first, as the one officially recognized, retained predominance and was not driven from the field until the fall of the empire. The reactionary linguistic movement known as Atticismsupported and enforced this scholarly tendency. Atticism prevailed from the second century B.C. onward, controlling all subsequent Greek culture, so that the living form of the Greek language was obscured and only occasionally found expression in private documents and popular literature. St Mark from a Byzantine Manuscript

7. ANCIENT GREECE LITERATURE Ancient Greek literature the writings of the ancient Greeks. The Greek Isles are recognized as the birthplace of Western intellectual life. Early WritingsThe earliest extant European literary works are the Iliad and the Odyssey, both written in ancient Greek probably before 700 BC, and attributed to Homer . Among other early epic poems, most of which have perished, those of Hesiod, the first didactic poet, remain. The poems dealing with mythological subjects and known as the Homeric Hymns are dated 800-300 BC Only fragments survive of the works of many early Greek poets, including the elegiasts Tyrtaeus, Theognis , Solon ,Semonides of Amorgos , Archilochus, and Hipponax. The most personal Greek poems are the lyrics of Alcaeus, Sapphoand Anacreon.The Dorian lyric for choral performance, developed with Alcman , Ibycus, and Stesichorus, achieved perfection in Pindar, Simonidof Ceos, and Bacchylides.

8. The Classical Period Greek drama evolved from the song and dance in the ceremonies honoring Dionysus at Athens. In the 5th cent. BC tragedy was developed by three of the greatest dramatists in the history of the theater, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.Equally exalted was the foremost exponent of Attic Old Comedy, Aristophanes . Other writers who developed this genre included Cratinus and Eupolis, of whom little is known.The rowdy humor of these early works gave way to the more sedate Middle Comedy and finally to New Comedy, which set the form for this type of drama. The best-known writer of Greek New Comedy is Menander. The writing of history came of age in Greece with the rich and diffuse work of Herodotus, the precise and exhaustive accounts of Thucydides, and the rushing narrative of Xenophon. Philosophical writing of unprecedented breadth was produced during this brief period of Athenian literature; the works of Plato and Aristotle have had an incalculable effect in the shaping of Western thought. Greek oratory, of immense importance in the ancient world, was perfected at this time. Among the most celebrated orators were Antiphon, Andocides, Lysias, Isocrates, Isaeus, Lycurgus, Aeschines, and, considered the greatest of all, Demosthenes. "Classical" Greek literature is said to have ended with the deaths of Aristotle and Demosthenes (c.322 BC). The greatest writers of the classical era have certain characteristics in common: economy of words, direct expression, subtlety of thought, and attention to form.

9. Later Greek LiteratureThe next period of Greek literature reached its zenith in Hellenistic Alexandria, where a number of major philosophers, dramatists, poets, historians, critics, and librarians wrote and taught. New genres such as bucolic poetry emerged during the Hellenistic period, a time also characterized by scholarly editions of classics from earlier periods. The poems of Callimachus, the bucolics of Theocritus, and the epic of Apollonius Rhodiusare recognized as major works of world literature. The production of literary works at the time of the establishment of Roman control of the Mediterranean was enormous, a vast heterogeneous mixture ranging from the sublime to the pedantic and turgid. A great portion of the works produced have been lost. With the Roman political subjugation of Greece, Greek thought and culture, introduced largely by slave-tutors to the Roman aristocracy, came to exert enormous influence in the Roman world. Among the greatest writers of this period were the historians Polybius, Josephus, and Dio Cassius; the biographer Plutarch ; the philosophers Philo and Dio Chrysostom; and the novelist Lucian. One great Roman work produced under Greek influence was the philosophical meditations of Marcus Aurelius. With the spread of Christianity, Greek writing took a new turn, and much of the writing of the Greek Fathers of the Church is eloquent. Religion dominated the literature of the Byzantine Empire, and a vast treasury of writing was produced that is not generally well known to the West The most notable exception is the work of some historians (e.g., Procopius, Anna Comnena, George Acropolita, and Emperor John VI) and some anthologists (e.g., Photius).

10. A GENERAL VIEW OF TURKISH LITERATURE The history of Turkish Literature may be divided into three periods, reflecting the history of Turkish civilization as follows: the period up to the adoption of Islam, the Islamic period and the period under western influence. A)Turkish Literature Prior to the Adoption of Islam Turkish literature was the joint product of the Turkish clans and was mostly oral. The oldest known examples of Turkish writings are on obelisks dating from the late 7th and early 8th centuries. The Orhun monumental inscriptions written in 720 for Tonyukuk, in 732 for Kültigin and in 735 for Bilge Kagan are masterpieces of Turkish literature with their subject matter and perfect style. Turkish epics dating from those times include the Yaratilis, Saka, Oguz-Kagan, Göktürk, Uygur and Manas. The "Book of Dede Korkut", put down in writing in the 14th century, is an extremely valuable work that preserves the memory of that epic era in beautiful language. The Orhun monuments

11. B)Turkish Literature After the Adoption of Islam Following Turkish migrations into Anatolia in the wake of the Malazgirt victory in 1071, the establishment of various Beyliks in Anatolia and the eventual founding of the Seljuk and Ottoman Empires set the scene for Turkish literature to develop along two distinct lines, with "divan" or classical literature drawing its inspiration from the Arabic and Persian languages and Turkish folk literature still remaining deeply rooted in Central Asian traditions. Divan poets did not have independent philosophies, they were content to express the same ideas in different ways. The magnificence of the poet came from his artistry in finding original and beautiful forms of expression. The most famous of the Divan poets were Baki, Fuzuli, Nedim and Nef'i. Initially based on two foreign literary traditions, Arab and Persian, literature gradually stopped being merely imitative and took on Ottoman national characteristics. To a certain extent, the Turkish folk literature which has survived till our day, reflects the influence of Islam and the new life style and form of the traditional literature of Central Asia after the adoption of Islam. Turkish folk literature comprised anonymous works of bard poems and Tekke (mystical religious retreats) literature. Yunus Emre who lived in the second half of the 13th and early 14th centuries was an epoch making poet and sufi (mystical philosopher) expert in all three areas of folk literature as well as divan poetry. Important figures of poetic literature were Karacaoglan, Atik Ömer, Erzurumlu Emrah and Kayserili Seyrani.

12. C) Influence of Western Literature on Turkish Literature Turkish Literature was influenced by the Western Literature. Changes in social, economic and political life were reflected in the literature of the time and the quest for change continued till the proclamation of the Republic. The distinguishing characteristic of the era in literature was the concern with intellectual content rather than esthetic values or perfection of style. The latest period in literature, which is known as the Turkish Literature of the Republican period, came to be influenced by the following literary schools after Divan literary styles had been abandoned: Tanzimat (reforms), Servet-i Fünun (scientific wealth), Fecr-i Ati (dawn of the new age) and Ulusal Edebiyat (national literature). The First Private Turkish Newspaper

13. TANZIMAT ERA Beginning from the 17th century, The Ottoman Empire started to go down in the political, military and economical fields.At the same time, an innovation movement that began with the Renaissance and kept moving with other reforms took place in the western world. The Ottoman Empire opens its gates to the west with the ‘Tanzimat Fermanı’(an innovation movement in Turkish history) which was announced in 1839. The Turkish intellectuals brought up an idea that is: ‘Our people can benefit from the western improvements in science, technique and art.’So they are inspired by these improvements.they created the Tanzimat Literature.The Tanzimat Literature is socialist.It aims the truth and the good.The writers and poets of this period wanted to achieve the goal-that is to wake up the society from being underdeveloped and to end the pressure on people.Also these writers and poets wanted to build a new literature under the light of western literature. Tanzimat Fermanı

14. The writers,poets and artists of the Tanzimat period,studied at European schools.They took especially the French literature and French writer Montaigne and the French intellectual J.J Rousseu as a model.They were inspired by Racine, Corneille, Madame de La Fayette, Victor Hugo,Goethe, Schiller, Lamartine, Aleksandre Dumas, Voltaire who were the innovators of Classicism and Romantism.The Turkish intellectuals transferred these writers’ and intellectuals’ advocacy of freedom, rationalistic and scientific thoughts to the Turkish Literature and basically aimed to spread these thoughts among the public. J.J Rousseu Montaigne Victor Hugo

15. Leading figures in the first period (1860-1880) in Tanzimat literature were Sinasi, Ziya Pasa, Namik Kemal, and Ahmet Mithat Efendi. Leading figures during the second period (1880-1896) were Recaizade Mahmut Ekrem, Abdülhak Hamit, Sami Pasazade Sezai, and Nabizade Nazim.Tevfik Fikret, Cenap Sahabettin, Süleyman Nazif, Halit Ziya Usakligil, Mehmet Rauf, Hüseyin Cahit Yalçin and Ahmet Hikmet Müftüoglu are the important representatives of this trend. Others who adopted the western approach, but who were outside the group, were Ahmet Rasim and Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpinar who supported the new Turkish literature. Mehmet Akif Ersoy and Yahya Kemal Beyatli initially followed independent courses and later joined the National Literature movement. The Tanzimat, Servet-i Fünun and Fecr-i Ati groups who came together to create a modern Turkish literature made great strides towards this aim, but their works stopped short of being a national literature with distinctive characteristics. In spirit, it was French-oriented, in language and style it was traditional and Ottoman. Recaizade Mahmut Ekrem Abdülhak Hamit Sami Pasazade Sezai Nabizade Nazim

16. THE PIONEERS OF THIS ERA NAMIK KEMAL (1840 – 1888)Rather than focusing on the ideal state, Namık Kemal draws the portrait of an ideal human being, and concentrates on the issue “what kind of an individual should one be.” Namık Kemal maintains that the individual must follow ideals and personally struggle to attain freedom, progress and development. His drama was an appeal to personal responsibility, demanding that “the people” rise to the challenge to secure their freedom. His eulogy to “Hürriyet” (Freedom) contains seven essential concepts; the individual and his personal attributes, love of motherland and the defense of its territorial and political integrity, freedom and the fight for freedom, reverence to ideals, the need of a national history, the current state of the homeland, and the portrait of a new and ideal human being or individual. When he wrote this text that epitomizes his philosophy of freedom, Kemal was exiled in Famagusta.Namık Kemal proclaimed, “Literature does not have a motherland,” and emphasizede its universality. He also maintained that literature had to be true to life. Kemal managed to unify his political struggle with his prolific literary career, and during his short life he made valuable contributions for the improvement of the political structure of the Ottoman government.

17. ZIYA PASHA (1829–1880) Ziya Pasha was one of the last classical Turk poets. He was a pioneer who introduced the western thought and culture to the Turkish society. He revealed his research in the articles he wrote for “Hurriyet” Journal. He criticised the government with a simple language he used.In a famous statement by the poet and reformist Ziya Pasha: ’Our language is not Ottoman; it is Turkish. What makes up our poetic canon is not gazels and kasîdes, but rather kayabaşıs, üçlemes, and çöğürs], which some of our poets dislike, thinking them crude. But just let those with the ability exert the effort on this road [of change], and what powerful personalities will soon be born!’

18. NURULLAH ATAÇ Ataç has published in most of the significant national newspapers and journals of the Republican period, and his overall opinion was that Turkish literature needed to become more western, that it should quit tightly adhering to the values of the past. Ataç claimed that literature should be on the side of reason, he frequently criticized flowery and exaggerated works, and he advocated simplicity and clarity. Ataç stressed that language used in literary works should be the same as spoken Turkish, and that this would bridge the communication breakdown that existed among the various classes of society. Ataç stressed that literature needed to renew itself, that worn-out tendencies had to be abandoned, and his approach proved indeed guiding for many literary figures. Ataç composed lengthy and detailed analyses about the literary works that he enjoyed; yet when he encountered one that he did not please him, he did not even bother mentioning it.

19. ORHAN PAMUK Ferit Orhan Pamuk (born on 7 June 1952 in Istanbul) generally known simply as Orhan Pamuk, is a Turkish nt. He is also the Robert Yik-Fong Tam Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University, where he teaches comparative literature and writing.[1] One of Turkey's most prominent novelists,his work has sold over seven million books in more than fifty languages, making him the country's best-selling writer. Pamuk is the recipient of numerous literary awards, including the Nobel Literature Prize 2006-the first Nobel Prize to be awarded to a Turkish citizen. This is a part of his speech from the Nobel Prize Ceremony:‘What literature needs most to tell and investigate today are humanity's basic fears: the fear of being left outside, and the fear of counting for nothing, and the feelings of worthlessness that come with such fears; the collective humiliations, vulnerabilities, slights, grievances, sensitivities, and imagined insults, and the nationalist boasts. Whenever I am confronted by such sentiments, and by the irrational,overstated language in which they are usually expressed, I know they touch on a darkness inside me. We have often witnessed peoples, societies and nations outside the Western world and I can identify with them easily succumbing to fears that sometimes lead them to commit stupidities, all because of their fears of humiliation and their sensitivities. I also know that in the West–a world with which I can identify with the same ease–nations and peoples taking an excessive pride in their wealth, and in their having brought us the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, and Modernism, have, from time to time, succumbed to self-satisfaction that is almost as stupid.’

20. MEVLANA Mevlana Celaleddin Rumi is an Anatolian holy man who gave hope and inspiration to humanity. Mevlana was born in 1207 in Khorasan, and died in 1273 in Konya. He took his first lessons from his father Bahaeddin Veled, who was known as “sultan of scholars”. While he was studying Sufism he met Ahi Sems Tebrizi, and after this meeting his own ideas began to emerge. It is his poems about Sufism, however, for which he is chiefly remembered, respected and admired today. According to Mevlana, love is the only thing necessary to attain God. A plant or an animal may also love, but it is only man who has the capacity to love with his body, mind, thoughts and memory. Mevlana exalts the state of being in love with a woman because if someone loves someone else, he also loves himself, humanity, the universe and God. The most beautiful love, “Love of Truth,” begins when someone reaches this level of wisdom.

21. Followers of Mevlana (Mevlevi) spin around and around in a ritual called “sema.” This ritual symbolizes a world united in love and keeping step with the world’s universal rotation. While one of their hands points to the sky, the other hand points to the ground meaning “Love from God spreads to the earth”. The spirit bursts forth from God and is immortal. The sound of the nay (a reed flute) tells of man’s longing to return to his initial source. He means that the universe is an endless place within the existence of God, and as a small part of the whole, man keeps that divine essence inside him by saying, “You who search for God, it’s you that you’re searching for....” As we see, all mankind are brothers, and differences between religions do not square well with the divine presence.

22. FAMOUS WISE SAYINGS AND POEMS OF MEVLANA Come, no matter what you are, Whether atheist or sun worshipper. Whether you’ve backslid a thousand times, Come, no matter what you are.

23. In generosity and helping others be like a river… In compassion and grace be like the sun… In concealing others’ faults be like the night… In anger and fury be like dead… In modesty and humility be like soil… In tolerance be like sea… Either appear as you are, or be as you look.

24. ‘Christian, Jew, Muslim, shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a secret way of being with the mystery, unique and not to be judged.’ ‘Love is nothing other than finding the truth.’ ‘Remember, the entrance door to the sanctuary is inside you. ‘He is a letter to everyone. You open it. It says, 'Live!’

25. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION ENJOY THE MULTIVISION SHOW PREPARED BY:SHEYDA RABIA OZDEN • ‘