Tanpınar’s Implicit Politics: Republican Ideology in the Critique of the Divan Literature

In Turkish literature of the Republican period, the critique of divan literature—originating in the Tanzimat era—holds a significant place in the literary reflections of modernization efforts. Initiated during the Tanzimat with calls for a simplified language and a literature modeled on Western forms, the critique of divan literature receded during the National Literature movement under the influence of Turkism, which tended to regard divan literature as a relic of the past. In the Republican era, however, these critiques became more systematized. Institutional reforms such as the alphabet reform, language reform, and the removal of divan literature from the educational curriculum marked a shift from intellectual critique to official policy, positioning this discourse as a core component of Republican ideology. The reflections of this ideological approach are notably evident in the literary historiography of Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar, one of the period’s most prominent authors. In the “Introduction” to the second edition of his History of Nineteenth-Century Turkish Literature, Tanpınar offers a comprehensive assessment of divan literature. He frames it not only as a linguistic and aesthetic issue but as a “question of mentality.” Arguing that divan literature rests on the belief in the immutability of Islamic civilization, Tanpınar sees it as a major obstacle to modernization. This view aligns with the intellectual foundation of Republican ideology and is adopted by Tanpınar himself. This article explores how Tanpınar’s critique of divan literature reflects and reinforces the ideological aims of the Republican reforms. His criticisms go beyond literary evaluation; they serve as an intellectual justification for the Republic’s modernization agenda and reveal Tanpınar’s implicit political stance.

Yorum yazın