Rethinking Modernity And National Identity In Turkey (Publications on the Near East) [Paperback]

Sibel Bozdogan (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0295975970 | ISBN-13: 978-0295975979 | Publication Date: July 1, 1997

In the first two decades after World War II, social scientists heralded Turkey as an exemplar of a "modernizing" nation in the Western mold. The essays in this book are the first attempt to examine the Turkish experiment with modernity from a broad, interdisciplinary perspective, encompassing the fields of history, the social sciences, the humanities, architecture, and urban planning.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 284 pages
• Publisher: University of Washington Press (July 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0295975970
• ISBN-13: 978-0295975979
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #885,495 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

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4 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Rethinking Modernity and National Identity in Turkey., July 31, 2001

By 

Daniel Pipes, Middle East Forum, Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rethinking Modernity And National Identity In Turkey (Publications on the Near East) (Paperback)

"About time" was this reviewer's response to a collection of essays reconsidering the Atatürk experiment in secularism and Western orientation some sixty years on. Essays, almost all by Turks, offer high-quality though overly jargon-laden discussions of such topics as architecture, women, and scholarship.

The book's highlight is undoubtedly an unassuming 12-page essay, "The Quest for the Islamic Self within the Context of Modernity," by Nilüfer Göle, an associate professor of sociology at Boðaziçi University in Istanbul. Göle establishes the enormous cultural chasm between the Atatürkists' Westernizing ideals and what had come before, then shows how today's Islamists are trying "to maintain an identity separate from that of the dominant West." In other words, rather than see Islamists as products of failed economies, she shows the acutely important cultural dimension of their effort. To illustrate these points, she looks in more depth at the question of the body, especially the female body, and contrasts the Western notions of care and exposure with the thoroughly different Islamic concepts. Göle concludes by noting the paradox of Islamic pop music and fashion shows-two signs indicating the ubiquity of Western modernity.

All this should be self-evident, but it is not; most analysts of Islam pay too little attention to culture in their fascination with material well-being. Göle has succinctly shown why they are wrong.

Middle East Quarterly, December 1997

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Poor Performance from Amazon, November 7, 2010

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Gerald L. Engle - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Rethinking Modernity And National Identity In Turkey (Publications on the Near East) (Paperback)

The publication was quite good, just what I expected and wanted.

However, Amazon's performance in this case was abominable. The delay between the order and the arrival of the merchandice (over 12 days)was worse than I had ever experienced from Amazon. In the future I will not routinely expect speedy and efficient service from Amazon.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rethinking through an edited volume, April 10, 2001

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dndnd (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rethinking Modernity And National Identity In Turkey (Publications on the Near East) (Paperback)

This book overall is a strong edited volume. Especially the pieces concerning identity and identity formation have new and interesting vantage points. It is a new perspective that helps the reader to understand and rethink their "image" about Turkey. For those interested in Middle East, in Turkey and generally in modernity this book will be of great value.