"Fatcts, meanings, and cosmologies" : Bektashi responses to the abolition of religious orders in 1925

Date

2006

Author

Harmanşah, Rabia

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This thesis investigates Bektashi responses to the abolition of religious orders in Turkey in 1925. In order to understand the immediate impact of the legislation among Bektashis, I analyze three series of articles and a novel written in that period, while also tracing the repercussions of similar narratives which were continued to be used by Bektashis in the subsequent decades. I, thereby, explore the ways in which Bektashis developed alternative narratives rationalizing and justifying the abolition of their religious order. Since its proclamation, Law #677 regarding the abolition of religious orders has been subjected to many different readings by both the decision-makers of that period and the dervishes who were affected by the Law. In this thesis, I try to give an empathetic account of Bektashi readings, and argue that it is impossible to present a homogeneous stance by Bektashis towards the abolition of their religious orders, since there is a great diversity in their perceptions of the legislation, which are shaped by Bektashi cosmologies. Bektashis’ responses range from their harsh criticisms of the state policy to their imaginative strategies for accommodating the legislation. While arguing that Bektashis’ strategies exhibit common patterns that take shape around the strategies which I identify as accommodation, I still point out the significance of grasping the subjectivity within these strategies. Thus, in this thesis, through the analysis of an historical event, I explore the ways in which Bektashis transform and accommodate “the past” for constructing and legitimizing “the present”.

Subject Keywords

General Social Sciences.

URI

http://etd.lib.metu.edu.tr/upload/12608059/index.pdf
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/16228

Collections

Graduate School of Social Sciences, Thesis

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Citation Formats

R. Harmanşah, “ “Fatcts, meanings, and cosmologies” : Bektashi responses to the abolition of religious orders in 1925,” M.S. - Master of Science, Middle East Technical University, 2006.