Classical Ottoman Texts (PG)

Key information

Status
Module not running
Module code
15PNMC385
FHEQ Level
7
Credits
15

Module overview

This module is based on the close reading of texts and their examination within their broader literary and historical context. As such it is a language use module whose objective is to make an intensive study of a selection of texts (prose and poetry) in literary Ottoman, from different periods and genres. The course will cover the development of the Ottoman literary language and the function of prose and poetry in Ottoman literature. The syllabus may vary but will normally include selections from heroic frontier narratives and Ottoman historiography, divan poetry and specimens of classical literary prose writings (inşa) from the classical and late periods. The literary merit of the texts examined will be considered in light of the historical context and linguistic registered employed.

Prerequisites

Successful completion of Ottoman Turkish Language (PG) or equivalent knowledge of Ottoman.

Objectives and learning outcomes of the module

A close reading and critical assessment of texts in literary (classical) Ottoman from various genres and different periods.

Learning outcomes

  1. students will gain familiarity and critical understanding of a number of texts in literary Ottoman from different genres
  2. students will acquire skills in transcribing and translating Ottoman literary texts
  3. students will develop critical skills in discussing and writing about the literary (language, style) and social dimensions of Ottoman writing.
  4. students will acquire an advanced understanding of the Ottoman literary language.

Workload

This module is taught over 10 weeks with 2 hours classroom contact per week, consisting of a 1-hour lecture and a 1-hour seminar.

Scope and syllabus

This is a literature module based on the close reading of texts and their examinations within their borader lietary contetxt.  As such it is a language use module whose objective is to make an intensive study of a broad selection of Ottoman literary texts covering different genres and the whole span of Ottoman literature until the Tanzimat reforms of the nineteenth century.

The syllabus will normally include the reading and discussion of literary works in prose and verse.  Works will be selecetd from the early Ottoman period (e.g. frontier epic narratives, eg. Battalname, Saltukname, Sultan Veled and the İskendername), and mainly from divan poetry, inşa prose of the classical and late Ottoman period (15th-19th centuries).  The literary merit of the works will be examined in light of the historical context and linguistic registered employed.

Method of assessment

  • One essay of 3,000 words (100%)
  • The exact assessment deadline dates are published on the relevant module Moodle/BLE page

Suggested reading

  • Andrews, Walter G. and Irene Markoff, 1987.  "Poetry, the Arts and Group Ethos in the Ideology of the Ottoman Empire."  Edebiyat, I/1: 28-70.
  • Andrews, Walter G. and Mehmet Kalpaklı,  2005.  The Age of Beloveds: Love and the Beloved in Early-Modern Ottoman and European Culture and Society.  Durham: Duke University Press.
  • Andrews, Walter G., 1976. An Introduction to Ottoman Poetry. Bibliotheca Islamica: Studies in Middle Eastern Literatures 7. Minneapolis.
  • Andrews, Walter G., 1985.  Poetry's Voice, Society's Song.  Ottoman Lyric Poetry.  Seattle.
  • Aynur, Hatice, 2008.  “Cumhuriyet dönemi divan şiiri antolojileri” Eski Türk edebiyatına modern yaklaşımlar II. Istanbul: Turkuaz Yayınları, pp. 58-109.
  • Bombaci, A., 1968.  Histoire de la littérature turque.  Transl. by I. Mélikoff.  Paris.
  • Dankoff, Robert, 1991.  The Intimate Life of an Ottoman Statesman Melek Ahmed Pasha (1588-1662).   As Portrayed in Evliya Çelebi's Book of Travels (Seyahatname).  Translation and Commentary by Robert Dankoff.  With a Historical Introduction by Rhoads Murphey.  Albany, NY:  State University of New York Press.
  • Faroqhi, Suraiya, 2001.  Subjects of the Sultan : Culture and daily life in the Ottoman Empire.  London: IB Tauris.
  • Feldman, Walter, 1996. " The Celestial Sphere, The Wheel of Fortune and Fate in the Gazels of Naʿilî and Bâkî." International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, 28: 193-215.
  • Fleischer, Cornell, 1986.  Bureaucrat and Intellectual in the Ottoman Empire: The Historian Mustafa Ali (1541-1600).  Princeton.
  • Gibb, E. J. W., 1900-1909. A History of Ottoman Poetry. 6 vols. Vols 2-6 ed. Edward G. Browne. London: Luzac.
  • Gökay, Orhan Şaik, 1993.  "Ideology and Literature During the Expansion of the Ottoman Empire."  In: İnalcık 1993: 381- 392.
  • Holbrook, V. R., 1994.  The Unreadable Shores of Love:  Turkish Modernity and Mystic Romance.  Austin.
  • Imber , Colin, 2003.  The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650: The Structure of Power.  European History in Perspective Series.  London: Palgrave.
  • İnalcık, Halil and Cemal Kafadar, eds., 1993,  Süleymân the Second and his Time, Istanbul: İsis, pp. 381- 392.
  • İz, Fahir, 1966. Eski Türk Edebiyatında Nazım.  2 vols. Istanbul: İstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları.
  • İz, Fahir, 1970.  "Turkish Literature."  In: Holt Peter, et al., eds, The Cambridge History of Islam, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, Vol. 2: 682-694.
  • Kocatürk, Vasfi Mahir, 1964.  Türk Edebiyatı Tarihi. Ankara: Edebiyat Yayınları.
  • Levend, Agâh Sırrı, 1980. Divan Edebiyatı. Istanbul: Enderûn Kitabevi.
  • Mitler, Louis, 1988. Ottoman Turkish Writers. A Bibliographical Dictionary of Significant Figures in pre-Republican Turkish Literature. American University Studies: Series XIX, General Literature, Vol. 15. New York: Peter Lang.
  • Necipoğlu Gürlu, 1989.  "Süleyman the Magnificent and the Representation of Power in a Context of Ottoman-Habsburg-Papal Rivalry."  Art Bulletin 71: 401-427.
  • Necipoğlu, Gürlu, 1991.  Architecture, Ceremonial and Power.  The Topkapı Palace in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Centuries.  Cambridge, MA.

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