Kurdish Image in the Novels of Early Turkish Republic Period

Abstract

This article examines the representation of Kurdish people in novels written in the Early Turkish Republic Period. Turkish literature in first years of the new born republic produced works in line with the official discourse and policies, and art of novel was the most popular genre and a convenient propaganda means. Kurdish Question, which remains unsolved to date, had its roots in the establishment of republic, and being most resistant minority group before the nation-state project in this period, Kurds were considered as a national security threat, and their demands were made a part of the “securitization” policies of nation-state process. Accordingly, in fiction, Kurds were only told about in the context of Kurdish rebellions that took place in the first years of the republic, and represented as “bandits” and “reactionaries” in novels dealing with them, which were already too few in number.