Abstract
Turkey with its rich but contested political history has been a crucial case to study topics that have global relevance including democratic backsliding, foreign policy activism, majoritarianism, post-truth politics, neoliberalism, political violence, populism, polarization, religious and ethnic politics, and secularism. Engaging with the broader literature on these topics, The Oxford Handbook of Turkish Politics offers an analytical, fresh, and comparative understanding of politics in a country that literally and figuratively epitomizes “being at the crossroads.” This chapter offers a thematic summary of the Handbook while addressing some of the most salient issues concerning Turkish politics. Synthesizing some of the major insights from the Handbook, it specifically addresses a set of interrelated questions: How do Turkish politics align with global economic and political trends? What have been the defining aspects of the Turkish state’s involvement in the economy? How could we make sense of Turkey’s descent into authoritarianism after a period of political reform? What are prospects for a democratic revival and social activism pursuing progressive change? What factors contribute to and limit activism in Turkish foreign policy?
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