By Musa Igrek - Today's Zaman - Istanbul, TurkeyMonday, August 27, 2007
Literature may serve as antidote for prejudice, Turkish writers say
Turkish literature will make a good showing in Europe in the coming days, not in terms of quantity, but with its quality.
Three important writers who have become popular in recent years -- Hasan Ali Toptaş, Elif Şafak and Aslı Erdoğan -- will represent Turkey at the 7th International Literature Festival Berlin to be held Sept. 4-16.
Literature may serve as antidote for prejudice, Turkish writers say
Turkish literature will make a good showing in Europe in the coming days, not in terms of quantity, but with its quality.
Three important writers who have become popular in recent years -- Hasan Ali Toptaş, Elif Şafak and Aslı Erdoğan -- will represent Turkey at the 7th International Literature Festival Berlin to be held Sept. 4-16.
The festival, which will host a large number of international poets and writers, is likely to attract attention with the issue of "the difficulties of European societal understandings of Islamic culture," which it will focus on in particular.
The Berlin festival will also be a rehearsal for Turkey, which will be featured as a guest country at next year's Frankfurt Book Fair.
Saying that the interest in Turkish literature should be lasting, the writers agree on the idea that the talks to be held on "the difficulties of European societal understandings of Islam," would be a good start to the elimination of Western prejudices.
Şafak says that there exists a "Turcophobia" in Europe in addition to Islamophobia, while Toptaş notes that it is an issue that must urgently become a topic of discussion. Erdoğan stresses that interest in Turkish literature has grown in recent years, adding that this interest is also subject to the dangers of "otherization."
At the festival, Erdoğan will participate in the World Literature category, and Toptaş and Şafak will be featured in the section titled Kaleidoscope.
The festival will last for 13 days and 150 writers from around the world will participate in 250 events, where they will speak about their books, literary understandings and the literary projection of their countries.
The places where the writers will read passages from their books include prisons and churches.
(...)
Elif Şafak: "I will speak particularly about Sufism, women and the sense of belonging at this conference. It [the conference] will be widely attended and more focused on culture and religion.
'The difficulties of European societal understandings of Islam' is therefore a very important section. I have always tried to write about this.
I believe that people have prejudices. Not only Islamophobia, but also Turcophobia. When Islam is mentioned, they understand a whole, which is also a prejudice. And you can feel this more intensely when it's 'women and Islam' in question".
[picture: Elif Şafak, Aslı Erdoğan and Hasan Ali Toptaş (from left to right)]
The Berlin festival will also be a rehearsal for Turkey, which will be featured as a guest country at next year's Frankfurt Book Fair.
Saying that the interest in Turkish literature should be lasting, the writers agree on the idea that the talks to be held on "the difficulties of European societal understandings of Islam," would be a good start to the elimination of Western prejudices.
Şafak says that there exists a "Turcophobia" in Europe in addition to Islamophobia, while Toptaş notes that it is an issue that must urgently become a topic of discussion. Erdoğan stresses that interest in Turkish literature has grown in recent years, adding that this interest is also subject to the dangers of "otherization."
At the festival, Erdoğan will participate in the World Literature category, and Toptaş and Şafak will be featured in the section titled Kaleidoscope.
The festival will last for 13 days and 150 writers from around the world will participate in 250 events, where they will speak about their books, literary understandings and the literary projection of their countries.
The places where the writers will read passages from their books include prisons and churches.
(...)
Elif Şafak: "I will speak particularly about Sufism, women and the sense of belonging at this conference. It [the conference] will be widely attended and more focused on culture and religion.
'The difficulties of European societal understandings of Islam' is therefore a very important section. I have always tried to write about this.
I believe that people have prejudices. Not only Islamophobia, but also Turcophobia. When Islam is mentioned, they understand a whole, which is also a prejudice. And you can feel this more intensely when it's 'women and Islam' in question".
[picture: Elif Şafak, Aslı Erdoğan and Hasan Ali Toptaş (from left to right)]
[read also: http://sufinews.blogspot.com/search?q=feminine
(scroll down to the second article)]
[Link to the International Literature Festival of Berlin
http://www.literaturfestival.com/index.php?changelang=3].
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