Theses supervised by Prof. Dr. Hande Seber
11 theses · Hacettepe University
Writing against the current: Algernon Charles Swinburne's poetry
Algernon Charles Swinburne is an enigmatic figure in Victorian poetry. He was associated with contemporary literary movements of his age, which challenged the conventional understanding of art, including the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, French Aestheticism and emerging English Aestheticism. Swinburne devoted his poetry and critical writings to bring about a change into contemporary poetry. He developed his own theories concerning the scope of poetry and the responsibilities of the poet. His critical writings helped develop the intellectual and practical aspects of art for art's sake movement and ushered the Decadent Movement. He experimented with form and the subject matter of poetry throughout his long literary career. Through his poetry, he aimed to communicate and excite passion in the reader. Swinburne believed that poetry should be free from any external authority and able to address all aspects of human experience. He was a marginal figure in that his conception of poetry was neither didactic nor shaped by the established social norms and moral values. By forgoing the morality of his age, Swinburne shifted the focus of his poetry on concepts such as liberty, passion, and sexuality. He called the poetic tradition of his age into question and aimed to improve the standards of contemporary literary criticism. Accordingly, this thesis aims to explore the strategies and methods Swinburne employed to challenge the poetic conventions of his age along with the critical arguments he put forward so as to ascertain his contributions to contemporary aesthetic movement and Victorian poetry. Chapter I analyses features of Swinburne's poetry and his experimentation in the form of poetry in relation to his search for a new form. Chapter II examines his poetry in relation to the morality of the Victorian period in order to demonstrate Swinburne's endeavours to set poetry free from the authority of conventions. This thesis ultimately provides an insight into Swinburne's critical and poetical ambitions and his contributions to the Victorian poetry.
Katharine Burdekin'in Swastika Night, Anthony Burgess'in the Wanting Seed ve P. D. James'in The Children of Men eserlerinde Cehaletten Tecrübeye: Epistemoloji ve iktidar
This dissertation deals with three critical dystopias from twentieth-century English literature, namely Katharine Burdekin's Swastika Night (1937), Anthony Burgess's The Wanting Seed (1962), and P. D. James's The Children of Men (1992) focusing on the transition from innocence and ignorance to experience and knowledge. Truth and knowledge presented by the authoritarian regimes in these critical dystopias are fictional constructs. These regimes determine what knowledge is to be communicated to citizens or not, and how it is conveyed to the whole society. The majority of the citizens enjoy an apparent satisfaction with the leadership, which manipulates what is allowed to be known. In this regard, ignorance is regarded as bliss. However, for individual characters in these texts who gain a different awareness, shallow contentment is disrupted with a partial view of what truths have been kept from them. Knowing leads to rebellion and resistance by these protagonists. The plots of these critical dystopias consist in each character's journey from a land of ignorance to experience. The initial naive innocence of the protagonists is shattered through various geographical, psychological and symbolic transformative journeys in these texts. This transition from innocence to experience turns the protagonists into outcasts as they are pushed into a clash with the ruling body. The protagonists undergo physical and psychological punishment, and are denied a space for individual freedom. However, the exile of these protagonists cannot prevent them from revealing the truth about the regime that finds itself unable to exterminate these rebels. Their survival attests to the partial failure of these totalitarian regimes. Furthermore, the open-ended structure of each critical dystopia reinforces the hope of the utopian impulse and of revisionary epistemology that might lead to a more just society. Keywords Swastika Night, The Wanting Seed, The Children of Men, critical dystopia, epistemological warfare, transformative journey, utopian enclave
Robert Browning'in ilk dönem şiirlerinde içebakış kullanımı
This study argues that there is a striking resemblance between Robert Browning's early poetry and "introspection," which is the psychological method of self-examination or first-person observation of one's own mental and emotional processes, used by the Victorian psychologists. This dissertation also claims that Browning uses the psychological method of introspection to represent various human psychological states of the main characters in his Pauline (1833), Paracelsus (1835), and Sordello (1840). These works are examples of the introspective poetry of the nineteenth-century "psychological school of poetry." Accordingly, this dissertation analyses these poems in three main chapters by pursuing the different methods that Browning used in the portrayal of the human soul to obtain an insight into the changes in the inner world of humans and to achieve a realistic representation of it. The endeavour of the main characters in Pauline, Paracelsus, and Sordello to achieve self-knowledge through self-analysis and how they are represented as introspective individuals are scrutinised in these chapters. Furthermore, as an individual of the Victorian culture, Browning's use of the matters of self-consciousness, the first and/or third-person speech, and subjectivity and objectivity—that were discussed and used in the discourse of introspection—to examine the images of the self and subjective experience are studied and illustrated in the analyses of the works. In these analyses, scientific studies conducted by leading figures in Victorian psychology, and definitions used and discussed by them, are also used in discussing the manner in which Browning represented "the development of the human soul."
Erkek sınırlarını ihlal etmek: Anne Finch'in manzum eserleri
Anne Finch, the Countess of Winchilsea, is a prolific writer who lived in the period between late seventeenth and early eighteenth century. Although she wrote about different subjects in various literary forms, she rather comes into prominence with her poetic works. She represents political and social issues of her time in her poetic works; however, her major concern is to criticise the secondary position of women in society, particularly in the literary tradition. Although she belonged to a privileged class of her society, in her poetic works, she reflects the problems of women in general regardless of their social classes. Besides, in her poems, Finch's criticisms of the secondary position of women in society and in marriage are interwoven with her criticisms of the position of the female poet in the poetic tradition. Finch also criticises the gender roles which are allotted to woman through gender stereotyping, particularly the roles that put her in a subordinate and secondary place in art and life. Although other female poets of the period dealt with similar issues in their poetry, Finch's authenticity lies in her poetics and the way she directs her criticism. The major concern of this study, therefore, is to analyse and discuss Finch's poetics and style within the frame of these issues. In her poetic works, Finch criticises the (use of) myths that silenced woman. Therefore, in the first chapter, Finch's strategies of revising and correcting the myths are discussed. In her poems about mythological characters, Finch aims at reinterpreting the myths that metaphorically imprison woman. In the second chapter Finch's critical strategies in her fables are discussed. Finch brings a female viewpoint to the fables by identifying the gender of the male characters in La Fontaine's fables as female. In her fables, she challenges stereotypical gender norms by representing strong female characters and weak male characters. Besides, she also adapts La Fontaine fables to current social and political events of her time, therefore, contributes to the development of the English fable tradition. In the third chapter, Finch's metaphorical employment of the nature elements is discussed. In her nature poems, Finch ascribes new metaphorical meanings to the elements of nature in order to present the plight of the female poet in the poetic tradition. She turns the pastoral shade into a feminine space where the female poet can raise her voice without any restriction; therefore, she delivers a solution to the problem of female poet's secondary position in the poetic realm. She also builds analogy between the female poet and the bird figure and discusses the significance of freedom for the female poet. In her poetic works, particularly in her nature poems, Finch does not resent the female poet's exclusion from the poetic tradition, but rather appreciates it because she believes that it enables the female poet to express herself freely without restrictive conventions of the tradition. After an in depth analysis of her poetic works, it is concluded that despite all the restrictions, Finch manages to raise her voice as a female poet and metaphorically becomes an "intruder" in the poetic tradition providing new perspectives to the myths, literary genres and traditions that so far excluded or silenced woman.
Pre-cartesian representations of animals and humans in Edmund Spenser's the Faerie Queene
Edmund Spenser's (1552/53-1599) eminent sixteenth century epic, The Faerie Queene (1590-1596), truly proves to be a canonical text of English literature as it has received almost constant critical attention from the time of its first publication, to the twenty-first century. Persisting interest confirms that the poem offers valuable cultural insight to the historical period it was written in. Hence, it has been studied from various cultural and literary perspectives and scholars working on the interdependent fields of posthumanism, ecocriticism, and most recently, animal studies, have also turned their attention to Spenser's works. These contemporary perspectives potentially indicate the future course of Spenser studies, especially in relation to The Faerie Queene, as the poem not only represents the political structures of its time, for which it has been scrutinised, but it keenly allegorises Spenser's views on creation, existence and natural order by presenting innumerable human-nonhuman interactions. Accordingly, this thesis conducts a contemporary and extensive analysis of The Faerie Queene, as a whole, and with focus on Spenser's depiction of nonhuman animals and humans as a representative of the pre- Cartesian period. The main argument is that Spenser's pre-Cartesian attempt to distinguish and privilege humankind in The Faerie Queene falls short of a total realisation and absolute anthropocentricism unlike dualistic Cartesian discourses which flourish few decades after him in the seventeenth century. This is because, while Spenser aims to establish moral ideals and virtues to elevate humans through allegory in line with humanist thought, due to the poet's theological and ontological understanding and political position, his work indicates that postlapsarian humans are not capable of achieving these qualities through their own efforts. Only elect human characters are directed by God's grace to attain Spenser's ascribed virtues and ideals of humanity, thereby distinguishing themselves from other earthly creatures. The rest are stationed equally to or sometimes lower than animals. Thus, The Faerie Queene not just subverts its poet's humanist intent, but it also reflects the ambiguity and permeability of the human/animal divide in pre-Cartesian early modern discourses.
Pre-cartesian representations of animals and humans in Edmund Spenser's the Faerie Queene
Edmund Spenser's (1552/53-1599) eminent sixteenth century epic, The Faerie Queene (1590-1596), truly proves to be a canonical text of English literature as it has received almost constant critical attention from the time of its first publication, to the twenty-first century. Persisting interest confirms that the poem offers valuable cultural insight to the historical period it was written in. Hence, it has been studied from various cultural and literary perspectives and scholars working on the interdependent fields of posthumanism, ecocriticism, and most recently, animal studies, have also turned their attention to Spenser's works. These contemporary perspectives potentially indicate the future course of Spenser studies, especially in relation to The Faerie Queene, as the poem not only represents the political structures of its time, for which it has been scrutinised, but it keenly allegorises Spenser's views on creation, existence and natural order by presenting innumerable human-nonhuman interactions. Accordingly, this thesis conducts a contemporary and extensive analysis of The Faerie Queene, as a whole, and with focus on Spenser's depiction of nonhuman animals and humans as a representative of the pre- Cartesian period. The main argument is that Spenser's pre-Cartesian attempt to distinguish and privilege humankind in The Faerie Queene falls short of a total realisation and absolute anthropocentricism unlike dualistic Cartesian discourses which flourish few decades after him in the seventeenth century. This is because, while Spenser aims to establish moral ideals and virtues to elevate humans through allegory in line with humanist thought, due to the poet's theological and ontological understanding and political position, his work indicates that postlapsarian humans are not capable of achieving these qualities through their own efforts. Only elect human characters are directed by God's grace to attain Spenser's ascribed virtues and ideals of humanity, thereby distinguishing themselves from other earthly creatures. The rest are stationed equally to or sometimes lower than animals. Thus, The Faerie Queene not just subverts its poet's humanist intent, but it also reflects the ambiguity and permeability of the human/animal divide in pre-Cartesian early modern discourses.
The shifting faces of epic heroes: The evolutionary trajectory of heroic ideals in William Davenant's Gondibert and John Milton's Paradise Lost
This study argues that in the selected works of the seventeenth-century English epics, William Davenant's Gondibert (1651) and John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667), the epic heroes are constructed as part of the poets' personal responses to the problems and questions initiated by the profound social, religious, philosophical, and political changes occurring in the seventeenth-century England. Both poets highlight the need for the development of new virtues, behaviours, and ethical standards in response to the dramatic changes at the time. Accordingly, this dissertation hypothesises that the epic heroes in these works are not only used as a vehicle for social and political commentary, but also as blueprints for ethical systems congruent with the needs of the contemporary epoch, thereby fostering the moral progression and advancement of the audience. This leads both poets to significantly deviate from the traditional concept of the epic hero, each reimagining and reshaping conventions in their own distinctive way. The evolution of Davenant's new epic hero is characterised by rhetorical prowess, tempered ambition, reason, openness to new knowledge, and a pro-peace stance, yet is also marked by justified martial prowess due to the realpolitik. Davenant writes for the high strata of the society from both sides of the Civil War, believing that as the "chiefs" of the society they should adapt to contemporary shifts to better fit the offices of government. Milton's redefinition of the epic hero is characterised by innate free will, political responsibility, rhetorical prowess, a worth determined not by lineage but by merit marked by endurance and patience, autonomous obedience to God guided by right reason, and a nuanced view of war that recognises its brutal reality yet also understands the necessity of martial prowess in a politically charged world. By redefining heroism in this manner, Milton shifts its domain from the exclusive preserve of high society to the realm of the everyday Christian, making it accessible and relevant to a broader spectrum of society. Keywords: Heroism, Epic Hero, Heroic Ideal, William Davenant, Gondibert, John Milton, Paradise Los
Representation and evolution of the monster and monstrosity in the late Victorian and Early Edwardian gothic novel
In their origin, monsters are signs of difference and a warning. As the embodiment of difference, monster stands as the signifier of the other, demarcating those whom societal norms deem dangerous or deviant. Providing a contrast by which the human can define itself, the monster is an essential figure in the dialectic relationship of the self and other, acting as a mirror to humanity. Warning against a myriad of dangers, it is the manifestation of historically and culturally conditioned fears. Accordingly, monsters embody a variety of fears threatening self-identity and society, corresponding to the changes in different periods and their consequences in time. In this light, the late Victorian and early Edwardian Gothic fictions are significant in their abundance of monsters. Looking at four manifestations of the monster at the end of the nineteenth century, this study aims to evaluate the Victorian monster and the ways it changes in tandem with the historical background, which created the impetus in the evolution of monstrosity. Reading the monster as a cultural category, this dissertation traces the changing forms of monstrous representation in Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897), Florence Marryat's The Blood of the Vampire (1897), and Walter de la Mare's The Return (1910). Arguing that over the course of the nineteenth century, Gothic monsters shifted from tangible, external forms of monstrosity to an invasive, inherent danger capable of transforming both the individual and social body, this study concludes with a monster that evolves into a complete loss of selfhood. In this sense, this dissertation aims to unfold how the ideals and fears of a society are mirrored in the representations of otherness, and their evolution through the changing forms of monsters, in relation to the socio-cultural, political and literary circumstances.
Abjection of women and womanhood in Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene
The aim of this thesis is examining the adverse representations of women and womanhood in "Book I: The Legend of the Knight of the Redcrosse, or Holinesse," "Book II: The Legend of Sir Guyon, or of Temperaunce," and "Book III: The Legend of Britomartis, or of Chastity" in Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene (1590-96) from the perspective of Julia Kristeva's theory of abjection, established in Powers of Horror: An Essay on Abjection (1982). In an unorthodox amalgamation of epic poetry, moral allegory, and medieval romance, Spenser creates a plethora of women characters and personifications in a binary opposition of morality, most of whom are represented by the virtues and vices. The narrative is constructed as a progression of physical and spiritual battles between morality and immorality, and by the victory of moral characters and personifications, Spenser conveys his didactic messages. In the light of Spenser's nationalism, this thesis argues that in "Book I," "Book II," and "Book III" of The Faerie Queene, women, who threaten the representations of Elizabeth I, The Kingdom of England, and Protestantism are labelled as evil, and these women can be classified as mothers and "whores." Both productive and non-productive sexual actions of evil women are represented as odious, unnatural, and villainous, unravelling the moral fabric of England. This thesis refers to theory of abjection to analyse the representations of such women, by concentrating on the form of these women. The argument connecting Spenser and Kristeva is, Spenser's portrayals of evilness of women are created in accordance with Neoplatonism. In Neoplatonism, a person's physical appearance is an expression of inward spiritual condition. Spenser follows the Neoplatonism in The Faerie Queene, and the debasing physical and non-physical descriptions of evil women focus on the body, which is represented as disgusting. This thesis analyses Spenser's The Faerie Queene from the perspective of abjection and argues that Spenser represents evil women as abject, and through their destruction, the author purges evil qualities from any association with Elizabeth I, the Kingdom of England, and Protestantism.
Navigating the middle road: Sir Walter Scott's representation of the Scottish identity in Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field and The Lady of the Lake
Regarded as the father of the historical novel and recognised for his ground-breaking influence on the genre, Sir Walter Scott played a pivotal role in reinstating Scottish identity amid Britain's dominance in nineteenth-century Europe. In response to Napoleon's threat, Scott adopted a middle-of-the-road policy, steering clear of enmity with England and seeking to preserve Scotland's cultural heritage within the unified Great Britain. In this context, this thesis explores the intricate relationship between Scott's dedication to Scottish identity and his loyalty to broader Britishness through an analysis of his poems Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field (1808) and The Lady of the Lake (1810). In Marmion, Scott emphasises Scotland's unity with England, foregrounding British identity. Despite reflecting Scotland's cultural values, Scott's primary objective is to strategically integrate the idea that both countries should coexist within a common British identity. Marmion's narrative unfolds through the incorporation of supernatural and gothic elements, typical in romantic literature, centred around the character of Marmion. Conversely, The Lady of the Lake shifts focus directly to Scotland, revealing Scott's profound respect for Scottish traditions. He manifests this reverence through the narrative's exploration of relationships between the Scottish kingdom, the Highlands and the Lowlands. The idea of the necessity for peaceful coexistence between England and Scotland in Marmion transforms into the idea of the Scottish monarchy and clans living harmoniously in this poem. Besides recounting Scotland's history and showcasing its natural beauty, the narrative centres on the traditions of Scottish clans. In essence, this thesis uncovers the dual narrative embedded in Scott's poems under analysis. In Marmion, Scott champions British unity, whereas, in The Lady of the Lake, he assumes the role of a Scottish nationalist. The thesis meticulously explores Scott's nuanced approach to national identity in these works and investigates the underlying reasons for this intricacy. Keywords: Sir Walter Scott, Marmion: A Tale of Flodden Field, The Lady of the Lake, middleof-the-road-policy, Scottish Identity, British Identity
Margaret Cavendish'in eserlerinde bilim, siyaset ve ütopya
As one of the most prolific female figures of the seventeenth century, Margaret Lucas Cavendish, the Duchess of Newcastle (1623-1673), wrote a great number of literary works in the male-dominated literary world of the time. Despite all the obstacles, Cavendish's endless imagination, curiosity and enthusiasm stimulate her to write on subjects and genres like science, politics and utopia that were not seen as suitable for women writers. Accordingly, the primary objective of this dissertation is to examine Cavendish's "Atomic Poems" in Poems, and Fancies (1653), Bell in Campo (1662) and The Description of a New World, Called The Blazing World (1666) in order to show how as a woman writer, she redefines the position of women by presenting her own accomplishments in several fields. To this end, in the first chapter, Cavendish's "Atomic Poems" is scrutinised with respect to her own appreciation of atomism and materialism, which provides her a means to express her thoughts on scientific matters in particular. In the second chapter, her play Bell in Campo is explored to discuss Cavendish's ideas on the accomplishments of women during wartime when they dare enter man's political world. In the third chapter, her fantastic utopian fiction, The Blazing World is analysed to demonstrate her way of constructing a personal utopia. It is argued that in this imaginary world, Cavendish assumes numerous new roles that are unattainable in reality, and it is through these roles that she manages to freely express her views on a wide range of topics like science, art, life, marriage, war, monarchy, and politics. Accordingly, this dissertation concludes that Margaret Cavendish redefines her identity as a woman writer in the male-dominated literary tradition by expressing her scientific, literary, philosophical, and political views in her works. Substituting fancy and her endless curiosity for formal education she manages to employ such topics. Moreover, by creating fictional female characters who are indeed the projections of herself, she offers various possibilities of how women can step out the traditional roles that the society imposed on them. Keywords: Margaret Cavendish, "Atomic Poems," Bell in Campo, The Blazing World, Science, Politics, Utopia