Muslim woman representation in Western literature; In Gaiour by Lord Byron and Aziyade by Pierre Loti

This thesis aims to research the Muslim woman representation in Western literary tradition which was constituted through orientalist texts and to compare two literary works, Gaiour by Lord Byron and Aziyade by Pierre Loti. In Edwerd Said's words, while installing itself, West or Occident needed an object or another entity to compare itself and approached to East or Orient with a masculine mindset, to sum up in Meyda Yeğenoğlu's words. The attributives used for describing Orient, for e.g. exotic, mysterious, veiled, need to be discovered or ruled etc. share resemblences with the ones used for Oriental woman, and civilasition mission is the redeemer for both of them. If we handle the historical evolution of the image, it had undergone divergent phases. In 18th and 19th centuries, the current image was shaped. Nearly a millennium ago, muslim woman and christian woman had many common features, in the literary works. Later in mediavel times Muslim woman becomes a (termagant) hussy character –just like the image of Islam in Europe at that time- and in 18th century –with colonialism- she becomes silent, enclosed, her veil draws attention and beyond of the veil is wondered. In the works that are analysed in the research, Oriental woman finds the love and care she needs in the romantic hero. Lord Byron is an English poet, a philhellenist, in favor of Greece, thinks that Ottoman's sovereignty in Greece is an atrocity to that cradle of civilisation. Pierre Loti, a French writer, names himself as friend of Turks and he thinks it is a happiness to live among Turks. What is in common for these two writers, is the Orient and the Oriental women figures in their works; Leyla and Aziyadé. Two women are desperate and in love. Just like the mediavel Muslim princess, they preserve and help to their romantic heroes. But they are not as free as those princesses and they are enclosed to their harems, their situation turns into a tragic one. Key words: Muslim woman, Oriental woman, Orientalism, harem, Islam and the West.