A view of enlightenment in Turkish novels between 1900-1940

With the Tanzimat period, the Enlightenment thought began to emerge in Turkish literature, carried into literary works by the pioneering intellectuals of the period from the Tanzimat reforms to the early years of the Republic. This study aims to examine the reflections of Enlightenment thought in Turkish novels written between 1900 and 1940. It explores the socio-cultural and internal transformations during the transition to the Republic and the accompanying modernization process, focusing on their impact on novel characters and themes. The works of prominent authors of the period, such as Halide Edip Adıvar, Yakup Kadri Karaosmanoğlu, Reşat Nuri Güntekin, Hüseyin Rahmi Gürpınar, and Peyami Safa, are analyzed to investigate the representation of Enlightenment thought in these novels. These authors approached Enlightenment thought from different perspectives and incorporated their interpretations into their works accordingly. In doing so, various modernization policies of the era were conveyed and interpreted through literature by intellectuals.