Honor excused killings in Turkish cinema of 2000s: A feminist methodology analysis

Cinema, as a branch of art nourished by society, is affected by the cultural and sociological changes of the society; moreover it reflects the value judgements, cultural acceptances, social norms and dominant ideologies of the society. Patriarchy, which is a universal form of social structuring, is an ideology that naturalizes the unequal power relationship between the sexes depending on gender and establishes masculine domination. Honor excused killings, a violation of human rights, are the most severe form of violence based on patriarchal ideology. It is significant to analyze gender roles and honor-based patriarchal violence in cinema, which is one of the means that build social reality. It is considered that analyzing cinema works with a critical approach in this manner is feasible through feminist methodology; and that it can make substantial contributions to the purpose of revealing social reality and reaching an egalitarian social structure, as a feminst study aims. Accordingly, this study aims to analyze how patriarchal ideology is represented in films with the theme of honor-based patriarchal violence in Turkish cinema in 2000s by creating a feminist methodology that can be applied to the field of cinema. To achieve this aim, selected films were subjected to a literature-related conceptual analysis in which sought-after indicators were explicated, and were interpreted in line with the principles of feminist methodology. It is expected that the study will contribute to the literature in consequence of applying the feminist methodology used in various disciplines to the field of cinema.