The reflection of Herta Müller's mental state on the way of usinglanguage in her work "The One-Legged Traveler"

This thesis study examines the reflection of the author's mental state on the way he uses language in the novel "The One-Legged Passenger" by the German writer Herta Müller, Nobel Laureate in Literature. Müller started his literary career as a member of the German minority living under the oppressive regime and difficult conditions in Romania, his personal traumas, migration experiences and the effects of repressive regimes on human psychology are the subjects of his works. In this context, the novel "One-Legged Passenger" offers an important resource for understanding the author's language and narrative style. The main purpose of the study is to analyze Müller's literary personality, psychological depth and spiritual structure and to reveal his originality and mastery in the use of language. In this context, the mental states of the characters in the novel have been studied in detail using literary methods such as flow of consciousness, emotion analysis and text reviews. The novel reflects feelings such as loneliness, alienation, oppression, helplessness and longing by skillfully using language, while at the same time highlighting autobiographical elements. One of the main focuses of the novel is how Müller reflects his own migration experience and the social pressures he experienced in his works. In the thesis, the author analyzes how the characters express their emotional world by delving into the depths of human psychology through linguistic structures and metaphors. Using literary methods such as psychological criticism, emotion analysis, text analysis, stream of consciousness technique and reader reaction theory, the depth of the author's language and expression style was examined. The psychological and emotional changes of the characters are revealed through the language structure of the novel, the narrative style, word choices and symbolic expression techniques. This study shows how Herta Müller's writing style is shaped by the historical and social conditions she lived in and how these elements have an impact on the author's linguistic expression. In addition, the multi-layered structure of Müller's literature has been revealed by investigating the links of autobiographical elements in the work with the author's personal experiences. The thesis aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of the author's works and to literary analysis.