The image of the Ottoman Turk through the eyes of nineteenth century British traveller Julia Pardoe

This thesis aims to analyze the image of Turkish people through the eyes of a nineteenth-century British woman travel writer Julia Pardoe, specifically in her travel narrative The City of the Sultan and the Domestic Manners of Turks, in 1836. The nineteenth century was a period when travel to the East had become more popular than ever in Europe. This era saw many travel narratives written by Western travelers who visited Eastern countries, especially the Ottoman Empire. Therefore, travel literature has become an important genre in Orientalism studies in terms of its vast source of representations of the other, East-West relations, and the image of the East, its people, and culture through the eyes of Westerners. Women travelers have played an immense role in the genre of travel literature during the nineteenth century with their unique access to places in Eastern countries, such as the harem, where their male compatriots had no access to. Therefore, they contributed to the creation of a new image of Eastern people in the eyes of their readers back home, different from the imagined, sexualized, and Orientalist image created by male travelers. Julia Pardoe, as one of these travelers, has a distinctive role in challenging and reshaping the Orientalist discourse prevalent in nineteenth-century travel literature. Using Edward Said's theory of Orientalism, the thesis explores Pardoe's counter-Orientalist approach and her portrayal of Turkish people, culture, and society. The thesis evinces through a detailed examination of Pardoe's descriptions and comments in her narrative that Pardoe puts forth a conscious effort to correct the previous misconceptions about Turkish and Eastern people formed by other travel narratives, offering a more accurate understanding and positive perception of the East. This thesis contributes to the understanding of Pardoe's distinct role within travel literature and her efforts to present a more accurate and nuanced portrayal of the East, challenging Western prejudices and offering a counter-narrative perspective. Key Words: travel literature, Julia Pardoe, Orientalism, women travel writers, image of the Ottoman Turks