A mercimekzâde among The Kafkazedes: The long sixties and Orhan Duru's fiction

This thesis focuses on the unique position Orhan Duru holds among the 1950 generation of writers in regard to his literary attitude and works. The primary intention of this study is to illustrate that in the long sixties (1955-1980), Orhan Duru exemplifies a more localist, traditionalist attitude in terms of being influenced by literary tradition within the modernist approach represented by his generation. In this context, the scope of the study is limited to Orhan Duru's works published between 1953 and 1982. First of all, the ruptures in Turkish art during the long sixties are analyzed, and Orhan Duru's position as an artist at these moments is depicted. The existence of a more localist-traditionalist tendency in Duru is emphasized by analyzing his debates with Demir Özlü, who represented a more universalist wing of the 1950s generation. This localist-traditionalist conception of art that Duru represents has enabled him to search for a modernist style by utilizing traditional narratives such as Ottoman prose-fiction, and enabled him to develop a highly unique literary style. This thesis has attempted to situate the artist within his period by offering a perspective that can be used to criticize Orhan Duru's fiction, which has so far been dealt with only through descriptive studies. Considering Orhan Duru's fiction from this perspective will prevent the author from being obscured within a generational narrative and his artistic differences from being missed.