A study on the motif structure of Kırım'in Kırk Batırı epic

We can consider epics as the subconscious of a nation. The motifs in epics must be examined in a comprehensive way in order to uncover certain concepts in peoples' subconscious mind and to be assessed properly. This thesis is named A Study on the Motif Structure of the Kırım'ın Kırk Batırı. In the thesis, based on the above-mentioned idea, the plots of the Kırım'ın Kırk Batırı, a Kazakh epic, were removed, and it is aimed to determine the motifs in the narratives. This study is thought to serve to reveal similarities of motifs between Kırım'ın Kırk Batırı and the other Turkish epics. In this thesis, Structuralist Theory was used which accepts that the elements of the "object" are a "string" / composing of relationships with each other. After identifying the motifs in the epic, it was listed according to the motifs in the Motif Index of Folk Literature by Stith Thompson. Each epic in the book is discussed separately. Upon identifying the motifs in the epic, they were matched with the ones in the work of Stith Thompson, Motif- Index of Folk Literature. Each epic in the book was analyzed separately. There has been no classification made in regards to the common motifs. In the end, it is concluded that the motifs used in the Kazakh epic, "Kırım'ın Kırk Batırı", are highly compatible with each other as well as with most epics in Turkish literary world. Also, it has been observed that certain motifs such as "naming", "childlessness issues", "a hero abandoning his country and coming back stronger than before", "revenge" are widely used throughout the work. For that reason, it can be assumed that those motives represent a common understanding and mutual provision in Turkish culture narrative tradition. Key Words: Kırım'ın Kırk Batırı, Epic, Motif, Kazakh Epics