An examination on the Tanzimat novel: The social manners of Westernization

Sociology and literature are two closely related disciplines. Like sociology, literature deals with the social world of people, their social cohesion and the desire for change. Since the main material of both disciplines is man and the society in which he lives, making use of literature in social analysis also provides the opportunity to reach healthy results. Among the literary genres, the novel is included in the field of sociology in terms of being texts containing social, economic and political elements. The novel, which mirrors the society, also has the quality of a document that records the social changes experienced. An in-depth study of the novels can give an important breakdown of the changes taking place in Turkey. The entry of the novel into our literature as a literary genre is accompanied by the Westernization process, which we can also call the transformation of civilization. In this context, Tanzimat novels are important texts that contain data about society. The Tanzimat novel, which carries the traces of the social conditions in which it was born, also aims to inform the public about Westernization. Despite the important social data they contain, the novels have been the less referenced sources for understanding Turkish society. In this study, it has been tried to examine the social reflections of Westernization through the Tanzimat novel, starting from the feature of literature that interprets social change. The post-Tanzimat period, in which important changes were experienced in the cultural texture of the Ottoman society, was subjected to an in-depth analysis with discourse analysis as reflected in the novels.