Ütopyacı bir Aydın'ın biyografisi: Şevket Süreyya Aydemir

Şevket Süreyya Aydemir (1897-1976) was one of the most prominent intellectuals in Turkish political thought in the Republican period. Besides his voluminous biographical masterpieces about the historical figures of the Turkish history, he was also known as an ideologue of Kadro (Cadre) Movement, one of the writers of Yön (Direction) Journal. Leaving a mark in the history of Turkish political thought thanks to writing on social, political and economic issues in Turkey, Aydemir personally witnessed the events of the period and sometimes he was even one of the people taking parts in the incidents. The aim of this study is to contribute to the literature on Turkish political thought with an intellectual biography of Şevket Süreyya Aydemir who is a well-known author and thinker. Aydemir's social circle, family, education as well as the developmental process of his thoughts are analyzed within the framework of Turkish political life. Even though Aydemir's ideological stance was inconsistent, it is argued here that Aydemir is a utopian intellectual who had followed world events with a critical eye, determined the needs of the society he lived in, and formulated systematic solutions that were realizable.