Abstract
THE PROMINENT VALUES ABOUT GYPSY REALITY IN AHMET MİTHAT EFENDİ’S NOVEL “GYPSY”
In this study it has been aimed to identify the negativities that class distinction, which is a bleeding wound, creates individually and socially; and to establish the values it intends to instill in society in Ahmet Mithat Efendi’s novel “Gypsy”. In line with this purpose, the work was scanned via one of the qualitative research methods, document research; gained findings were sometimes evaluated as regards the conditions of that period and sometimes evaluated in comparison with today’s world which led to the specification of the similarities and differences between the two periods.
Ahmet Mithat Efendi, one of the Reform Era intellectuals, aspired to reflect the issues that the whole society was going through, not just certain groups, through the setting and characters he built up in his novel “Gypsy”. While discussing gypsyism he expressed that it was the common issue of society. The writer criticized the point of view held against Gypsies in Reform Era in a realistic way commenting through a character called Şems Hikmet. He put forth his sense of objectivity through showing equal tolerance to Şems Hikmet and Ziba. He aimed to educate society starting from their reality and hence intended to narrate some of the social and individual values based on occasions in the book. He preferred to realize that indirectly rather than directly. He also proved himself a socialist writer since he demonstrated not only what he wanted to see but also what society wanted to see with the help of the characters. The thing he laid stress on the most was that class distinction caused mistakes which couldn’t be repaired. He frequently emphasized the wrongness of this attitude through highlighting the value of non-discrimination and desired to secure national unity and solidarity. Based on the values that the writer intended to bring in to society at that period, it has been established that these values are parallel with the ones that school and society shoud possess today so they all need to be transfered.
Keywords
Ahmet Mithat Efendi, Gypsy, Values, Reorganizations.
