From the Department Head
The main priority of the Department of Turkish Literature is to help our students build a sound consciousness of the Turkish language and literature, which will eventually be an efficient asset in their professional journey after graduation. Our
targeted areas of competence that we aim to nourish in our students, can be viewed in three primary components:
- To develop the knowledge and abilities of our students about Turkish language, including its characteristics, historical periods and efficient contemporary use. To create a knowledge and awareness about Turkish literature with a view to its history,
periodization, genres and texts.
- To provide a viable ground for our students on which they can develop qualities—in light of a theoretical outlook—necessary for such areas as literary readership, interpretation, literary criticism and comparative literature, as well as
creative writing and editorial tasks. Hence, helping our students to contribute to the global recognition of Turkish literature.
- To further enhance the academic vision of our students, to provide an array of courses on the formation of the modern word and modern Turkey; the origins of philosophical and ethical thinking; the social and ecological aspects of globalization; media
and mass culture; computer technologies and the basics of statistics.
Turkish literature, enriched through the amalgamation of a variety of cultures into an original synthesis, is a majestic river stretching vibrantly from the Orkhon inscriptions of the 8th century to its world acclaimed contemporary writers. With this
awareness, our fundamental goal in the department is to help educate generations of students who could keep alive the flame of this rich heritage of language and culture. Our department is based on a careful merging of the elements of the traditional
Turcology approach (developed within the Ottoman cultural environment in line with its 19th century European contemporaries) and modern literary studies.
Our determination is to see our graduates emerge as resourceful individuals, taking active roles in their chosen fields of work, acquiring a sharp ability for contemporary Turkish language and an awareness of old Turkish dialects as well as Ottoman Turkish.
We carefully prepared a curriculum to equip or students with the ability to fathom the texts of Turkish literature, through their variety of genres, and formal, philosophical aspects and also with an awareness of their historical and social context.
Doğuş University is rich with opportunities for students who wish to broaden their horizons by various courses from such faculty departments as Psychology, Sociology, English Language and Literature or Communication Sciences, as well as courses offered
by other faculties of the university. Turkish Language and Literature students of Doğuş University are also given the opportunity to acquire a Double Major or a Minor degree in one of the related areas of their preference.
A strong sense of language and literature is a conditio sine qua non of self-awareness and further enhancing cultural values. This holds not only for individuals but also for societies. What is our place and significance in the contemporary world?
Do we know the civilizations whose imprint we carry in our identity? How can we contribute to an ever-changing world? What are our values and how can we preserve them?
What are the ways and means for us to actively participate in the shaping of the phenomena in a severely competitive global arena? To reach this end, do we adequately appreciate the power we derive from our venerable history and culture as well as the
novel spirit of the younger generations?
These questions can best be answered by our graduates of Turkish Language and Literature for whose education we are enthusiastically prepared to contribute.
Asst. Prof. Elif TÜRKER
Chair