Turkish Politics and 'The People' - (Edinburgh Studies on Modern Turkey) by Spyros A Sofos (Paperback)

About the Book

Explores the transformations of the notion of 'the people' from the late Ottoman to current Turkish political discourses

Book Synopsis

Turkish Politics and 'The People' enhances our understanding of 'the popular' in the study of politics through a critical examination of the uses and constructions of 'the people' from the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923, to the present. It proposes ways of reading the insertion and operationalisation of the notion of 'the people' as a concept, a political subject, the object of policy and politics over the past century. It assesses the ways 'the people' have been shaped by the history of the republic, and, in turn, have informed ways of visualising society, the country's political culture, institutional architecture and framed the parameters and repertoires of political action.

From the Back Cover

A novel, interdisciplinary approach to populism and Turkish politics over the past 100 years This book enhances our understanding of 'the popular' in the study of politics through a critical examination of the uses and constructions of 'the people', from the establishment of the Turkish Republic to the present. It proposes ways of reading the insertion and operationalisation of the notion of 'the people' as a concept, a political subject, the object of policy and politics over the past century. The author assesses the ways 'the people' have been shaped by the history of the republic and how - in turn - they have informed ways of visualising society, the country's political culture and institutional architecture, and framed the parameters and repertoires of political action. Key Features  Offers a genealogy of the notion of 'the people' in Turkish political culture  Provides a highly original analysis of the performative, discursive, cognitive and affective elements that underpin Turkey's populist adventure  Proposes key conceptual tools to study popular and populist politics and applies them to the Turkish case  Intertwines contemporary political analysis with extensive historical research, bringing together insights from critical and political theory, sociology, social anthropology and cultural studies Spyros A. Sofos is a Political Sociologist at the Middle East Centre, London School of Economics and Political Science.

Review Quotes

Turkish Politics and 'the People' is a very exceptional scholarly enterprise illustrating the historical links between intellectual realms and practical politics that facilitated the extraordinary importance of populism in Turkey, especially throughout the republican period.

--Toygar Sinan Baykan, Kırklareli Üniversitesi "Populism 7 (2024)"

In this excellent book, Sofos critically explores the ways the notion of the people, and the allied notions of the national and the plebeian/vernacular have been shaped by the history of the Turkish republic. He elegantly shows us how these very notions have informed ways of envisaging society and politics in Turkey by taking us on a journey through Turkish political history from the end of the Ottoman era to the reign of the AKP. He meticulously elucidates the transformations of the people during one hundred years of republican politics and gauges the ramifications of the populist turn in Turkey's political trajectories. The book situates Turkey's experience with populism in broader literatures by showing its unique aspects as well as commonalities with other cases all around the world. No one has shown us the continuities and changes in Turkish populism from this perspective before.

--Bahar Baser, Associate Professor in Middle East Politics, Durham University

Those who founded a republic in succession to the Ottoman Empire a century ago did so in the names of the Turkish people and/or nation. What did they mean by those names? Are their meanings the same? What kind of politics is seen as best representing them? Sofos argues that for the entire history of the Turkish republic, political discourse and action has been dominated by populism which, although changing over time, has constantly forestalled the development of democratic and liberal institutions.

--John Breuilly, Emeritus Professor, London School of Economics

[...] Sofos's emphasis on the distinction between "the people" and "the nation" and its impact on Turkish politics and society is a welcome addition to the discussion and is recommended to students of Turkish politics and nation building in general.--H. Shambayati "CHOICE"

[This book] is successful in its effort to illuminate the history of Republican Turkey through the lens of populism.--Marc Martorell "MANARA Magazine"

This is an impressive volume [...] a rich work and an impressive piece of scholarship, one that deserves and no doubt will acquire a wide readership among those interested in Turkey's political development.--Paul Kubicek "Turkish Studies"

About the Author

Spyros A. Sofos is a political scientist based at the Middle East Centre of the London School of Economics and Political Science and is founder and lead editor of openDemocracy's #rethinkingpopulism. He has a PhD in Regional and Cross-Cultural Studies from the University of Copenhagen and has previously worked as a Researcher and Lecturer at the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) of Lund University, Senior Research Fellow in Politics at Kingston University and Senior Research Fellow and Senior Lecturer in Politics at Portsmouth University. His other books include Nation and Identity in Contemporary Europe (1996, Routledge), Tormented by History: Nationalism in Greece and Turkey (2008, Hurst and Oxford University Press), Islam in Europe: Public Spaces and Civic Networks (2013, Palgrave). He was also co-editor of the 'Islam and Nationalism' Palgrave Macmillan book series (2013-18).