House with Wisteria: Memoirs of Turkey Old and New
Dec 2011 · Transaction Publishers
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This edition of Halidé Edib Adivar's Memoirs, prefaced with Sibel Erol's excellent introduction, is important and timely. When stereotypes of women in the Muslim world abound, Halidé's memoirs remind us of the courage and dedication of "foremothers" who struggled for emancipation at both personal and national levels. These memoirs open a window on the search for personal expression of a woman caught up in the oppressive dynamics of her polygamous households (parental and marital), and the travails of national liberation and nation-building in Turkey, in which she played an active role. Halide speaks to us with an urgency which now cries out to be heard more than ever. Halidé Edib's memoirs are indispensable reading for anyone interested in the history of childhood and education in the late Ottoman Empire. Edib worked to spread public education, instituting schools in Istanbul and in the Arab provinces during World War I. Her account is vibrant and direct, off ering an excellent witness to this critical period during which the Empire collapsed. Halidé Edib lived through the most turbulent times in modern Turkish history. Most unusually for a woman of her day, she did so not only as an eyewitness, but as an active political participant. She was on close personal terms with powerful leaders such as Talat Pasha and Ataturk, but retained a critical and independent mind. All this gives her memoirs their unique character. The book provides new light on the Ottoman Empire and the Turkish nation.
This edition of Halidé Edib Adivar's Memoirs, prefaced with Sibel Erol's excellent introduction, is important and timely. When stereotypes of women in the Muslim world abound, Halidé's memoirs remind us of the courage and dedication of "foremothers" who struggled for emancipation at both person...
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1 review
Robert De La Giroday
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September 18, 2019
The biography sketches in the young Turkish childhood from an amazingly intricate beginning. Beginning intricately but insightful her life takes the sense of her surroundings as it progresses through to her womanhood. Then she appreciates the countries South of Turkey and London. Is it only because she writes in English that the novel seems to be laughing at the people who shared the novel. There is that or a strangeness which is up to the reader to decipher for whatever reason they enjoy House with Wisteria as nothing in this review could break the spell it throws. A book for the ages.
About the author
Halidé Edib (1884-1964) was a participant and partisan of the major events in Turkish twentieth century history. Self-educated, she was multi-lingual and multi-cultural. She was an ardent feminist. She served as information and public relations officer for the government of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and hence was close to the players and politics of the new regime.
Sibel Erol is senior lecturer in Turkish in the Department of Middle Eastern Studies in New York City. The author of numerous professional scholarly articles, her work has appeared in American Association of Teachers of Turkic Languages Bulletin, The Middle East Journal and Middle East Studies Association Bulletin.
Halidé Edib (1884-1964) was a participant and partisan of the major events in Turkish twentieth century history. Self-educated, she was multi-lingual and multi-cultural. She was an ardent feminist. She served as information and public relations officer for the government of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk,...
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