Ekrem GÜZEL

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Üniversitesi Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Bölümü, Rize/Türkiye.

Keywords: Servet-i Funûn Literature, the new expression, search for a perfect language, Tevfik Fikret, Cenab Şahabeddin, Halid Ziya.

Abstract

The writers and poets of the Servet-i Funûn generation believe that a new expression and style are needed to reflect a new thought and feeling. In particular, the new style of expression and discourse which they created in poetry brought them to a different point in the history of Turkish literature. The poets of Servet-i Funûn, who caused controversy because of their linguistic and stylistic preferences, were accused as decadence, especially by Ahmet Midhat. In order to respond to such accusations and to explain the nature of the new literary language they produced theoretical writings. In addition to the writings that appear around the debates, the literary texts of the poets and writers of Servet-i Funûn also have the intention of explaining this new linguistic performance and expression. Over time, this intention envolved into a form of discourse that can be seen in both theoretical writings and literary texts beyond the debates. For example, Cenab Şahabeddin in his writings entitled ‘Yeni Elfâz’ and ‘Yeni Ta’birât’, not only explains what they have done to language, but also reflects on his poems in terms of aesthetic content. This situation, which we can see in Tevfik Fikret’s literary writings and poems, is adapted to the fictional level through Ahmet Cemil in Halit Ziya’s novel Mai ve Siyah.

The members of Servet-i Funûn struggle to explain their new linguistic perception in terms of the relationship between language and human being, language and thought. They attempt to express the inadequacy of everyday language in reflecting the human being, and therefore they are in search of an adequate, perfect expression. Within this framework, the aim of this study is to examine Servet-i Fünûn’s writers, poets and critic’s explanations of the new expression how became a discourse and emerged as an aesthetic issue in their works. To draw attention to how the members of this generation, in their theoretical writings, criticisms and discussions, explained the “new expression” which they defended and wanted to create and to sheds light on the intention and philosophy behind it. To show how the leading figures of Servet-i Fünûn such as Cenab Şahabeddin, Tevfik Fikret, Halid Ziya, Hüseyin Cahit search for a perfect expression through in their some theoretical writings, novels and poems. In this way, the question of the autonomy of literature, the possibilities and limits of language, as well as the transferability of thoughts and feelings on language are explored.