Comment from Professor:

This is a specialized course in political sociology of Area Studies, focusing directly on the
Republic of Turkey, which is the expertise of the instructor. When you hear the name of
the course, you might expect that it strictly focuses on niche subjects about Turkey.
However, this course aims to place Turkey in the context of modern globalization to
acquire a more universal perspective. Specifically, it covers topics such as the
disintegration of the Ottoman Empire due to modern imperialism, migration and
massacres up to the foundation period of the Turkish Republic, domestic conflicts over
national identity, relationships with the U.S. and the EU, and shifts in diplomatic
principles during the rise of the Global South.

Taking this approach, I hope that students will develop a critical understanding of how
the modern era is a period of Western-centric globalization and how this era was
experienced by non-Western societies. Turkey, as a regional power striving for
integration into the Western sphere while being considered non-Western, occupies a
comparable position to Japan. In today's world where global power balances are
increasingly apparent, understanding the political and social aspects of Turkey as a
mirror reflecting problems of both the Global North and the Global South is an ideal
method to comprehend the structure of modern times. I hope that the Turkish Studies
course helps establish a more universal intellectual foundation for understanding the
politics and diplomacy of both Western and non-Western countries in the modern era.

Class Interview

1. Outline of the class
The objective of this course is to study the political, social, and cultural developments in
the former Ottoman Empire and the Republic of Turkey in the context of Westerncentrism,
imperialism, and colonialism in the modern era. Students can learn about the
negative aspects of Western-centric globalization by addressing the problems that the
so-called “model student of modernization”, Turkey, faces.

2. Why did you decide to take this class?
I have been interested in the Middle East region for a while and also took Professor
Sawae's “Middle Eastern Politics” course last year which made me eager to learn more.
Furthermore, recent events such as Turkey's high inflation, diplomacy with Russia, and
the occurrence of large earthquakes sparked my interest in Turkish political and
economic situations which motivated me to deepen my understanding through this
course.

3. What did you find attractive about this class?
The appeal of this course lies not in continuously studying Turkey in detail but in reexamining
and discerning issues of modernization and Westernization through
understanding Turkey's challenges and its position.

4. How do you want to connect what you learned in the class to the next?
I plan to research Kurdish residents in Europe in my seminar course during my junior
and senior years. The diplomacy and domestic politics of Turkey, a country from which
Kurdish migrants and refugees originate, are closely related to the lives of Kurdish
residents in Europe. I would like to make use of the perspectives on the development of
ethnic issues in Turkey and Turkey's stance in the international diplomatic stage, which
I learned in this lecture, in my future research.
(Simon De Turck, Third-year student, Faculty of Global Studies)

I believe that one of the major features of this class is that it examines events occurring
in the international community through the example of Turkey's politics and society from
a perspective differing from the dominant “Western” values in the modern world. The
attraction of this class lies in gaining a different viewpoint from our usual perceptions
by thinking about Turkey, which is situated between “Western” and “non-Western” and
has a complex history.

From a historical perspective, Turkey is positioned as a “non-Western” region. However,
the Republic of Turkey, established after World War I, strongly emphasized the secular
state system, a major feature of the nation-state system established in Europe, and
aimed for the “Westernization” of Turkey through joining NATO and negotiating for EU
membership. On the other hand, this policy brought about backlash from the Turkish
public against “Westernization” based on nationalism and an Islamic revival. Turkey has
a complex social structure rooted in its historical experiences.

Learning about Turkey's complex social structure in this class has provided an
opportunity to change my previously vague understanding of the various issues Turkey
faces. Furthermore, through this case study, I realized the necessity of acquiring various
perspectives for viewing the international community. Deepening our understanding of
Turkey's layered social structure offers a valuable opportunity to adopt the analytical
method of “analyzing events from different perspectives”, which is crucial in the analysis
of international relations. I wish to apply the new perspectives gained in this class to my
research as well.
(Inoue Hirotaka, Fourth-year student, Faculty of Global Studies)