MAKİNE VE İNSANLIĞIN SINIRLARINDA: E. GASKELL’ IN KUZEY VE GÜNEY VE O. KEMAL’ İN BEREKETLİ TOPRAKLAR ÜZERİNDE ADLI ESERLERİNİN POSTHUMANİST KARŞILAŞTIRMALI ANALİZİ
Abstract
Bu çalışma, Elizabeth Gaskell’in Kuzey ve Güney ve Orhan Kemal’in Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde adlı eserlerinin karşılaştırmalı bir posthümanist analizini sunarak, insan merkezli öznelliğin çözülmesini ve endüstriyel ve kentsel ortamlardaki insanların evrimini araştırmaktadır. Makale, bu eserleri belirli sosyo-tarihsel bağlamlarına yerleştirerek - Sanayi Devrimi sırasında Viktorya İngiltere’si ve 1950’lerden sonra Türkiye’nin kırsal-kentsel göçü - edebiyatın, birbirine bağlı ve dağıtılmış kimlikler lehine geleneksel insan özerkliğinin çözülmesini nasıl yansıttığını araştırmaktadır. Posthümanist teorileri kullanarak her iki romanın da insanları teknolojik ve sosyoekonomik çerçevelerle birbirine bağlı olarak gösterdiğini ve kimliklerin makineler, fabrikalar ve kentsel ortamlarla etkileşim yoluyla yeniden şekillendirildiğini öne sürmektedir. Kırsal göçmenlerin deneyimlediği yabancılaşmayı ve kapitalist çerçevelere asimile olmalarını tasvir ederek, Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde, insan merkezli değerlerden posthümanist yorumlara geçişi vurgulamaktadır. Göçmenler, sosyal özneler ve posthümanist varlıklar olarak tasvir edilmekte ve kimlikleri, endüstriyel makineler, fabrikalar ve kentsel sistemlerle etkileşimleri aracılığıyla yeniden tanımlanmaktadır. Benzer bir şekilde, Kuzey ve Güney, özellikle Margaret Hale’in Milton’da gelişen farkındalığı aracılığıyla gösterilen, endüstriyel kapitalizmin insanlar ve makineler arasındaki ilişki üzerindeki dönüştürücü etkisini ele almaktadır. Romandaki işçiler, çalıştırdıkları makinelerin uzantıları olarak işlev görür ve karmaşık bir insan ve insan olmayan etkileşimler dinamiğini sunmaktadır. Bunu göz önünde bulundurarak, çalışma, bu metinlerin yan yana getirilmesi yoluyla edebiyatta posthüman öznelliğinin anlaşılmasını geliştirerek insanlar ve makineler arasındaki ilişkiye dair kültürler arası bir bakış açısı sunmaktadır.
References
- Badmington, N. (2003). Theorizing Posthumanism. Cultural Critique, 53 (1) 27. https://doi.org/10.1353/cul.2003.0017.
- Braidotti, R. (2013). The Posthuman. London: Polity.
- Braidotti, R. (2014). Writing as a nomadic subject. Comparative Critical Studies, 11 (2–3), 163– 184. https://doi.org/10.3366/ccs.2014.0122.
- Braidotti, R. (2017). Posthuman critical theory. Journal of Posthuman Studies, 1 (1), 9-25.
- Baudrillard, J. (1981). Simulacra and Simulation. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press.
- Çavuş, C. C. (2021). Transhumanism, posthumanism, and the “cyborg identity.” Fe Dergi, 1 (13), 177-187.
- Erdem Ayyıldız, N. (2019). An evaluation of proto-feminism in Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford, Jass Studies-The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, 74, 233-242. http://dx.doi.org/10.9761/JASSS7987.
- Feenberg, A. (2023). Transforming technology: A critical theory revisited. Oxford: University Press.
- Ferrando, F. (2013). Posthumanism, transhumanism, antihumanism, metahumanism, and new materialisms: Differences and relations. Existenz, 8 (2), 26-32.
- Ferrando, F. (2012). Towards a posthumanist methodology: A statement. Frame Journal for Literary Studies, 1 (25), 9-18.
- Gaskell, E. C. (1994). North and South. England: Penguin Books.
- Gültekin, M. N. (2006). Orhan Kemal'in eserlerinde modernleşme, birey ve gündelik hayat. Sosyoloji Dergisi, (15), 119-128.
- Haraway, D. (1990). A cyborg manifesto: Science, technology and socialist-feminism in the late twentieth century. In Simians, cyborgs, and women: The revolution of nature (pp. 149-181). London: Routledge.
- Haraway, D. (1991). Simians, cyborgs, and women: The reinvention of nature. New York and London: Routledge.
- Hayles, N. K. (1999). How we became posthuman: Virtual bodies in cybernetics, literature, and informatics. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press.
- Kemal, O. (2008). Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde. Istanbul: Everest.
- Kittler, F., & Virilio, P. (2001). The information bomb: A conversation. In J. Armitage (Ed.), Virilio live (pp. 135-152). London: Sage.
- Kotan Yiğit, İ. (2022). Unitarianism and social reconciliation in North and South. IDEAS: Journal of English Literary Studies, 2 (2), 125-138.
- Lindfors, A. (2022). The complex depiction of society and class in Elizabeth Gaskell’sNorthandSouth[BAdegreeproject].https://www.divaportal.org/smash/get/diva2:1730318/FULLTEXT01.pdf.
- Marx, K. (1975). Economic and philosophic manuscripts of 1844. In K. Marx, & F. Engels, Collected Works (Vol. 3, pp. 229-346). New York: International Publishers.
- Nayar, P. K. (2014). Posthumanism. Cambridge: Polity Press.
- Oruç, O. (2020). Orhan Kemal’in Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde ve Gurbet Kuşları adlı romanlarında taşralı insanın değişim süreci. Mavi Atlas. 8 (2), 507-516. https://doi.org/10.18795/gumusmaviatlas.789119.
- Uysal, G. (2021). Surviving the capital: A Darwinian Analysis of Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South. International Journal of Media Culture and Literature, 7 (1), 11-26.
- Uyar, F. (2015). Orhan Kemal’in Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde romanında kentte yiten insan. Mavi Atlas, (5), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.18795/ma.50811.
- Wolfe, Cary. (2010). What is posthumanism? Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
AT THE BOUNDARIES OF MACHINE AND HUMANITY: A COMPARATIVE POSTHUMANIST ANALYSIS OF E. GASKELL’S NORTH AND SOUTH AND O. KEMAL’S ON FERTILE LANDS
Abstract
This study offers a comparative posthumanist analysis of Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South and Orhan Kemal’s On Fertile Lands, exploring the dissolution of anthropocentric subjectivity and the evolution of humans within industrial and urban settings. By placing these novels within their specific socio-historical contexts—Victorian England during the Industrial Revolution and Turkey’s rural-urban migration post-1950s—the paper explores how literature mirrors the dissolution of traditional human autonomy in favour of interconnected and distributed identities. Utilising posthumanist theories, it contends that both novels illustrate humans as interconnected with technological and socio-economic frameworks and that identities are reshaped through interaction with machines, factories, and urban environments. Through its portrayal of the alienation experienced by rural migrants and their assimilation into capitalist frameworks, On Fertile Lands highlights a transition from anthropocentric values to posthumanist interpretations. Migrants are portrayed as social subjects and as posthumanist entities, with their identities redefined through their interactions with industrial machinery, factories, and urban systems. In a comparable manner, North and South indicates the transformative impact of industrial capitalism on the relationship between humans and machines, particularly displayed through Margaret Hale's developing awareness in Milton. Labourers in the novel function as extensions of the machines they operate, presenting a complex dynamic of human and non-human interactions. Considering this, the study enhances the understanding of posthuman subjectivity in literature through the juxtaposition of these novels, providing a cross-cultural perspective on the relationship between humans and machines.
References
- Badmington, N. (2003). Theorizing Posthumanism. Cultural Critique, 53 (1) 27. https://doi.org/10.1353/cul.2003.0017.
- Braidotti, R. (2013). The Posthuman. London: Polity.
- Braidotti, R. (2014). Writing as a nomadic subject. Comparative Critical Studies, 11 (2–3), 163– 184. https://doi.org/10.3366/ccs.2014.0122.
- Braidotti, R. (2017). Posthuman critical theory. Journal of Posthuman Studies, 1 (1), 9-25.
- Baudrillard, J. (1981). Simulacra and Simulation. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press.
- Çavuş, C. C. (2021). Transhumanism, posthumanism, and the “cyborg identity.” Fe Dergi, 1 (13), 177-187.
- Erdem Ayyıldız, N. (2019). An evaluation of proto-feminism in Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford, Jass Studies-The Journal of Academic Social Science Studies, 74, 233-242. http://dx.doi.org/10.9761/JASSS7987.
- Feenberg, A. (2023). Transforming technology: A critical theory revisited. Oxford: University Press.
- Ferrando, F. (2013). Posthumanism, transhumanism, antihumanism, metahumanism, and new materialisms: Differences and relations. Existenz, 8 (2), 26-32.
- Ferrando, F. (2012). Towards a posthumanist methodology: A statement. Frame Journal for Literary Studies, 1 (25), 9-18.
- Gaskell, E. C. (1994). North and South. England: Penguin Books.
- Gültekin, M. N. (2006). Orhan Kemal'in eserlerinde modernleşme, birey ve gündelik hayat. Sosyoloji Dergisi, (15), 119-128.
- Haraway, D. (1990). A cyborg manifesto: Science, technology and socialist-feminism in the late twentieth century. In Simians, cyborgs, and women: The revolution of nature (pp. 149-181). London: Routledge.
- Haraway, D. (1991). Simians, cyborgs, and women: The reinvention of nature. New York and London: Routledge.
- Hayles, N. K. (1999). How we became posthuman: Virtual bodies in cybernetics, literature, and informatics. Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press.
- Kemal, O. (2008). Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde. Istanbul: Everest.
- Kittler, F., & Virilio, P. (2001). The information bomb: A conversation. In J. Armitage (Ed.), Virilio live (pp. 135-152). London: Sage.
- Kotan Yiğit, İ. (2022). Unitarianism and social reconciliation in North and South. IDEAS: Journal of English Literary Studies, 2 (2), 125-138.
- Lindfors, A. (2022). The complex depiction of society and class in Elizabeth Gaskell’sNorthandSouth[BAdegreeproject].https://www.divaportal.org/smash/get/diva2:1730318/FULLTEXT01.pdf.
- Marx, K. (1975). Economic and philosophic manuscripts of 1844. In K. Marx, & F. Engels, Collected Works (Vol. 3, pp. 229-346). New York: International Publishers.
- Nayar, P. K. (2014). Posthumanism. Cambridge: Polity Press.
- Oruç, O. (2020). Orhan Kemal’in Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde ve Gurbet Kuşları adlı romanlarında taşralı insanın değişim süreci. Mavi Atlas. 8 (2), 507-516. https://doi.org/10.18795/gumusmaviatlas.789119.
- Uysal, G. (2021). Surviving the capital: A Darwinian Analysis of Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South. International Journal of Media Culture and Literature, 7 (1), 11-26.
- Uyar, F. (2015). Orhan Kemal’in Bereketli Topraklar Üzerinde romanında kentte yiten insan. Mavi Atlas, (5), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.18795/ma.50811.
- Wolfe, Cary. (2010). What is posthumanism? Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | World Languages, Literature and Culture (Other) |
| Journal Section | Articles |
| Authors | |
| Early Pub Date | June 2, 2025 |
| Publication Date | June 15, 2025 |
| Submission Date | February 14, 2025 |
| Acceptance Date | April 18, 2025 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 27 Issue: 2 |
