Abstract:

Namık Kemal’s novel, named İntibah, is known the first literary novel in Turkish literature. The novel, along with this well-known reputition has an informative role in many subjects such as the socio-cultural situation of the time, human relations, life practices, family order. This study focuses on the family, the parent-son relationship in the family and the individualization of the son. The 19th century is the key to the transition from collective life to individuality with the modernization movement for the Ottomans. Namık Kemal with his novel İntibah, published in 1876, works on the subject of son’s individuation or not to be individualized in the absence of his father who is the absolute authority over Ali Bey. In the novel, the story of Ali Bey is mentioned, who is faltering at the end of his father’s loss and can not fill the empty space created by his father’s absence with his mother. This son who is condemned to passivity under father authority at first, can not succeed in the search for individuality in the freedom born after his father’s death. Mom wants to take over father’s authority. In the first place, Ali Bey doesn’t allow this, but after taking a knock from Mehpeyker, he feels the need to take refuge in his mother and childhood. It is so meaningful that at this point that the name of Mom Fatma Hanım was mentioned in the 17th episode after this event for the first time. By the age of twenty-one, the son, raised by his father's role model and supervision, falls into a big gap that is very difficult to fill with his loss. Because the father, who represents the dominant character and power, has an important role and responsibility at every stage of Ali Bey’s life. He is the key determinant of his son. The mother can not succeed although she wants to fill this gap left from the father and tries to show the father function. Because she is also grew up on her husband’s behalf and was able to demonstrate an asset only under his supervision. It is seen that after the loss of the father, the dominant power, the task of creating the new man of the new order is not given to the mother who is ignorant and traditional.

Keywords: