Abstract:

Poets are required to apply to their poetic texts in order to reach complex collective findings about their poetic concepts. Mehmet Akif Ersoy, who has taken an important place in Turkish literature with the seven-cylindrical poem culture of Safahat, which he published most of it in the first quarter of the 20th century, is a poet who has also thought about the issues of poetry and literature and produced texts. In the poetic texts of Mehmet Akif, a number of criticisms have been directed to the divan poem, art for art and art for society, questioning their concepts and highlighting the second of them and standing on the problem of reality. In this article, we will go through these issues and try to get the results about the poem understanding of Mehmet Akif. Of course, this is not the first and last thing that begins with Mehmet Akif. In Western literature there is a wide literature on whether the reality is problematic and whether art is for art or for society. These issues have also been discussed for a long time among Turkish poets and writers since the Tanzimat period. This review, in light of all these data, will also focus on the relationship of continuity between Mehmet Akif and his literary concepts in the Tanzimat period and especially Namık Kemal.

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Abstract:

In order to reach tidy conclusions about the poets' understanding of poetry, there is an obligation to refer to their poetic texts. Mehmet Akif Ersoy, who has an important place in Turkish literature with his seven-volume poetry corpus titled Safahat, most of which was published in the first quarter of the 20th century, is a poet who also thought about the issues of poetry and literature and produced texts. It is seen that Mehmet Akif made some criticisms to divan poetry in his poetic texts, questioned the understandings of art is for art and art is for society, and emphasized the second of these, and focused on the problem of reality. In this article, it will be tried to reach conclusions about Mehmet Akif’s understanding of poetry by going through these issues. Of course, these are not issues that started and ended with Mehmet Akif. In Western literature, there is a large literature on the problem of reality and the dilemma of whether art is for art or for society. In addition, these issues have been discussed at length among Turkish poets and writers since the Tanzimat period. In this study, in the light of all these data, the continuity relationship between Mehmet Akif’s understanding of literature in the Tanzimat period and especially with Namık Kemal will be emphasized.