La Notion de L'Europe Dans L'Histoire Littéraire et Philosophique Allemande Sous L'Angle des Notions de Turc et de Turquie Considérés Comme "Autre".

Abstract

When the works and sources of the history of German literature and thought between the years 1100-1550 are taken into consideration, it can be clearly observed that in order to emphasize the European culture and identity, the concepts of Turk and Turkey are polarized as opposing forces and thus presented as the "other". As Turkey is considered to be a representative of Asia and the East, the concepts of Turk and Turkey are always characterized as barbaric, cruel, lacking in knowledge and progress, unable to develop any moral principle, lecherous, savage, doomed to failure and as a community devoid of a future. On the contrary, however, Europe is fictionalized and built over the values, which are the opposites of these ideas. Most of these ideas, in time, turn into prejudices and to a certain extent they become permanent. In the process of the transformation of the concepts of Turk and Turkey into the "other" that represents the opposite pole of European culture and identity, primarily the letter of Byzantine Emperor Aleksios Kommenos I, the speeches of popes on the Crusaders, "The Refutation of Koran" by Ricoldus Monte Croce, "Turkish Carnival Game" by Hans Rosenplüt, "Turkish Discourses" by Ulrich von Hutten and Georg Agricola, the relevant works of Martin Luther, and Thomas Münzer's contribution in stimulating social sensibility and critical thought play an important role.