The directory «Plots»

Recaizade Mahmud Ekrem
(1847—1913)

Poet and writer (b. 1 March 1847, İstanbul - d. 31 January 1914). He was the father of Ercüment Ekrem Talu. He was raised with private education. Due to health problems, he could not complete his education at Harbiye High School, where he attended after graduating from the School of Knowledge (1858). He started working as a civil servant at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Department of Correspondence (1862). He served as chief assistant at the Tanzimat* and Public Works Departments (1874), as a member of the Council of State (1877), a literature teacher at the School of Politics and at Galatasaray High School (1880-88), as the Minister of Pious Foundations and Education for a few months (1908) and as a member of the Council of Senators (1908-14). Schools were closed on his death and a great funeral ceremony was held in his honor. He is buried near the grave of his son Nijad.

He was introduced to the literary world after becoming acquainted with Namık Kemal and he took over the management of the journal Tasvir-i Evkar when Namık Kemal went to France (1867). Recaizade mostly dealt with pessimistic emotions in his poems arising from the death of his three sons, especially his son Niajd. He prepared the foundation for the birth of the “New Literature Movement” with literary discussions he had with Muallim Naci and his friends who supported the style of old literature. The contemporary young poets and writers of the time, primarily Tevfik Fikret, gathered around him. He played an important role in introducing the ideas of Reformation and the West to a new generation. In literature he supported the notion “Art for Art”. His novel Araba Sevdası (Automobile Love), featuring the character Bihruz Bey and in which he criticized the excessive desire for westernization in Turkish society, is accepted as one of the first examples of realism in Turkish literature.

Turkey, 1964, Recaizade Mahmut Ekrem