Right to the City Novels in Turkish Literature from the 1960s to the Present

Right to the City Novels in Turkish Literature from the 1960s to the Present analyses the representation of rural migration to Istanbul in literature, placing Henri Lefebvres concept of the right to the city at the centre of the argument. Using a framework of critical urban theory, the book examines Orhan Kemals Gurbet Kular [The Homesick Birds] (1962); Muzaffer zgs Halo Day ve ki kz [Uncle Halo and Two Oxen] (1973); Latife Tekins Berci Kristin p Masallar [Berji Kristin: Tales From the Garbage Hills] (1984); Metin Kaans Ar Roman [Heavy Roman(i)] (1990); Ayhan Gegins Kenarda [On the Periphery] (2003); Hatice Meryems nsan Ksm Ksm, Yer Damar Damar [It Takes All Kinds] (2008); and Orhan Pamuks Kafamda Bir Tuhaflk [A Strangeness in My Mind] (2014) in the historical context as regards rural migration to Istanbul, urbanization of migrants, and anti-migrant nostalgia. Situating these works as a counterpoint to nostalgic novels and categorising them as right to the city novels, the book aims to offer a conceptual framework that can be implemented on internal as well as international migration in other global(ising) cities; and on cultural products other than literature, such as film.