Turkey has witnessed remarkable sociocultural change under the regime of Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP), particularly regarding its religious communities. As individuals with pious identities have increasingly gained access to state power and accumulated economic influence, so religious appearances and practices have become more visible in Turkey's `secular' public spaces. More than this, consumption practices have changed and new Islamic and Islamist identities have emerged. This book investigates three of the most widespread faith-inspired communities in Turkey: the Gulen, Suleymanli and the Menzil. Nazli Alimen compares these communities, looking at their diverse interpretations of Islamic rules related to the body and dress, and how these different groups compete for power and control in Turkey. In tracing what motivates consumption practices, the book adds to the growing interest in the commercial aspects of modest and Islamic fashion. It also highlights the importance of clothing and bodily rituals (such as veiling, grooming and food choices) for the formation of community identities. Based on ethnographic research, Alimen analyses the relationship between the marketplace and religion, and shows how different communities interact with each other and state institutions. Of particular note are the varied expressions of Islamic masculinities and femininities at play. Appealing to a cross-disciplinary readership, the book will be relevant for scholars within Turkish Studies, Gender Studies, Islamic Studies, Fashion, Consumption Studies, Sociology of Religion and Middle Eastern Studies.
By:
Nazli Alimen (Helsinki University Finland)
Imprint: Bloomsbury Visual Arts
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 216mm,
Width: 138mm,
Weight: 381g
ISBN: 9781350129320
ISBN 10: 1350129321
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 22 August 2019
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Further / Higher Education
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Figures 4 Abbreviations 8 Glossary 10 Introduction 15 The Bourdieuan Framework of Field and Everyday Religion 18 The Body and Embodiment: Multiple Muslim Identities 24 Faith and Consumption 26 Spaces and Spatialities 30 Taking a Snapshot 32 Reaching Members, Holding Interviews 34 Outline of the Book 37 Chapter 1. Historical Context: Politics, Religion, Society, and the Communities 42 The Foundation and the Early Years of the Republic 42 The Return of the Restricted: Islam in Politics as Religious Populism 45 Political and Social Lives in the 1960s and 1970s 47 The 1980s and 1990s: Economic Liberalisation and its Socioeconomic Impacts 50 The AKP Rule: From 2002 to the present 53 The Communities 53 The Gulen Community 53 The Suleymanl? Community 59 The Menzil Community 61 Veiling Practices and the Headscarf Ban in Turkey 62 Conclusion 68 Chapter 2. Fields and Habitus: The Religious Field of Sunni Islam and the Community Fields 70 The Religious Field of Islam in Turkey: The Structure and Structural Openings 71 Islamic Rules of Dressing and Modesty: The Informants' References and Negotiations 75 Acquisition of Muslim and the Community Habitus: The Community Meetings and Worship 82 Being Raised with Community Habitus, Becoming one of the Community Personnel 90 Visual Clues to Community Identities 97 Strategic Changes and Different Levels within the Communities 103 Publicly Distinguishable Clues to Piety and Community Membership of Men 107 Conclusion 113 Chapter 3. Power and Politics: Interactions between Fields 116 Conflict and Conformity: Fields and Players 116 Religious Education and ?mam-Hatip Schools 118 Struggle over Authority and Activity within the Religious Field of Sunni Islam in Turkey 121 Field Relations: The Bureaucratic Field and Community Fields 125 The Community Fields: Mobility and Permeability 132 Faith in the Marketplace: The Gulen, Suleymanl?, and Menzil Communities 138 The Gulen Marketplace 139 The Suleymanl? Marketplace 147 The Menzil Marketplace 155 Conclusion 162 Chapter 4. The Body and Space: Gendered Understandings and Practices 167 Community Spaces and Spatial Practices 169 Being Veiled/Non-Veiled, Becoming Veiled: Experiences of Women 179 Masculinities and Femininities: In the Turkish Muslim Context and in the Faith-Inspired Communities 185 Visibilities and Invisibilities of 'Muslim' Women and Men: in the Turkish Context and Community Fields 193 Conclusion 204 Chapter 5. Fashion and Consumption 206 Religiously-Related Apparel 206 From Tesetturwear to the Modest Fashion Field 210 The Intersected and Intertwined: The Mainstream and the Modest Fashion Fields 217 Headcoverings: Habitus and Taste Regimes 221 Trends and Trendsetters of the Modest Fashion Field 229 Conclusion 240 Conclusion 246 Appendix 259 References 263
Nazli Alimen is a research fellow at Helsinki University. She holds a PhD in Cultural Studies and Marketing from University of the Arts London. Her research interests include visual and material cultures, particularly fashion and dress, consumer culture, and fashion marketing. She has published in a variety of journals as well as writing a chapter for The Routledge International Handbook of Veils and Veiling Practices.
Reviews for Faith and Fashion in Turkey: Consumption, Politics and Islamic Identities
[A] fascinating, provocative and accessible account of Turkish fashion as material culture, apposite for students at undergraduate and postgraduate level in any number of cultural and media studies programmes. * International Journal of Fashion Studies * Well written and extremely readable ... We come away from the book with a greater appreciation of the country, its language, its people, and their clothing choices. * Dress: Journal of the Costume Society of America *
