Thesis

THE DIALECTICS OF SECULARISM AND REVIVALISM IN TURKEY: THE CASE OF SAID NURSI

This dissertation analyzes Said Nursi’s revivalist discourse and mobilizationstrategies in the context of the development of secularism in Turkey. This studystarts with the exploration of the development of the secularist movement and itsdiscourse with regard to philosophical foundations of (1) the construction ofreality, (2) the self and (3) the society. This is followed by the analysis of SaidNursi's discourse of revivalism before and after the establishment of the TurkishRepublic with respect to these three areas and by the exploration of the discourseand mobilization strategies of the Nur Movement (established by Said Nursi) visà-vis the mobilization strategies of the secularist establishment.This study is based on discourse analysis of the texts produced by thesecularist movement, and the texts produced by Said Nursi and the letters heexchanged with his followers. I also analyze material and non-materialmobilization strategies of these two movements.One of the main conclusions of this dissertation is that secularism andrevivalism do not have fixed boundaries and natures. Sociopolitical contexts, socioeconomicand educational backgrounds and ideological orientations of actors aswell as their relationships with the state and with religious forces played significantroles in the emergence of substantial variations in the discourse and mobilizationof the secularist movement. Said Nursi’s approach to religious revival, too, showedconsiderable variations. Although he first advocated macro level societal reform forreversing the decline of the Muslim World, Said Nursi started developing a dialecticapproach to religious revival after the introduction of explicitly secularist ideas (e.g., materialism and naturalism). Following the establishment of the secularistTurkish Republic, Said Nursi started writing treatises with the purpose ofchallenging the philosophical foundations of secularism rather than directlyengaging the secularist establishment. In so doing, he embraced a micro-levelmobilization strategy which aimed at appealing to and transforming individuals.By challenging its philosophical bases and not developing a politically intonateddiscourse against secularism, Said Nursi and the Nur Movement embraced aneffective mobilization strategy of “simultaneously engaging and disengaging” thesecularist establishment.

Author: Nisanci, Zubeyir

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2015
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Thesis
Doctoral
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO

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Conference_Venue: 10052
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Nisanci [2015] PhD Thesis on Secularism and Nursi.pdf