Hüyüktepacı Characters

21.05.2017 Seyla Tanya Varer- 2005825

Soc 204- Literature Assignment

About “Hüyükteki Nar Ağacı” - Yaşar Kemal

The book was written in 1951 by Yaşar Kemal, who is known as one of the greatest novelists that knows the life conditions and local culture in the Çukurova region. “Hüyükteki Nar Ağacı” is focusing on effects of mechanization in agriculture on peasants’ life in the broader sense. But, while the indicators of the changing social body can be sensed in the narrative; exclusion, exploitation, victimization, and struggle of living of local people can be understood clearly. In the article of B. Akşit, there can be found parallel points with the novel. Akşit (1993) argues, with the modernization in the villages in 1950’s, the

Environment-friendly petty commodity producers are not supported and environmental issues start. The novel starts with a character’s realization of dried seeds on their own land and during the road they take, they came across with the problem of clean water, extreme air temperature, and drought. They are all aware of the reason behind these problems and they are frequently cursing on the tractors because of their negative effects own their lives. According to Herath and Dhammika (2009), “Development is often equated with economic development and economic development with economic growth. The word ‘development’ has two aspects; it is normative and it implies change. So ‘development’ is ‘good change’. Views on what is thought of as good and desirable have always been different and will continue to differ.” (p.1457). Rural development, cannot be realized under these conditions, because there is no good infrastructure, no improvement in the quality of life and economic well-being of rural people and there is high level of exploitation. Change comes with change in the mode of production in Marxian sense, but there is no an overt class struggle which the working class has the class consciousness. Actually, in this case, workers that are searching and migrating for a job, are aware of their conditions and separation from owners of means of production. They feel excluded, exploited and express these feelings and thoughts to each other, they feel hopeless and angry against owners of tractors and lands. But they do not show an agency against it. Sadly, they do not even think of a possibility of collective