Ready.


Review: "Türkçe'nin Gücü" by Aksan (1987)

Here is a review of the book TüGü

"Türkçenin Gücü"
by Prof.Dr.Dogan Aksan
Türkiye Is Bankasi Kültür Yayinlari, Turkey, 1987

Mr. Aksan, a professor of Turkish-language studies in a Turkish university, was also the department chair.

wrong & loud. Throughout the text, there is a proud tone. The objectivity is lacking, though. e.g: The way (on p.8) the popular Turkish verbiage "(a woman) to make her hair a/the sweeper" is boasted -- as if "concrete" and powerfully expressed.

Although abhorrably wrong, TüGü is not exceptional -- given the average-level of the newspeak sloganeers in T.C..

If we were to follow such leads, we would dump the friendly-megapolese, the Istanbul language (open to the world culture, and to the Istanbul heritage), e.g: to yield to some obscure words gathered at distant villages, and as that is obvious from the lists of alternatives, even if we would talk the way one village is talking, that would not mean the right thing to another village.






This review is for a purpose. Therefore, not all of the criticisms that I may have, about all of TüGü, need get listed here. (At least, no such intention, yet.) The aim is to favor the Istanbulese, as I point out the baselessness of the newspeak urges.

Foreword (7-11)
introduction (13-15)
I/1 (19-23) . . . I/2 (25-37)
II/1 (41-44) . . . II/2 (45-78)
III/1 (81-86) . . . III/2 (87-135) . . . III/3 (137-147) . . . III/4 (149-166)
IV (167-181)
V (183-190)
VI (191-199)

TüGü is excited about (folkloric/literary) trivia. Read them as snapshots of the culture. Not related to the language issue.

Is that a power, or parrot? I had bought TüGü, when that was a new book. The name, in English, means "The Power of Turkish." That may suggest an aid for your literary-or-linguistic arsenal, when writing in-or-about Turkish. The text is not there, though -- unless we mean to parrot the folkloric-trivia, which TüGü is so proud to list. Although I had bought TüGü with a positive expectation, it was mostly left on a shelf, until I was recently reflecting about dumping the T.C.newspeak away, and to publish this position. Then, TüGü was the natural target, to exemplify what I refuse -- no need to buy or find something else.




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Last-Revised (text) on Nov. 25, 2005 . . . that was http://www.geocities.com/ferzenr/review_1987_Aksan.htm
mirror for zilqarneyn.com, on Mar. 13, 2009
Written by: Ahmed Ferzan/Ferzen R Midyat-Zila (or, Earth)
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