Ankara : Türk Edebiyatı Bölümü, İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent Üniversitesi, 2012.Thesis (Ph. D.) -- Bilkent University, 2012.Includes bibliographical references leaves 237-244.This study examines the literary roles of material objects in nine Turkish novels and
seeks to develop an original framework for analysing things. Theories of the novel
still lack an analytical frame for the study of objects. The first chapter deals with a
number of theoretical approaches with regard to the things and lays down the bases
of five original categorical constructs for analysing the fictional objects: Objectcharacters
(personified things), character-objects (Thingified characters), quasiobjects
(spatialised objects), metonymical objects and metaphorical objects. The
second chapter focuses on character and object relations in three novels, namely
Araba Sevdası (Carriage Affair), Udî (The Lutist) and Aşk-ı Memnu (Forbidden
Love) published between 1850-1900. The roles of objects in Tatarcık (Sandfly),
Çamlıcadaki Eniştemiz (Our Uncle in Çamlıca) and Huzur (A Mind at Peace) are
scrutinized in the third chapter. The fourth chapter explores the poetics of objects in
Fikrimin İnce Gülü (The Slender Rose of My Desire), Sonsuzluğa Nokta (A Dot to
Eternity) and Masumiyet Müzesi (The Museum of Innocence) that are published after
1950. The final chapter is devoted to the discussion of textual findings. Except two,
all selected novels share a similar pattern: The main characters seek the comfort of
material things in an attempt to reduce emotional deprivations, which in turn leads to
the personification of objects. Objects not only play a role as metonymical parts of
the characters and settings, but also function as characters and space themselves in
the narratives.Uçar, AslıPh.D
