The predicaments of alla franca: visions of proper behavior in late Ottoman etiquette literature

Abstract

This dissertation is about late Ottoman etiquette (âdâb-ı mu’âşeret) books published between 1889 and 1918. It examines these books as behavioral literature and discusses the emergence of this literature within the late Ottoman socio-political and cultural milieu and contemporary world context. It analyses late Ottoman etiquette books in terms of context, content and agenda as the visions of proper behavior of each etiquette author. By studying this genre and the manners it introduced, this study aims to obtain insights into how contemporary men of letters understood, confronted, negotiated and coped with change and transformation and how they define Ottoman etiquette under different circumstances and situations. In this manner, firstly, it analyzes late Ottoman etiquette books as a literature with all its differences and common points within a conceptual framework. Then, it reveals how it defines its audience and delineates different realms of life from dress to domestic life to patterns of sociability.