Wounded Times: Memory, Trauma and the Consciousness of the Narrative
In this presentation, the relationship between individual memory and social history in literature will be discussed through Adalet Ağaoğlu’s series titled as Dar Zamanlar Quartet. The internal worlds of the characters in the novels reflect not only their personal problems but also their conflicts with the political and social changes in Turkey. Throughout the presentation, it will be discussed how these inner worlds are shaped by the repressed past and how the narratives are interwoven with concepts such as memory, time and identity. In addition, based on the speaker’s studies on this series, it will also be mentioned how the series gained a new meaning with the novel, Dert Dinleme Uzmanı. The aim is to re-consider from a psychoanalytic perspective, how literature builds a bridge between individual consciousness and social history.
Erol KÖROĞLU is a faculty member at Boğaziçi University in the Department of Turkish Language and Literature. He works on modern Turkish literature, the relationship between literature-history-ideology, narrative theory and trauma representations. He has written articles and critical essays on historical memory and on the relationship between the collective forms of remembrance and the individual consciousness in literary texts, particularly in Dar Zamanlar Quartet. He also publishes articles focusing on the relationship between literature and politics in critical journals and collective publications.
Discussant: NİLÜFER ERDEM
Discussion on Erol Köroğlu’s text Wounded Times: Memory, Trauma, and the Consciousness of Narrative
In this presentation, Erol Köroğlu’s presentation on the relationship between individual memory and social history in literature by a focus on Adalet Ağaoğlu’s work will be discussed from a psychoanalytic perspective through loss, mourning, and group processes.
Nilüfer ERDEM is a training psychoanalyst, who is a member of the Psike Istanbul Psychoanalysis Association and the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA). She is the current president of the Psike Istanbul Psychoanalysis Association. Her work focuses on the relationship between psychoanalysis and literature, as well as dreams and creativity.