A Reverse Reading of a Familiar Narrative in Turkish Cinema

Turkish modernisation has a long history behind it and has affected many aspects of social and cultural life, including Turkish cinema. In the 1970s and 1980s, Turkish cinema represented modernisation in many films along with disseminating its knowledge all over the country. One of these films is Sosyete Şaban (High Society Şaban) which highlights the distinction between the traditional and the modern through instrumentalising a common contrast, centre, and periphery. The film crystalises the Turkish modernisation process of the city and countryside through amalgamating the characters from each place. This article discusses how this film translocate the centre–periphery hierarchy while mainstream genres of Turkish cinema relied on the indisputable superiority of the centre. Spatial features of both represented city and countryside are examined through focusing on everyday life and the material culture of spaces. The relationship between power and masculinity is treated from the filters of gender roles in different cultures and spaces.