Working Class Formation in Turkey, 1946-1962: Work, Culture, and the Politics of the Everyday

by Baris Alp Özden

Overview

The political identities of the Turkish working class began a transformative journey that started during a period of industrialization following World War II and continued until the military interventions of 1960. Working Class Formation in Turkey addresses common, structural generalizations to recover the complex history of developing political, recreational, familial, residential, and work-related lives of Turkish workers. Drawing on a wide range of historical sources, this volume brings the concept of “everydayness” to the fore and uncovers the local contexts that fostered class solidarity, examines labor practices that fueled radicalism, and analyzes the shifting dynamics of industrial discipline that impacted working class identity and culture.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781805392743
Publisher:	Berghahn Books
Publication date:	02/02/2024
Series:	New Directions in Turkish Studies , #1
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	294
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Barış Alp Özden is a visiting scholar at the Institute of Turkish Studies at Duisburg-Essen University. He earned his PhD in Turkish History from the Atatürk Institute at Boğaziçi University with a strong inter-disciplinary orientation. He additionally served as the chief editor of the monthly magazine Toplumsal Tarih (Social History) between 2018 and 2020.

Table of Contents

List of Tables

Introduction

Chapter 1. Working Class and The City

• Urbanization and the Housing Problem
• Housing Policy for Workers
• Construction of Working Class Housing as a Social and Moral Question
• Housing Policy under DP Rule
• Some Aspects of Everyday Life in Working Class Districts
• The Meaning of Home for Workers
• Conclusion

Chapter 2. Working-Class Leisure

• Cinema
• Football
• The Coffeehouse
• Concluding Remarks

Chapter 3. The Changing Organization of Production and Modes of Control, and The Workers’ Response: The Example of Turkey’s Textile Industry

• Development of Turkey’s Textile Industry
• The Labor Force
• Organizing Production: Labor Discipline and Scientific Management in Mills
• Mahmutpaşa Weavers: Working in Small-Scale Production
• Scientific Management in Mensucat Santral and the Workers’ Response
• Conclusion

Chapter 4. Law, Labor Process, and Working-Class Experience

• Internal Regulations
• Labor Inspections
• Collective Labor Disputes and Conciliation/Arbitration Mechanisms
• Conclusion

Chapter 5. Working-Class Language, Identity, and Politics

• Language of Class: Transformation of a Concept
• Working-Class Collective Action: Strikes
• Institutions and Ideological Influences
• Institutionalization of Trade Unions and Working-Class Politics
• Conclusion

Conclusion

Bibliography