Abstracts
Abstract
This article offers an analysis of Thomas Goffe’s portrayal of Turkish persons in his plays The Raging Turk (1618) and The Courageous Turk (1619), which represent specific English understandings of Ottoman beliefs about proper sensorial behaviour in political and religious contexts, in particular those concerning law and justice. The article offers a counter to the “Othering” narrative by arguing that specific characters are represented in sensorially positive manners to protect English political interests, especially related to murders within the family that are portrayed in the national interests of Ottoman leaders. The article seeks to facilitate this aim by examining Goffe’s portrayals of Ottoman rulers and the role that sensory elements played in his representations of their power and legitimacy. In particular, the article focuses on death rituals of official violence—executions—and how the senses were involved in their depiction. It grows out of historiographical debates on perceptions of the Other and stereotypes of Ottoman Islam and Orientalism. In doing so, the article seeks to demonstrate that Goffe’s work provides an alternative view of “the Turk” from that of many contemporaries—one that is less about brutality and barbarism and more about the constraints of law in a regulated polity. It arrives at the consensus that Goffe’s representation of male Turkish rulers is demonstrative of an emerging Turkish stereotype that is less about violence for its own sake and more about lawful, justified violence within the bounds of Ottoman culture and legal institutions.
Keywords:
- Turkish,
- Ottomans,
- Otherness,
- Legality,
- (Mis)representation,
- Islam,
- Crusading,
- Orientalism
Résumé
Le présent article analyse la représentation des Turcs dans deux pièces de Thomas Goffe, The Raging Turk (1618) etThe Courageous Turk (1619). Ces pièces reflètent des interprétations anglaises de croyances ottomanes quant aux comportements sensoriels appropriés dans des contextes politiques et religieux, en particulier ceux ayant trait au droit et à la justice. L’article s’oppose au discours de l’« altérisation » en soulignant que, dans le but de protéger les intérêts politiques anglais, certains personnages sont représentés de manière positive sur le plan sensoriel, notamment quand il s’agit de meurtres intrafamiliaux présentés comme conformes à l’intérêt national des dirigeants ottomans. L’article examine ainsi l’image des dirigeants ottomans chez Goffe, de même que le rôle joué par les éléments sensoriels dans les représentations de leur pouvoir et de leur légitimité. Il met un accent particulier sur les rituels de mort de la violence officielle – les exécutions – et sur la place des sens dans leur représentation. L’article s’inscrit dans des débats historiographiques sur les perceptions de l’Autre et les stéréotypes de l’islam ottoman et de l’orientalisme. Partant de ce cadre, il cherche à démontrer que l’œuvre de Goffe présente une vision du « Turc » différente de celle de nombreux contemporains, moins axée sur la brutalité et la barbarie que sur les contraintes légales d’un État réglementé. Il conclut que la représentation des dirigeants turcs masculins, chez Goffe, témoigne de l’émergence d’un stéréotype turc moins axé sur la violence gratuite que sur une violence légale et justifiée, encadrée par la culture et les institutions juridiques ottomanes.
Mots-clés :
- Turc,
- Ottomans,
- Altérité,
- Légalité,
- Représentation,
- Déformation,
- Islam,
- Croisade,
- Orientalisme
Appendices
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