Women and Public Space in Turkey by Selda Tuncer

Author:Selda Tuncer [Tuncer, Selda]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Middle East, Turkey & Ottoman Empire, Social Science, Women's Studies, Political Science, Political Freedom
ISBN: 9781784537524
Google: I984vgAACAAJ
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
Published: 2018-09-30T05:34:13+00:00

As seen in the words of Sinem above, the idea of the head of the household’s arrival home could be used interchangeably with the idea of the end of the day, and this convention of time was manifested in behavioural patterns. Being home by dusk was a condition of going outside for women, regardless of where and with whom they went, and this rule was always in effect for women in family life. As Hikmet, an older-generation woman, said, ‘I try to get home by evening, I mean, I try really hard to get home; no matter where I go, I try to get home before the evening prayer, I won’t be late.’

Between Time and Space: Anxious Mothers, Disobedient Daughters

It is significant that, while talking about time constraints imposed by husbands, few of the women from the older generation made critical or questioning remarks. For the women in this group, to be home on time was a duty to be fulfilled by every housewife, and so the assumption was generally that there was nothing wrong with such a duty. As such, it was often mentioned during the interviews that they did their best to comply with the requirement. Hayriye, an older-generation woman from Aşağı Ayrancı, had a relatively less possessive husband, but still planned her outside activities to suit her husband’s schedule and expectations:

I: Okay, for example, you have a comfortable or at least relatively comfortable marriage. Your husband didn’t interfere (Hayriye: No, no, he didn’t) as far as I can tell. So, for instance, what time would you get home, what time did you have to get home?

Hayriye: I was anxious, I’d be afraid that he’d get angry. [. . .] sometimes the bus wouldn’t come. But I’d definitely have a friend with me if I was going somewhere

distant; I wouldn’t go alone. Back then, we [only] had telephones. I sometimes told him that I was running late. I sometimes went home late. But not always. Once in a while. Occasionally. [. . .] I would get home on time, yes, on time.

I: But, I suppose [you didn’t have any problems because of that, right?] . . .?

Hayriye: No, no, I didn’t. I knew my . . . I mean, I knew the way things should be. How did I know? I’d figured out his character. I’d go and come back on time.

What is notable in Hayriye’s dialogue is her emphasis on how she was conscious of her duty and acted accordingly. It is clear in her repetitive expressions of self-awareness that she made a conscious effort to be at home on time. When asked if she had any trouble with her husband related to her timing, Hayriye’s answer was clear: she never faced any problems because she never crossed the line. Although she started by answering the question with a comment about her husband’s anger, she then shifted her focus to the fulfilment of wifely duties. Hayriye wanted the listener to know that she was a good wife, which included knowing when to be home and arranging her programme with this in mind.

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