Precarious Hope: Migration and the Limits of Belonging in Turkey

257 Pages·2019·1.888 MB·English

by  Ayşe Parla

PR ECA R IOUS HOPE
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P R E C A R I O U S H O P E
Migration and the Limits of
Belonging in Turkey
AYŞE PARLA
STANFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
STANFORD, CALIFORNIA
Stanford University Press
Stanford, California
© 2019 by the Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system without the prior written permission of
Stanford University Press.
Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, archival-quality paper
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Parla, Ayşe, author.
Title: Precarious hope : migration and the limits of belonging in Turkey / Ayşe Parla.
Description: Stanford, California : Stanford University Press, 2019. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifi ers: LCCN 2019009009 (print) | LCCN 2019009649 (ebook) | ISBN 9781503609440
(e-book) | ISBN 9781503608108 (cloth : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781503609433 (pbk. : alk.
paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Immigrants—Turkey—Social conditions. | Turks—Bulgaria—Social
conditions. | Citizenship—Turkey. | National characteristics, Turkish. | Emigration
and immigration law—Turkey. | Turkey—Emigration and immigration. |
Bulgaria—Emigration and immigration.
Classifi cation: LCC JV8745 (ebook) | LCC JV8745 .P37 2019 (print) |
DDC 305.9/0691209561—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019009009
Cover design: Kevin Barrett Kane
Cover photograph: Behiç Günalan
Typeset by Motto Publishing Services in 10/14 Minion Pro
For my parents, Jale and Taha
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CON T EN TS
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Shielding Hope 1
1 Th e Historical Production of Hope 33
2 Entitled Hope 69
3 Precarious Hope 99
4 Nostalgia as Hope 137
Conclusion: Troubling Hope 163
Epilogue: A Note on Method, or Hopeful Waiting in Lines 179
Notes 189
Bibliography 207
Index 231
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ACK NOW L EDGM EN TS
Th is book had its origins at the Boğaziçi University Library in Istanbul, where
I met the inspiring women who, in addition to sharing their expertise as li-
brarians, shared with me such amazing stories of their journey across the
Bulgarian-Turkish border that they pulled me in like a magnet. In particular,
I would like to acknowledge my gratitude to Nazmiye Ademoğlu and Mensiye
Dahil; their stories do not appear in the book, but they are the original infl u-
ence behind it. During the long journey that brought the book to this point, I
was blessed to have as my guardian angels the legendary administrative team
at Boğaziçi Library—Zeynep Metin, Sema Taşal, and Hatice Ün.
I was introduced to anthropology in an undergraduate class at Harvard,
taught by Ken George, who gave me the fi rst alluring glimpse of the ethno-
graphic and theoretical richness of the fi eld through his own work and his
phenomenal teaching. He also introduced me to the anthropology of emo-
tions and the groundbreaking work of Lila Abu-Lughod, who would become
the kind of mentor one could only dream of. She supported me at every step
along the way during graduate study at New York University. And she con-
tinues to inspire me by her dedication, her generosity, and her unique ethno-
graphic style, which combines the most sophisticated theory with a novelist’s
sensitivity to the details of individual lifeworlds. At New York University, I am
also most indebted to Th eresa Caldeira, Michael Gilsenan, Fred Myers, Su-
san Rogers and Bambi Schieff elin for all they have taught me. I consider my-
self especially lucky to have had Jessica Catellino in my cohort: aft er that fi rst
exchange in front of Rufus D. Smith Hall, I knew we would be great friends,
but I did not yet realize just how much I would come to admire her intellec-
tual grace over the years and how invaluable her support would prove to be.
Th e fi eld research and writing for this book were made possible through
the support of grants no. 106K162 and no. 108K522 from the Scientifi c and
Technological Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK), an Exceptional Young Scholar