Reading the Emergence of Turkish Nation-State Through the Concept of Habitus

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the emergence of the nation-state in Turkey and read this process through Pierre Bourdieu and Norbert Elias' concept of habitus. In so doing, first of all, the concept of habitus will be explored. The debates concerning the process of the emergence of the nation-state in Turkey and whether the concept of habitus is fruitful will also be discussed. This study underlines the theoretical opportunities of the concept of habitus, particularly, from the angle of the debates concerning the emergence of the Turkish nation-state and Turkish nationalism. On this axis, this study shows that there is a clear link between Turkish nation-state formation and the Turkish national habitus.