Marife Dini Araştırmalar Dergisi

Öz

Orientalism is a science from one point of view, is an ideology for another.
It is possible to say that orientalism is comprehended as an ideology in Turkey.
Westernization an modernization stay behind this mental comprehension.
As a civilization project, Westernization was not being a European but it was a project
insisting to be like a European. If We ask the question of Shakespeare’s famous
character changing like, the main problem was to be or like to be.
To be a European means to take possession of a civilization for oneself
wholly. To be like a European means to take possession of only one part of that
civilization for oneself. To take possession of being a European wholly means to be
aware of civilization is constructed by concepts. Whereas to take possession of being
like a European partially, by symbols! Reformists admit that playing piano for a
women and speaking French for men are sufficient to be a European.
Whereas, these are just symbols and these indicate not to be a European
but like a European. Unfortunately, it is so lately realized that to be a European is
not signified by such symbols, but it is signified with a few concepts such as “Human
Rights”, “Democracy” and “Civil society”