Social Exclusion and Subculture Formation in Istanbul
This paper compares two academic articles examining social and spatial segregation in modern Istanbul, Turkey. Drawing on Bediz Yilmaz's study of the poverty-stricken neighborhood of Tarlabasi and Ayfur Bartu Candan and Biray Kolluoglu's analysis of both the public housing project Bezirganbahce and the affluent gated community of Gokturk, the paper explores how mainstream Turkish society excludes urban poor and ethnic minorities — particularly Kurdish migrants — through economic, political, social, and spatial mechanisms. It further examines how marginalized communities respond by developing their own fluid subcultures, and how culture itself proves adaptable even under conditions of extreme deprivation and discrimination.
- Introduction: Culture as a Complex and Fluid Concept: Culture defined as complex, location-dependent, abstract idea
- Tarlabasi and Multidimensional Exclusion: Yilmaz on poverty and exclusion in Tarlabasi neighborhood
- Subculture and Survival in Tarlabasi: Tarlabasi residents develop fluid underground subculture
- Bezirganbahce, Gokturk, and Neoliberal Segregation: Candan and Kolluoglu examine two segregated Istanbul spaces
- Voluntary Isolation Among Istanbul's Affluent: Affluent Gokturk residents embrace voluntary self-segregation
- Conclusion: Exclusion, Subculture, and the Fluidity of Culture: Both articles confirm exclusion generates resilient subcultures
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper uses a clear comparative structure, placing two related scholarly articles side by side to reveal patterns of urban exclusion across different Istanbul neighborhoods.
- It grounds abstract claims about culture in concrete geographic locations — Tarlabasi, Bezirganbahce, and Gokturk — giving the argument specificity and analytical focus.
- The paper moves beyond simple description by drawing a unifying theoretical insight: that culture is fluid and will emerge even in the most marginalized conditions, which ties both sources together cohesively.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective source synthesis. Rather than summarizing each article in isolation, the writer identifies thematic overlaps (exclusionary practices, subculture formation, Kurdish migration) and meaningful differences (involuntary versus voluntary segregation), showing how two independent sources can reinforce and complicate a shared argument about cultural fluidity.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a brief framing of culture as a complex concept, then devotes a section to each article before drawing comparisons. The first article analysis (Yilmaz) establishes the core argument about subculture emerging from forced exclusion. The second (Candan & Kolluoglu) extends this by adding the dimension of intra-group tension and voluntary affluent segregation. The conclusion synthesizes both sources around the shared theme of exclusion producing cultural resilience.
Introduction: Culture as a Complex and Fluid Concept
There are many facets of discourse when it comes to discussing matters of culture. What culture is and how it defines our lives remains an ongoing discussion, and varies dramatically across different locations. Understanding the similarities and differences between various presentations of cultural discussion can help us appreciate how complex and abstract an idea it truly is.
Tarlabasi and Multidimensional Exclusion
The first article examined here is titled "Entrapped in Multidimensional Exclusion: The Perpetuation of Poverty Among Conflict-Induced Migrants in an Istanbul Neighborhood" by Bediz Yilmaz, published in the 2008 edition of New Perspectives on Turkey. It is essentially an examination of the practice of cultural and social exclusion. The article takes a closer look at Tarlabasi, a neighborhood in Istanbul (Yilmaz, 2008). Though it sits close to more affluent neighborhoods, Tarlabasi is deliberately segregated in order to contain its so-called undesirables and prevent them from entering mainstream society.
Yilmaz states that "Tarlabasi generates fear, and the more it is stigmatized as such, the more its inhabitants are trapped in the vicious circle of social exclusion, the less choice they have, other than being involved in fear-generating activities" (Yilmaz, 2008, p. 26). In essence, the mainstream majority of Turkish society has segregated what it deems undesirable elements into a single physical space. This allows the rest of Turkish society to avoid contact with the urban poor, thereby allowing them to construct an image of their own culture that is devoid of a major portion of their own society.
The author reveals a culture that has created social exclusion and deliberately established particular neighborhoods to isolate various groups from the larger society. There are several exclusionary dimensions at work, including economic, social, political, and spatial elements. The neighborhood deals with significant cultural differences stemming from large populations of immigrants with ethnic and cultural backgrounds distinct from mainstream Turks — "namely, the conflict-induced Kurdish migrants who have settled in the neighborhood of Tarlabasi" (Yilmaz, 2008, p. 26). The result is the degradation of a socioeconomic class through the exclusionary practices of the dominant majority society.
References
Candan, Ayfur Bartu & Kolluoglu, Biray. (2008). Emerging spaces of neoliberalism: A gated town and a public housing project in Istanbul. New Perspectives on Turkey, 39(2008), 4–46.
Yilmaz, Bediz. (2008). Entrapped in multidimensional exclusion: The perpetuation of poverty among conflict-induced migrants in an Istanbul neighborhood. New Perspectives on Turkey, 38(2008), 205–234.
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