Author(s): Mehmet Devrim TOPSES
In ?erif Mardin's center-periphery theory, the concept of “tradition” was defended as a value system of the “periphery” against the center. According to this approach, the large segment of society based on the small-scale producers and peasants are on the side of tradition against the center which abolished the “tradition” in the modernization process. However, the theory is open to criticism. For example, when the phenomenon of “tradition” is examined together with its class-based and economic foundations, it is seen that the traditional period reflects not the political and economic interests of the large segments of society based on labor, but those of the ulama class. Because the traditional period covers the historical period between the 15th and 18th centuries, when the ulama class joined the political power at the highest level. The call for “back to the tradition” in the history of Turkish modernization comes from the ulama class, which lost its political and economic position after the 18th century. In this study, the changes observed in the political and economic position of the ulama class with the beginning of the modernization process were examined. The programs of political organizations that defended the concept of “tradition” by means of opposing the Administration of Committee of Union and Progress at the beginning of the 20th century and its divergence from the economic and political interests of the large segments of society were discussed
The Journal of International Social Research received 8982 citations as per Google Scholar report
