Unmasking the Caspian tiger: visibility, disguise, and identity in Murathan Mungan’s poetry

ÇAKAR E.

Middle Eastern Literatures, 2025 (AHCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1080/1475262x.2025.2479555
  • Dergi Adı: Middle Eastern Literatures
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, IBZ Online, Index Islamicus, Jewish Studies Source, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Religion and Philosophy Collection
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Murathan Mungan, mask, visibility, disguise, 1980s, Turkiye
  • Manisa Celal Bayar Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

In Murathan Mungan’s poetry, the themes of mask, visibility, and disguise capture social complexities and individual struggles in 1980s Türkiye. Mungan uses symbols like the mask, nylon crocodile, and Caspian tiger to reflect on the fragmentation of self, class disparities, and the prevalence of ideology in all aspects of everyday life. Against the backdrop of political turmoil and censorship, Mungan handles the challenges of a society full of pressures for conformity and goes beyond the destructive effects of the coup without being propagandistic. His style allows both self-protection and subtle resistance under an oppressive regime. By unraveling the dichotomy between authenticity and pretense, Mungan prompts readers to ponder the masks and the quest for genuine self-expression. Thus, this paper highlights Mungan’s contribution to modern Turkish poetry by revealing the strong link between personal narratives and sociopolitical circumstances, offering a fresh discussion about the themes of identity, subjectivity, and resistance.