Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Turkish Studies, cilt.25, sa.2, ss.280-300, 2024 (SSCI)
This study looks into a rising realm within Turkey’s culture industry, namely Islamic-oriented self-help culture, and explores the marriage advice offered by Islamic self-help authors and therapists on social media. Based on a discourse analysis of social media posts and the comments by followers, the study traces the meanings and discussions produced around problems in marriages in order to understand how Islamic self-help discourse relates to the hegemonization of a neoconservative understanding of gender relations in contemporary Turkey. The findings suggest that Islamic self-help advice on marriage bears ambivalences. On the one hand, it naturalizes traditional gendered power relations in marriage, glorifies an imagined ideal masculinity, and makes women responsible for ‘healing’ the problems in marriage. On the other hand, it raises discussions on previously silenced problems in marriages and advises women to improve their self-confidence and psychological strength, even though within the confines of traditional gender roles.