WHEN THE ADHAN AND THE BELLS MET: WESTERN FICTION PERSPECTIVES ON THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE IN LOUIS DE BERNIÈRES’S NOVEL BIRDS WITHOUT WINGS
WHEN THE ADHAN AND THE BELLS MET: WESTERN FICTION PERSPECTIVES ON THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE IN LOUIS DE BERNIÈRES’S NOVEL BIRDS WITHOUT WINGS

Summary/Abstract: The Ottoman Empire offers a striking historical example of religious pluralism long before the modern era. By implementing the millet system, exercising adaptable governance, and demonstrating cultural openness, the Empire created significant opportunities for Muslims, Christians, and Jews to coexist within a shared society. This research addresses the portrayal of the Ottoman Empire in Western fiction using four different novels, but basically focusing on Louis de Bernières’s novel Birds Without Wings. The study examines the religious and social tolerance, pluralism, syncretism, coexistence, solidarity, interfaith, and intermarriage between different faiths and races in the Ottoman Empire. The analysis is informed by an interdisciplinary theoretical framework drawing on multiculturalism (Bhikhu Parekh; Will Kymlicka), postcolonial theory (Homi K. Bhabha), nationalism studies (Benedict Anderson), and memory studies (Svetlana Boym) to interpret the dynamics of coexistence and its eventual disintegration. It also sheds light on the question of non-Muslims’ loyalty to the Ottoman Empire. The research also addresses some illconceived policies after the dissolution of the Empire, like the compulsory population exchange between Turkey and Greece. This study contends that the erosion and eventual collapse of the Ottoman Empire precipitated in the disintegration of its once-stable intercommunal harmony and social cohesion. Three primary factors drove this fragmentation: (1) the Empire’s decline and institutional dissolution, (2) protracted conflicts—including the Balkan Wars, World War I, and the Greco-Turkish War—which exacerbated sectarian tensions, and (3) the global ascendancy of nationalist ideologies that prioritized ethnic and religious divisions over unity.

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