The Politics of the Female Body in Contemporary Turkey - (Gender and Islam) by Hilal Alkan & Ayse Dayi & Sezin Topçu (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

In Turkey, the Justice and Development Party government has introduced new regulations about reproductive rights, and shifted family and gender policies. Women's central role in reproductive and domestic work was swiftly reaffirmed, and abortion and IVF were newly debated. Taking Turkey as the case study, this is the first book to examine the various ways neoliberal modes of governing women's bodies interact with conservative and authoritarian measures.

The contributions focus on reproduction, maternity and sexuality, to explore the three main areas of governmental interventions into the female body. Topics for discussion include: the expansion of IVF and egg markets, the privatization of gynaecological and obstetrical care, differential treatment of poor and ethnic minority women's fertility/sexuality, and women's multiple responses to these shifts. While focusing on Turkey, the book presents analytical tools applicable under rising authoritarianisms and conservatisms worldwide.

Review Quotes

Gender has always been at the center of nation-making in several contexts, including the Middle East. The chapters in this edited volume describes, in detail, how the recent political turn in Turkey cannot be understood without a thorough feminist critique of everyday politics.

This book contains an outstanding ethnographic material and a brilliant analysis of the transformations Erdogan's rule has produced in women's material and moral lives. Focusing on neoliberal economic reforms, neoconservative state policies and religious revival, the volume's contributors explore their effects on women's reproductive and sexual practices. Inspired by a feminist critical engagement, the twelve chapters provide the reader with a multidimensional view of the authoritarian and often misogynist evolution of Turkish society in the early 21th century in light of women's reproductive, maternal and sexual bodies. Last but not least, this book offers an extensive insight into transnational socio-political dynamics that affect several countries of the MENA region stimulating the dialogue with scholars working in this area.

This ground-breaking volume, replete with rich ethnography and cutting-edge theory, provides the single best analysis of women's reproductive lives under an increasingly authoritarian, neoconservative Middle Eastern regime. The authors document multiple forms of reproductive surveillance, discrimination, and violence against women in Turkey, while also highlighting women's pragmatism, creative use of technology, and feminist struggle. A must-read for Middle East gender studies scholars, medical anthropologists and sociologists of reproduction, and all those advocating for reproductive justice.

About the Author

Hilal Alkan is a researcher at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient Berlin, Germany.

Ayse Dayi is the founder and director of Orca Dreams: Platform for Mindful Living.

Sezin Topçu is a senior researcher at the French National Research Center (CNRS-CEMS-Ehess).

Betül Yarar is a senior researcher at the Unit of Intercultural Education, University of Bremen, Germany.