Conference Presentations by Ido Ben-Ami
This paper aims to suggest ways in which the history of emotions may be incorporated into the stu... more This paper aims to suggest ways in which the history of emotions may be incorporated into the study of the Ottoman Empire. Using wonder as an example, I will demonstrate how members of the Ottoman elite learned, practiced, and encouraged their peers to experience a profound emotional reaction of wonder at various objects and events. I will argue that contrary to what most neuroscientists usually believe about the nature of emotions, this wonder was not an ahistorical universal reaction, but rather a unique emotional reaction felt by those exposed to medieval cosmographic theory about this emotion. Through studying this theory, readers of cosmographies became aware of the cosmographic wonder at God's creation, how it is generated, why it occurs, and the sense of bewilderment (ḥayrat) that results from it.
The early modern Ottomans who were exposed to this theory formed a large emotional community. Their members expressed wonder in their writings by using words, symbols, and gestures derived from the science of cosmography. Considering the difficulty in quantifying the number of Ottomans who consumed cosmographies during the early modern period, it is only possible to identify powerful individuals from this emotional community—intellectuals who showed a glimpse of their emotional world through their writing. Among other works, this paper will include examples from the works of the cosmographer Ahmed Bican Yazıcıoğlu (d.1466), the poets Lamii Çelebi (d.1532) and Hayreti (d.1534), the autobiographies of the architect Sinan (d.1588), Intizami's Book of Festival of 1582, and the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (d.1682).
The cosmographic narrative of wonder was employed by such intellectuals as long as cosmographies were in demand. From the beginning of the seventeenth century, when updated studies on geography gradually replaced cosmographies, there were those within this emotional community who underwent an epistemological change. At this point wonder began to be generated by different stimuli, which were not necessarily related to cosmography and the wonders of creation. Additionally, due to several political and economic developments, in the seventeenth century, the structure of the Ottoman elite underwent a change, as outsiders (ecnebi) who were not descendants of the sultan's slaves (kul) were permitted to enter the imperial administration. I will demonstrate the connection between these changes and the conceptualization of wonder that resulted from them.
Does power have its own specific sound? Or: How do sounds in combination with other media functio... more Does power have its own specific sound? Or: How do sounds in combination with other media function specifically in courtly rituals of the premodern era? And: What reactions and associations did they trigger in the ritual community? These and other central questions are the focus of the SNSF project "The Sound of Power: Sound as an Intermedial Category of Courtly Festive Rituals in an Intercultural Perspective in the 15 th-17 th Centuries", which is based at the University of Bern. The focus is on the courtly cultures of the Ottoman Empire, with special attention to the circumcision ceremonies that Murad III held for his sons for a full 52 days at the Hippodrome in Istanbul in 1582, and various rituals of the Burgundian-Habsburg sphere of the second half of the 15 th century, such as the Banquet of the Pheasant in Lille (1454), the Trier princely meeting (1473) or the election and coronation of Maximilian I as Roman-German king in Aachen (1486). These events, among others, will be issued to demonstrate by a cross-cultural approach how sounds were involved in demonstrations, representations, and displays of princely power, and how power was expressed specifically in the medium of sound. Special emphasis will be laid on the performance and interaction between the media, since ritual and ceremony consciously made use of the different sensual worlds of experience in order to be emotionally tangible and experienceable, to trigger the desired effect of an exaggeration, even overwhelming. In this context, forms of idealization are also problematized, such as the perception of others in words, sound, or image, and the transfer between the different courtly spheres.
Buildings have what materialist Jane Bennett identifies as a thing-power: they can inspire, provo... more Buildings have what materialist Jane Bennett identifies as a thing-power: they can inspire, provoke and generate emotions among attentive audiences who look at or visit them. But can these emotions really be considered a universal (biological) phenomenon that everybody would feel? The short answer is no. In this paper, I shall demonstrate how the early modern Ottoman elite formed a joint emotional community, whose members were encouraged to practice a unique sense of bewilderment at Ottoman architecture.
The early modern Ottoman elite translated bewilderment as wonder. A theory dealing with this emotion was first introduced to the elite in different medieval Islamic treatises written on Wonders-of-Creation. These treatises aimed to examine both the mental and physical nature of wonder. Readers were expected to experience this when they were unable to understand the cause of a thing or how it was supposed to influence them when they saw it for the first time. As such, cosmographies encourage their potential readers to turn sights of aesthetics experiences into an insightful experience of bewilderment/wonder.
In early modern Ottoman chronicles, treatises on architecture (e.g., Mimar Sinan's autobiographies), and travelogues (e.g., Evliya Çelebi's Book of Travels), this notion of bewilderment is mentioned in the context of imperial Ottoman monuments. Members of the elite were advised to contemplate imperial complexes like the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul for instance, or the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, and turn their sights into an insightful experience of wonder.
However, this kind of wonder cannot be considered a universal phenomenon; not all who visit these imperial buildings are automatically bound to be bewildered in the same way. Rather, the aforementioned emotional experience of wonder is exclusive to the potential readers who shared a joint early modern Ottoman mentality.
Furthermore, this mentality did not continue among the Ottoman elite beyond the seventeenth century. At this point in history, with the influence of modern European studies on architecture, members of the elite abandoned the cosmographic theory of wonder and adopted the European perception of the aesthetics of the structures without the need for contemplation.
Over the course of the last decade, Ottoman scholars have fostered innovative ways of thinking ab... more Over the course of the last decade, Ottoman scholars have fostered innovative ways of thinking about their sources and have asked questions relating to varied environmental issues. Naturally, questions on human-animal relations are also included within this research field. However, innovative as these questions may be, most of them still reflect a broader viewpoint according to which animals are considered secondary to human agency. In this paper, I will link Ottoman historiography with the expanding concept of the „Animal Turn‟. Recently conceived by historians, like Erica Fudge for instance, this term has been used to highlight the extent to which humans and animals were not simply cohabiting in their natural environment, but rather the latter played a significant role in the formation of human history, and served as agents on their own terms.
Since ancient times humans and animals have maintained a close relationship and have had a profou... more Since ancient times humans and animals have maintained a close relationship and have had a profound impact upon each other. Due to this notion, historical research dealing with human-animal relations has expanded in recent years and Ottoman scholars have diligently joined in a few years ago. Along these lines, this proposed lecture will focus on memories of Ottoman-animal relations as they appear in textual and illustrated scenes from two imperial festival books: the Surname-i-Hümayun of 1582 (created by the author İntizami and illustrated under the supervision of the painter Osman) and the Surname-i-Hümayun of 1720 (created by Vehbi and illustrated under the supervision of Levni). The Surname books describe the events of two imperial festivals celebrated in two different classical ages of Ottoman art and culture. In 1582 Sultan Murad III (r.1574-1595) held a festival for his son’s circumcision and commissioned a book that commemorated the occasion. This Surname was based on artistic influences of the first classical age which had begun with the reign of Süleyman the Magnificent (r.1520–1566). The second book, commissioned by Ahmed III (r.1703-1730) in 1720 for the circumcision of his four sons, was based on artistic influences of the second classical age, known as the Tulip period.
These manuscripts were composed in Ottoman Turkish and perpetuated the power and prestige of the ruling elite. The Surnames also reflected the memories of their creators by illustrating the manner in which these patrons, authors and painters aimed to remember the festivals according to their own personal agendas and perspectives. During the celebrations, several talented artists and artisans used animals in their acts. Some animals displayed the craftsmen's work and others entertained or scared the audience during acts of acrobatics and magic. By analyzing various written and illustrated scenes which depict interaction with animals and comparing them with European descriptions about the same festivals, I will show how the creators of the Surnames described and shaped the cultural and emotional atmosphere toward animals in these two classical ages.
The study of human feelings toward animals emphasizes how our relationship with the animal kingdo... more The study of human feelings toward animals emphasizes how our relationship with the animal kingdom is a complex cultural phenomenon. The growing discourse on the History of Emotions offers different aspects of analysis of feelings in a historical perspective. One way is to examine how emotions were expressed within the cultural products of a defined community. Using this approach, I will discuss various written and illustrated scenes from the Surname which depict interaction with animals and thereby demonstrate how a non-western case study can enrich our understanding of human-animal relations.
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Conference Presentations by Ido Ben-Ami
The early modern Ottomans who were exposed to this theory formed a large emotional community. Their members expressed wonder in their writings by using words, symbols, and gestures derived from the science of cosmography. Considering the difficulty in quantifying the number of Ottomans who consumed cosmographies during the early modern period, it is only possible to identify powerful individuals from this emotional community—intellectuals who showed a glimpse of their emotional world through their writing. Among other works, this paper will include examples from the works of the cosmographer Ahmed Bican Yazıcıoğlu (d.1466), the poets Lamii Çelebi (d.1532) and Hayreti (d.1534), the autobiographies of the architect Sinan (d.1588), Intizami's Book of Festival of 1582, and the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (d.1682).
The cosmographic narrative of wonder was employed by such intellectuals as long as cosmographies were in demand. From the beginning of the seventeenth century, when updated studies on geography gradually replaced cosmographies, there were those within this emotional community who underwent an epistemological change. At this point wonder began to be generated by different stimuli, which were not necessarily related to cosmography and the wonders of creation. Additionally, due to several political and economic developments, in the seventeenth century, the structure of the Ottoman elite underwent a change, as outsiders (ecnebi) who were not descendants of the sultan's slaves (kul) were permitted to enter the imperial administration. I will demonstrate the connection between these changes and the conceptualization of wonder that resulted from them.
The early modern Ottoman elite translated bewilderment as wonder. A theory dealing with this emotion was first introduced to the elite in different medieval Islamic treatises written on Wonders-of-Creation. These treatises aimed to examine both the mental and physical nature of wonder. Readers were expected to experience this when they were unable to understand the cause of a thing or how it was supposed to influence them when they saw it for the first time. As such, cosmographies encourage their potential readers to turn sights of aesthetics experiences into an insightful experience of bewilderment/wonder.
In early modern Ottoman chronicles, treatises on architecture (e.g., Mimar Sinan's autobiographies), and travelogues (e.g., Evliya Çelebi's Book of Travels), this notion of bewilderment is mentioned in the context of imperial Ottoman monuments. Members of the elite were advised to contemplate imperial complexes like the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul for instance, or the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, and turn their sights into an insightful experience of wonder.
However, this kind of wonder cannot be considered a universal phenomenon; not all who visit these imperial buildings are automatically bound to be bewildered in the same way. Rather, the aforementioned emotional experience of wonder is exclusive to the potential readers who shared a joint early modern Ottoman mentality.
Furthermore, this mentality did not continue among the Ottoman elite beyond the seventeenth century. At this point in history, with the influence of modern European studies on architecture, members of the elite abandoned the cosmographic theory of wonder and adopted the European perception of the aesthetics of the structures without the need for contemplation.
These manuscripts were composed in Ottoman Turkish and perpetuated the power and prestige of the ruling elite. The Surnames also reflected the memories of their creators by illustrating the manner in which these patrons, authors and painters aimed to remember the festivals according to their own personal agendas and perspectives. During the celebrations, several talented artists and artisans used animals in their acts. Some animals displayed the craftsmen's work and others entertained or scared the audience during acts of acrobatics and magic. By analyzing various written and illustrated scenes which depict interaction with animals and comparing them with European descriptions about the same festivals, I will show how the creators of the Surnames described and shaped the cultural and emotional atmosphere toward animals in these two classical ages.
The early modern Ottomans who were exposed to this theory formed a large emotional community. Their members expressed wonder in their writings by using words, symbols, and gestures derived from the science of cosmography. Considering the difficulty in quantifying the number of Ottomans who consumed cosmographies during the early modern period, it is only possible to identify powerful individuals from this emotional community—intellectuals who showed a glimpse of their emotional world through their writing. Among other works, this paper will include examples from the works of the cosmographer Ahmed Bican Yazıcıoğlu (d.1466), the poets Lamii Çelebi (d.1532) and Hayreti (d.1534), the autobiographies of the architect Sinan (d.1588), Intizami's Book of Festival of 1582, and the Book of Travels of Evliya Çelebi (d.1682).
The cosmographic narrative of wonder was employed by such intellectuals as long as cosmographies were in demand. From the beginning of the seventeenth century, when updated studies on geography gradually replaced cosmographies, there were those within this emotional community who underwent an epistemological change. At this point wonder began to be generated by different stimuli, which were not necessarily related to cosmography and the wonders of creation. Additionally, due to several political and economic developments, in the seventeenth century, the structure of the Ottoman elite underwent a change, as outsiders (ecnebi) who were not descendants of the sultan's slaves (kul) were permitted to enter the imperial administration. I will demonstrate the connection between these changes and the conceptualization of wonder that resulted from them.
The early modern Ottoman elite translated bewilderment as wonder. A theory dealing with this emotion was first introduced to the elite in different medieval Islamic treatises written on Wonders-of-Creation. These treatises aimed to examine both the mental and physical nature of wonder. Readers were expected to experience this when they were unable to understand the cause of a thing or how it was supposed to influence them when they saw it for the first time. As such, cosmographies encourage their potential readers to turn sights of aesthetics experiences into an insightful experience of bewilderment/wonder.
In early modern Ottoman chronicles, treatises on architecture (e.g., Mimar Sinan's autobiographies), and travelogues (e.g., Evliya Çelebi's Book of Travels), this notion of bewilderment is mentioned in the context of imperial Ottoman monuments. Members of the elite were advised to contemplate imperial complexes like the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul for instance, or the Selimiye Mosque in Edirne, and turn their sights into an insightful experience of wonder.
However, this kind of wonder cannot be considered a universal phenomenon; not all who visit these imperial buildings are automatically bound to be bewildered in the same way. Rather, the aforementioned emotional experience of wonder is exclusive to the potential readers who shared a joint early modern Ottoman mentality.
Furthermore, this mentality did not continue among the Ottoman elite beyond the seventeenth century. At this point in history, with the influence of modern European studies on architecture, members of the elite abandoned the cosmographic theory of wonder and adopted the European perception of the aesthetics of the structures without the need for contemplation.
These manuscripts were composed in Ottoman Turkish and perpetuated the power and prestige of the ruling elite. The Surnames also reflected the memories of their creators by illustrating the manner in which these patrons, authors and painters aimed to remember the festivals according to their own personal agendas and perspectives. During the celebrations, several talented artists and artisans used animals in their acts. Some animals displayed the craftsmen's work and others entertained or scared the audience during acts of acrobatics and magic. By analyzing various written and illustrated scenes which depict interaction with animals and comparing them with European descriptions about the same festivals, I will show how the creators of the Surnames described and shaped the cultural and emotional atmosphere toward animals in these two classical ages.
can be answered in multiple ways. Usually, the answer
depends on the disciplinary perspective. As was recently
noted by several dominant historians who deal with the history
of emotions, although the biological and psychological
elements of a certain feeling should not be ignored, within
historical research, a focus on social and cultural aspects
of emotion generation seems to be more convincing. In this
article, I address this issue in the context of Ottoman studies
from the perspective of Barbara H. Rosenwein's notion
of “emotional communities.” I consider early modern Ottoman
elite society of Istanbul to be such a community and
demonstrate how several powerful individuals from this
large social group relied on a medieval Islamic theory about
cosmographic “wonder” and encouraged its members to
embrace this emotion into their social and cultural milieus.