Turkish and German Cultural Reflections in Renan Demirkan's <i>Black Tea</i> with <i>Three Lumps of Sugar</i>

Renan Demirkan, a cinema and theater actress as well as a second-generation writer in the field of immigrant literature, migrated from Turkey to Germany and personally experienced the problems there, which she reflected in her works based on her observations and experiences. Her works, which are sometimes nourished by reality, emerge in a realm of reality and fiction, incorporating fictional characters, events, and locations. Drawing inspiration from her own life and incorporating elements of fiction into her narratives, the author exemplifies the lives of Turks living in Germany by blending real events and fictional characters, as well as real characters and fictional events. The novel we are discussing, "Black Tea with Three Lumps of Sugar" also has the characteristic of presenting glimpses from the author's autobiography. In this work, which portrays the experiences of a family who migrated to Germany, the author focuses on the problems faced by Turks in Germany from the perspective of a first-person narrator. The novel sheds light on the cultural dilemma of Turks living in Germany and delves into the sources and consequences of this dilemma. The author also highlights the impact of the discrepancy between the external appearance and the inner world on individuals, presenting her characters with intense internal criticism. Additionally, the author successfully reflects the world of immigrants who have fallen victim to cultural decay. In this complexly developed novel, which takes place in a short period of time when a young Turkish woman awaits childbirth in a hospital, she reflects on her childhood memories spent in a village in Anatolia, Turkey, and then returns to her life in Germany, depicting not only the struggles of immigrants but also the psychological distress caused by being caught in between.

Journal

FOLKLOR/EDEBIYAT-FOLKLORE/LITERATURE

Year

2023

Volume

29

Issue

4

Pages

1091-1104

ISSN

1300-7491

eISSN

2791-6057

DOI

10.22559/folklor.2505

WoS UID

WOS:001180954900007