Littera
Ayşenur İplikçi*
ADDISON AND STEELE: EDUCATING THE
NATION THROUGH LITERATURE
ABSTRACT
Literature is the art of expressing thoughts, emotions and acts by means of language,
both in written and oral form. Education can be defined as the process by which the
accumulated knowledge, skills and values are transmitted to the society. There’s a close
relationship between literature and education since literature also serves didactic purposes
and instructs people both morally and socially. Writers, by means of their literary works, may
lead people towards benefaction, fairness and truth. For instance, in Turkish literature Yunus
Emre, Mevlana and Mehmet Akif wrote such works that instructed people on a decent life.
In English literature Joseph Addison and Richard Steele wrote in order to instruct the society,
especially the emerging powerful middle class in the 18th century England. The periodicals
“The Tatler” and “The Spectator” published by Addison and Steele serve such purposes.
They aimed to set an example by showing that people of different social and political views
and backgrounds can live in harmony in their imaginary “The Spectator Club”.
This study aims to analyse the ways Addison and Steele instruct the society and the
effects produced through these instructions.
Key Words: Education, Literature, Society, Addison, Steele, English Middle Class, The
Tatler, The Spectator
ÖZET
Edebiyat düşünce, duygu ve olayların dil aracılığıyla sözlü veya yazılı olarak
anlatılması sanatıdır. Eğitim ise bilgi, beceri ve değerlerin topluma iletilme süreci olarak
tanımlanabilir. Edebiyatın yüzyıllar boyu eğitici amaçlara hizmet etmesi, insanlara sosyal
ve toplumsal dersler vermesi yönünden, eğitim ile arasında yakın bir bağ vardır. Yazarlar,
edebi eserler yoluyla, insanları iyiye, güzele ve doğruya yöneltme yolunda telkinlerde
bulunmuşlardır. Örneğin Türk edebiyatında Yunus Emre şiirlerini, Mevlana Mesnevi’sini,
* Arş. Grv., İnönü Üniversitesi, Fen-Edebiyat Fakültesi, Batı Dilleri ve Edebiyatları Bölümü, İngiliz
Dili ve Edebiyatı Anabilim Dalı.
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