PP Presentation: Women and Textiles, Metonymy, Ritual and Labor

{

Women and Textiles

As Metonymy Ritual and Labor

Speaking about the ritual use of textile by women in Turkey, I will share the following:

Concept of Metonymy The background to my discovery of this practice

The historical and economic context for women’s relating to fabric and weaving = Thick Description (Geertz)

A Beginning theory of how to understand all of this

Self-conscious positioning as a male ethnographer.

Intro

Today, I am looking at objects as forms used for metonymy

Metonymy is an ancient Greek word used in the study of literature, but also now used in the social sciences, Gayatri Spivak (Subaltern Studies)

It is the use of one image or word to represent something greater or different than itself.(i.e. Saying ‘Hollywood’ = American film industry)

Metonymy

‘a figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for that of another of which it is an attribute or with which it is associated (as “crown” in “lands belonging to the crown”)’

Merrian-Webster Dictionary

Definition

Berkin Elvan

Although these concepts may seem remote, metonymy has played an important part in recent protests in Turkey.

Bread, used in different ways, has been used to metonymise Berkin Elvan and his story, by those who consider his life politically or personally signficant.

Bread: metonymising Berkin Elvan

What does this notion of metonymy have to do with women and textiles?

I contend that in many cases women use fabrics in Turkey and the Islamic world to represent themselves.

This begins, for me in Moghul India centuries ago and can be found in many places, all the way up to a visit I made to Rumeli Feneri (Istanbul) in 2013.

Women, Identity, Textiles

Princess and ‘Faqira’ Jahanara goes on retreat and leaves a veil for Moinuddin Chishti in the 1600s.

A woman comes to visit the tomb of Sarı Satık in Istanbul, 2013 and she does the same.

Why do Muslim women leave scarves and fabrics at holy places across time and geography?

And does anyone ever notice this, other than me?

Time and Place

Teşvikiye Mosque (Istanbul), Tomb of Hacı Bektaş Veli (Nevşehir)

Feriköy Cemetary

When approaching these practices there are several important ways of looking at them.

I would like to know what you believe these fabrics means.

I want to know some of the history of these objects.

I want to know how women have worked with fabrics, for better or worse.

Ethnography

Women’s Economics

Women have a long history of weaving, creating fabrics and rugs. But why women?

A.Women have universally been the ones raising children.

B.Women usually must do jobs that they can do at the same time as watching children: cooking, weaving (Barber, 1994)

Women’s history literally, physically disingrates.

Image: 500 BCE, Greece

Consider that women are designing weaving and wearing these fabrics

They have done so for centuries and continue to be important in this area in modern Turkey

Historically, though, men began to overtake the industry, Renaissance Europe, guilds (Barber 1994)

Women make textiles, men own the capital, laws support this

Capital is in the hands of men mostly almost everywhere now

However, in Turkey, this ancient practice of women working at home continues...

Do we know enough?

The Turkish Republic is one of the highest textile-producing countries in the world:As of 2011, Turkey stands as the 47th most competitive country, ahead of some competitors in textiles such as Pakistan, Bangladesh and Vietnam but behind others such as China, India, South Korea, Italy and Spain (Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness, 2011).

According to the Turkish government’s statistics, Turkey’s GDP is 6-7% based on clothing and textiles.

6th largest clothing industry in the world, 2nd largest for EU imports (www.tcp.gov.tr)

Turkish Textile Production

Textiles and apparel are a massive industry with an estimated total market value of $1.3 trillion in 2011

Industry forecasts predict a 5.8% compound annual growth rate through 2015 (DataMonitor, 2012).

Women play an important part in this industry, sometimes to their detriment in growing economies like Iran, Turkey and Morrocco. (Berik 1991)

Textile Market

{

Women Workers?

‘Women make up a very small segment of Turkey’s workforce, and many tend to work in textile factories.’ (Photo: AA)13 September 2012 TODAY'S ZAMAN

From the article: ‘Most Turkish Women Neither at School nor in the Work Force

It appears that many, many textile workers in Turkey = women at home (Dedeoğlu 2008, Berik 1991)

This fits very ancient patterns. According to numerous studies, much textile work is undocumented.

Women often working long hours

And women workers?

How does this come together to undestand the practice of leaving scarves in shrines, thick description?

Ambient transmission of practice and tradition

Economic/Practical transmission Intimate/Emotional transmission Cultural/Historical transmission (includes the above)

Transmissions of Practice

To undersand the ritual use of textile by women in Turkey is to seek out deep context/thick description.

Women have a long and complex history of not only wearing scarves, fabrics and textiles (of course) but producing them

In the process of wearing, producing and being closely associated with them, an identification takes place

This identification and metonymisation is an important factor in why they are used as signfiers by people seeking divine favors through nearness to the graves of holy figures

A Few Conclusions

Future Research Do many employ cloth similarly?