What the Days Brought - From Word to Word (Book)

Nurullah Ataç’s book Günlerin Getirdiği – Sözden Söze is one of the pioneering examples of the essay genre in Turkish literature. It consists of two separate parts, compiled and published by Work, Building Credit Yayınları: Günlerin Getirdiği (1946) and Sözden Söze (1952). This 269-page work contains 31 essays in the first part and 24 in the second.

The main topics addressed in the work are literature, language, translation, ethics, poetry, writing language, classical literature and West culture. While expressing his personal views on the challenges faced by Turkish literature after the Republic, Ataç also evaluates the writers, poets and thinkers of his time. Among the literary figures he assesses are Ahmet Haşim, Yahya Kemal Beyatlı, Ziya Gökalp, Orhan Veli, Abdülbaki Gölpınarlı and many others.

Nurullah Ataç stands out in the essay genre with a sharp and satirical style that was often critical of his era. He is known not for the content of his ideas but for his candid and direct manner. Although Ataç is recognized as a critic, some readers see his true achievement in his role as an essayist. His use of a fictional character, “Keziban,” to express his thoughts in parts of the text adds a distinctive dimension to the writings.

Ataç is a staunch advocate of simplification and purification of Turkish. As a result, spellings such as “buğün” instead of “bugün” and “okumıyan” instead of “okumayan” are prominent in the book. This orthographic style, which directly reflects the impact of the language reform, may be challenging for some readers.

The author also addresses issues concerning translation language, not only Turkish. He argues that in poetry translation, formal aesthetics matter more than meaning. In this context, he evaluates Western literary figures such as Mallarmé, Hugo and Sophocles.

Nurullah Ataç’s essays are regarded as texts that have retained their freshness since they were written. Ataç engages with issues that remain relevant today in language, literature and education, addressing not only the concerns of the past but also those of the present. Because of this quality, the work has continued to serve as a reference source for modern reader.

Günlerin Getirdiği – Sözden Söze is one of the mature examples of the essay genre in Turkish literature. In this work, Ataç aims not only to convey his thoughts but also to present the cultural and linguistic panorama of his era. His occasionally contradictory, harsh yet sincere style has been noted for demonstrating the place of individual thought in literature.