Aslan's Roar: Turkish Television and the Rise Of the Muslim Hero

Reinforcing the symbiotic nature of TV and culture, Aslan s Roar positions present day media narratives and TV fiction amidst powerful trends influencing popular culture. Nowhere is this fact more visible than in the content of Turkish drama series which appear to be challenging the popularly accepted western template of the hero by placing Muslim masculinities center stage in narratives ranging from the political to the romantic. In its examination of the present day volatile political situation within Turkey itself, Aslan s Roar offers the possibility of a third way to Muslims pursuing modernity. Incorporating history, sociology, cultural studies, literature and contemporary media practice, the book studies masculinities and the development of the concept of the Turkish hero against the backdrop of the historic demise of the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of the Turkish Republic. For the aspiring media practitioner, the book offers a detailed study of the literary sources that inform contemporary drama narratives such as the poetry and works of Nazim Hikmet, Orhan Veli, Seneca, Shakespeare, Freud, Fromm and Faiz; even as it examines the Turkish TV Industry and the new directions it is presently exploring in terms of recently established digital platforms and foreign investments impacting the country s economy.