Through My Eyes, In My Words:

Turkey: The Cradle of Civilizations

Taught by M. Erol Ulucakli, associate professor of mechanical engineering, and Ilan Peleg, Charles A. Dana Professor of Government and Law

Malorie Ferrick ’07 of McKean, Pa., is a Marquis Scholar and Dana Scholar majoring in government and law, is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Sigma Alpha, the honor society for political science. She is a participant in Mock Trial, a Student Representative, member of Residence Hall Council, and supervisor of fitness assistants in Kirby Sports Center. She is a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority.

Mosaic. That is the best word to describe my experience in Turkey. An overlapping of small, unique pieces that are bonded together to form a large and complete whole. This definition, most basically, describes some of the most amazing historical artifacts that we encountered on our trip, but it also describes the process by which the distinct eras of history and civilizations were molded together to form the culture and the people now known as the Turks. This is exactly the description that was given to me by one of the locals when I asked her how she would describe what it meant to her to be called “Turkish.” Throughout our trip, with the help of guided tours of ancient civilizations; visits to mosques, churches, and museums; and interactions with the local people, we were introduced to a vision of Turkey that was new to many of us. It was clear by the end of our trip that Turkey really is a crossroads of cultures, civilizations, religions, and ideas, and each of these different aspects has contributed to the mosaic picture of what it means to be a Turk in the year 2006.

There were two main academic aspects to this class: appreciation of the historical context of Turkey and understanding of the new political and international role that Turkey has as an aspiring member of the European Union. We traced the history of the Turks from the very beginning of the civilization to the formation of the Turkish Republic in the 20th century. From this history we were able to see the influences of the Hellenistic culture, the Roman culture, and the Islamic culture. It was astonishing to see remains from ancient cities with synchronized features from all three of these distinct cultures. For example, in the famous Hayasofia, the pinnacle of the Orthodox Christian Church, which most recently served as the Great Mosque of Istanbul and is now a museum, we could see artistic remnants of all three cultures coexisting together. Symbols from Hellenistic times, such as the Trident of Poseidon, were incorporated into the décor of the Christian Church. Within the building there also remained mosaics of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the saints even though the church was converted into a Muslim mosque. When the building was conquered, the Muslims added symbols for Allah and the Caliphs. All of these symbols remained side-by-side, a perfect representation of the complex history of these people.

As this was my first trip abroad, the thing that struck me the most was the magnitude of the word “history.” For me, coming from a country whose history is only a few hundred years old, to see buildings that were still standing from over 2000 years ago was just mind-boggling. This trip made me realize how little I really know about history, and the trip’s lasting impact on me is a newfound desire to remedy that deficit. I am planning to study abroad next semester, which is something I never thought that I would do. I enjoy college life here, and when I am not here on the weekends because of Mock Trial tournaments, Residence Hall Council conferences, or Marquis Scholar trips, I feel I am missing out on things that Lafayette has to offer. But now I realize that the bigger thing I am missing out on by not going abroad is the experience of immersing myself in another culture and fully appreciating what it means to be something other that the only thing I have known my entire life, American.

In a world that is becoming more and more interdependent, studying abroad and gaining an understanding of another country’s way of thinking is one of the best life skills that we can have as educated people of our generation. I would recommend this interim class to anyone who has a desire to see the extent to which different cultures can synchronize into one. But I would recommend the interim study-abroad program to anyone in general and I hope people will to take advantage of it.