Department of Comparative Literature
Mersin University Department of Comparative Literature
Comparative literature as an autonomous discipline has the ultimate aim to appreciate all the effects of that great artistic phenomenon called literature. Since the mid 19th century, when both literature in its modern sense and comparative literary studies were born, our discipline has nourished the tendency to analytically examine literary works based on comparison. Although comparison as a method can in no way be limited with its literary function, as it is apparent from the fact that almost all scientific disciplines, from mathematics and natural sciences to humanities, have put it into use according to their own purposes and priorities, its intuitive value has best been established in literature. Analogies, free associations and allusions are literary strategies, which both create new means of comparison and explore unique landscapes of thinking. In a sense, comparative literature is an invitation to understand this most literary of the tools, and reflects it back to itself so that people can see its tremendous effects in an ever-new light.
The Department of Comparative Literature is a dynamic academic unit that approaches literary studies from a transnational, interdisciplinary, and cross-media perspective. The Department's primary mission is to examine Turkish and world literature not only within their own contexts but also in relation to different disciplines such as philosophy, sociology, psychology, and visual arts. Having launched its Master's programme with thesis requirement in 2022, the Department aims to cultivate literary scholars, critics, and cultural figures equipped with inquisitive perspectives, ethical principles, and strong research competencies.
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