KHAS CORE Talks – Dr. Atilla Barutçu
KHAS CORE Talks series continues with Dr. Atilla Barutçu‘s speech entitled “Masculinities and Male Circumcision in Turkey”.
You can follow the speech on Tuesday, February 22 at 18:00 on Zoom.
Abstract: As the motivations underlying male circumcision have changed during history, the meaning of circumcision has never been unilateral. From its first appearance to the present day, male circumcision is deeply rooted in complex societal issues, and its link with the norms and ideologies of masculinity should also be considered for a meaningful analysis. In contemporary Turkey, the ritual of male circumcision maintains a strong connection with both religious responsibilities and the construction of masculinity. Being a Muslim and being religiously circumcised are still two critical elements that provide an advantage for men in their internal hegemonic relations. On the other hand, the rejection of male circumcision by some Turkish Muslim men raises the question of whether their perceptions of masculinity diverge from the hegemonic construction in Turkey.
In this talk, at first, I discuss the relations of male circumcision with masculinities in the existing literature and briefly give a Turkish context. After that, I share my field research conducted with self-identified pious Muslim men against male circumcision in Turkey. In the light of the results of my research, I argue that religious opposition to male circumcision does not necessarily lead to general opposition to the hegemonic forms of masculinities or does not deny the connection of circumcision with masculinity construction in Turkey.
About the Speaker: Atilla Barutçu received his PhD in Women’s Studies at Ankara University. He has published articles, chapters, and translations focusing on men and masculinities, queer studies, performance, city, and space. He coedited a volume entitled Yüz Karası Değil Kömür Karası: Zonguldak (2017, İletişim Publishing). He is a member of the Initiative for Critical Studies of Masculinities (ICSM) and the editorial board of Feminist Tahayyül: Akademik Araştırmalar Dergisi. He is the chief editor of Masculinities: A Journal of Culture and Society. He is also interested in writing short stories and has storybooks entitled Damla Balığını Anlamak (2014, 23 Publishing) and Anneannemin İzleri (Collective, 2021, KDY Publishing). Since 2014, he has been working as a research assistant at Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University in Zonguldak, Turkey.
Please fill the registration form in advance:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwsdOispz4qG9EmR3yT_6g3TyTe4HRvOreA