IMAGES OF MASCULINITY IN LORD BYRON'S TURKISH TALES

Abstract

[...]one can surmise the influence of suflsm on Byron's Turkish tales (love, poetry, music, wine). According to Deleuze and Guattari (2009:322-333), sexuality is everywhere: the way a bureaucrat fondles his records, a judge administers justice, a businessman causes money to circulate, the way the bourgeoisie fucks the proletariat and so on ... [...]masculinities in Turkish Tales are always in flux and thereby unstable. [...]edition, revised.

Headnote

Abstract: Forms of knowledge regarding masculinity and femininity are socially constructed and discursively constituted. In this sense, cultural productions play an indispensible role in both representing and shaping masculinities. Making use of the insights provided by Deleuze and Guattari, this paper examines performatively constituted masculinities in Lord Byron's "Turkish Tales", with particular emphasis on the portrayal of male identity as fluid, metamorphic and capable of multiple possibilities. Representations of masculinity in Byron's "Turkish Tales" clearly illustrates that masculinity is not a fixed/universal concept, but one that would be better understood in light of Deleuze and Guattari's theory of becoming and may vary from one region to another.

Keywords: Deleuze and Guattari, Lord Byron, masculinity, orientalism, Turkish Tales.

So long as there are battles to be fought, wars to be won, heights to be scaled, hard work to be done, some of us will have to "act like men". (Gilmore qtd. in Connell 2005:32)

Masculinity does not exist except in contrast wih femininity. A culture which does not treat women and men as bearers of polarized character types, at least in principle, does not have a concept of masculinity in the sense of European/American culture. (Connell 2005:68)

1. Introduction

Representations of masculinity in Byron's Turkish Tales clearly illustrate that masculinity is not a fixed/universal concept, but one that may vary from one region to another, and would be better understood in light of Deleuze and Guattari's theory of becoming. Deleuze and Guattari's (2009) work has been highy important in helping to illuminate the complexities of identity as a "desiring production". As they suggest (2009: 12), "desire is not simply a discursively anchored need or lack, but a requirement to be in the social world to become an individual, male or female". For the purposes of this paper, I am particularly interested in their articulation of desire as the main dynamic informing the production of subjectivity. Drawing on the ideas explored in Anti-Oedipus and A Thousand Plateaus, I try to show that their theorizing on subjectivity is instrumental in understanding and decoding performances of gender in literary works.

Quoting Nietzsche, Smith (2007:69-70) observes that "we all contain a vast confusion of contradictory drives. We have multiplicities not unities (...) There is another drive that is fitting these drives. So what we call thinking, willing and feeling are all merely a relation of these drives to each other". Quoting from Deleuse and Guattari, Smith (2007:71) also states that "drives are simply desiring machines themselves".

Forms of knowledge regarding masculinity and femininity are socially constructed and discursively constituted. In this sense, cultural productions play an indispensible role in both representing and shaping masculinities. Utilising insights provided by Deleuze and Guattari, this paper examines performatively constituted masculinities in Lord Byron's Turkish Tales, with particular emphasis on the portrayal of male identity as fluid, metamorphic and capable of multiple possibilities. In the words of Deleuze and Guattari (2009:75), "we are not saying that Oedipus and castration do not amount to anything. We are Oedipalized, we are castrated; psychoanalysis didn't invent these operations, to which it merely lends the new resources and methods of its genius. But is this sufficient to silence the outcry of desiring-production: We are all schizos! We are all perverts! We are all libidos that are viscuous and fluid".

2. Byron's Turkish Tales

Lord Byron spent a lifetime following and realising his desires, writing books that were explicity devoted to the blurring and subversion of Eurocentric binarisms. Byron was at home with one sex/two gender relations he came across quite frequently in the East: "Byron's interest in Levantine homosexuality was not just the fraissor of the sexual tourist, but an integral part of his interest in encompassing Eastern and Western manners" (Leask 2004:112). Byron noted that homosexual relations did by no means hamper the image of vibrant masculinity. He further remarked that, although the Oriental male is proud, brave, a womanizer and an excellent soldier, he also occasionally shows preference for boys and has a sensitive side. In the nuanced portraits he presents, Byron seems to suggest that there is much more to the Turkish male than one finds in stereotypical orientalist depictions. In doing that, he successfully subverts essentialist paradigms and offers a historically grounded reading with regard to representations of masculinity in the East. Byron's portrayal of masculinities in Turkish Tales also foregrounds territorial, socio-economic and racial differences that inform gender performances and thus show that gender is a structure of social practice that may vary from one territory to another.

In "Child Harold Canto II" , the court is reflected as an ideal place for the gratification of pédophilie relations:

For boyish minions of unhallowed love,

the shameless torch of wild desire is let

Caressed, preferred even to woman's self above.

Whose fonns for nature's gentler errors fit.

All frailties mote excuse save that which they command. (Byron 1904:63)

According to Connel (2005:71),

we should remember that masculinity like femininity is a far from simple matter. Not all boys and men experience masculinity in the same way. Masculinity to the extent the term can briefly defined at all,is simultaneously a place in gender relations, the practices through which men and women engage that place in gender, and the effects of these practices in bodily experince, personality and culture.

Lord Byron started to employ Oriental themes with Child Harold's Pilgrimage and continued in The Giaour, The Bride of A by dos, The Corsair, Lara and The Siege of Corinth. "The Giaour" was the first of the Turkish tales to be published. Byron claimed that the tale was inspired by an actual event about which there were several different accounts. He also claimed that he had consorted with this girl whom he thought to be Greek, although he later found out that she was Turkish. One day, he learned that she was to be executed - put in a sack and drowned, but he saved her. Byron takes the side of the Muslim hero in the tale, or at least makes the narrator do so. The second part of "The Giaour" can be divided into two sections. The first section tells the story, whereas the second section recounts the dialogue between the fisherman and the monk, who shares Giaour's story with the fisherman; then the Giaour confesses himself to the monk prior to his death.

Hassan is a Turk living in Greece; his wife Leila falls in love with the Giaour. Although he is deeply in love with his wife, he eventually drowns her in the sea, according to Turkish customs and laws. The Giaour, in turn, attacks Hassan and kills him in a pine grove beneath Mount Liakura:

Hassan fell,

A victim in that lonely dell,

There sleeps as the true Osmanlie. (Byron 1904:214)

Hassan is depicted as a true Ottoman. He has the characterisitics of the Oriental hero. He is dark-haired, curls his beard, and embodies the image of a man deep in thought, according to Eastern customs. He is also superstitious, believing in the evil eye. He dies like a true Turkish hero, without remorse or regret. In his last moments, he prays to God, like a true Muslim.

He called the prophet, but his power

Was vain against the vengeful Giaour:

He called on Allah- but the word

Arose unheeded or unheard. (Byron 1904: 258)

It is interesting to note that the fisherman does not condemn Hassan's punishment of Leilah. He has been influenced by Muslim ethics. Instead, he condemns the Giaour for behaving in disregard of Muslim customs and traditions, according to which adultery is punishable by death.

In "The Bride of Abydos", Selim, the nephew of the ruler Giaffir does not conform to the ideal masculinity type of the East. He is gentle, sensitive to the feelings of women; just the opposite of Giaffir. "The Bride of Abydos" is the second Turkish tale and centers on the characters of Giaffir and his two children, Selim and Zuleika. Byron elaborates on the incestuous relationship between brother and sister. Later, the reader learns that Selim is not Zuleika's true brother, but her cousin. Zuleika reveals that her love for Selim cannot be deeper or less deep after she learns that they are not brother and sister. Selim becomes the leader of the pirates to avenge his father, who had been killed by Giaffir. He dies during this fight and Zuleika dies from grief. Was Byron reflecting in this tale his incesteous feelings for his half-sister Augusta Leigh and his friend's wife, Lady Francis Webster? Seniha Gülderen Karsnigi and Salih Okumuç (2002:11) remark that perhaps "being common for him, Byron sought tranquillity in the east and fleeing from his own reality; as well as in attempt to justify himself and his incestuous attraction, he once again uses Eastern setting and Eastern culture to mirror his own situation".

One must admit that the Byronic hero was largely influenced by the Muslim ideal of masculinity. As Sharafuddin (1991:251) states, "Byron is not especially sympathetic to the morality of meekness. The virility of the Moslem masculine types attracted Byron".

Selim is depicted as a valiant soldier:

A Thousand swords, with Selim's heart and hand,

Waite-wave-defend-destroy-at thy command (Byron 1904:235)

Selim's talk with the Pasha reveals the differences in their characters. Selim says: '"Pasha, to hear is to obey. O more must slave to despot say...' 'Son of a slave' the Pasha answers, 'From unbelieving mother bred. Vain were a father's hope to see, Aught that beseems a man in thee'." (Byron 1904:265).

It is possible to suggest that the Pasha reflects the ideal of oriental masculinity. The following words reveal his bravery and strength which are ideal traits of masculinity:

Thou with thine arm should bend the bow

And heed the dart and cub the seed,

Thou Greek in soul, if not in creed (Byron 1904:265)

Go, let thy less than woman's hand

Assume - the distaff - not the brand. (Byron 1904:265)

And he continues:

I mark thee - and I know thee too,

But there be deeds thou doess't not do break a lance.

But if thy beard had had manless length.

I'd joy to see thee break a lance.

Albeit against my own perchance. (Byron 1904:265)

Selim is shown in the tale as an effeminate man in relation to the ideal of Eastern masculinity. Byron was fascinated with Ali Pasha. He stresses that Ali Pasha had a duality of character. In a letter, he depicts him with the following words:

His highness is sixty years old, very fat, not tall but with a fine face, light blue eyes and a white beard, his manner is very kind, at the same time he posesses that dignity which I find universal among the Turks. He has the appearance of anything but his real character, for he is a remorseless tyrant, guilty of the most horrible cruelties, very brave, and so good a general, that they call him the Mohammedan general, (cf. Byron 1866:131)

Ali reclined , a man of war and woes

Yet in his linamets ye can not trace

While gentleness her milder radiance throw

Along that aged face,

The deeds that lurk beneath. (Byron 1904:204, "Child Harold's Pilgrimage")

In "The Corsair", Byron portrays Seyd as a character who truly represents the masculine ideal of the East. Seyd is depicted with the words:

High in his hall reclined Seyd

Around the bearded chiefs he came to lead.

Re'moved the banquet, and the last pilaf.

Forbidden draughts, tis said, he dared to gruff,

Though to the rest the sober beriy's juice.

The slaves bar around for rigid moslem's use. (Byron 1904: 286)

In "The Corsair", Byron also introduces a Western hero, Conrad, who is the leader of the pirates. Conrad attacks Seyd Pasha and rescues Pasha's beloved Gülnare. However, Gülnare feels attracted to Conrad who already has a lover, Medora, back home. Conrad is captured and is about to be punished by Seyd, who suspects Gülnare of adultery when she begs for Conrad's release. When Conrad refuses to kill Seyd Pasha before a fair fight, Gülnare kills Seyd to save her love. In this tale, Byron reverses conventional gender roles by giving masculine traits to Gülnare and by depicting the Western hero as polite and sensitive, but weak. Instead of the man rescuing the 'oppressed' damsel in distress of the East, a man is rescued by a woman. As reflected in this tale, Byron had a more fluid perception of gender roles.

As Keegan (2003:116) maintains,

Sexual crossings over of gender boundaries in order to subvert sexual norms within this poem free Byron to speak of his sexual subjectivity and also force upon him the displacement or loss of homosexual inscription.

One should note that both the figure of Giaffir in "The Bride of Abydos" and Seyd in the "Corsair" were influenced by Byron's meeting with Ali Pasha. Byron's relationship with Ali Pasha should be examined within the context of his ideas on masculinity. Pride is perceived by Byron to be an important masculine trait. Sharafuddin (1991:250) notices that "in these figures of command, honour is not simply self -respect, but also honours- that is wealth, slaves and instant obedience". The masculine ideal in the East is agressive and dominating. Blackstone (1974) draws attention to the relationship of Ali Pasha of Tepelene (1740-1822) and Byron, pointing out that Ali Pasha is believed to be a member of the Bektashi order of Sufism, which represented a radical break with Islamic orthodoxy. "When writing a letter to his mother, Byron claimed that Ali had told him to consider him as a father" (Moore 1866:227). This father can be translated as "baba or spiritual guide". Thus, one can surmise the influence of suflsm on Byron's Turkish tales (love, poetry, music, wine).

According to Deleuze and Guattari (2009:322-333),

sexuality is everywhere: the way a bureaucrat fondles his records, a judge administers justice, a businessman causes money to circulate, the way the bourgeoisie fucks the proletariat and so on ... Flags, nations, armies, banks get a lot of people aroused.

Deleuze and Guattari rebel against the fixity of desire. They believe that desire does not have a fixed object. Capitalism and social repression lead individuals to behave sexually according to certain norms. Mass media has connected the entire world and helped create a global culture. Deleuze and Guatarri believe that deterritorialization and reterritorialization affect cultural experiences. They also affect cultural issues; in the 19th century especially, travel affected cultural events.

After the tale "Corsair", the main character Conrad disappears only to reappear in another tale entitled "Lara". Conrad adopts the name of Lara and returns to his country. Accompanying him is a page named Kaled, Gülnare in disguise. Now, she returns to the passive role of the female, idealized by Byron. Keegan (2003:131) observes that Randolph Trumbach located the beginnings of modern homosexuality in the early eighteenth century,

after the development of the molly houses, the name sodomite was ascribed to men married or not, who fonned intimate relationships not only with boys, but also with other men. Significantly, sodomites began to be described as men exclusively interested in their own gender and inveterately effeminate and passive.

Keegan (2003:131 ) further suggests that

In the poem "Lara", Byron conjoins his own homoerotic desires for Greek heroic love between men with the men with the the figure of the effeminate third sex of his own era.

In the last of the Turkish tales, "The Siege of Corinth", Byron introduces Alp as his own ideal of masculinity. Alp is a Christian turned Muslim, and yet he reflects the ideal characeristics of Muslim masculinity such as virility, pride and stoicism. Sharafuddin (1991:252) points out that

the protagonist Alp combines both the Islamic ideal of virility and the romantic ideal of sensibility. He had won Francesca's love in defiance of her father's will. When he is accused of being a traitor and driven from his lover, country and Christianity, he becomes a zealous Muslim... this includes the commanding masculinity that Byron had recognized in the East.

Alp's dilemma is reflected in the poweful scene where he meets his lover Francesca, before the final assault. Should he save the Venetians, forgetting their unjust accusation of him, or take his revenge on Venice, using the powerful Turkish forces under his command? Some critics believe that Alp reflected some of Byron's cherished beliefs that "both Byron and Alp felt alienated and estranged from their own society" ( Karsnigi, Okumuç 2002:211).

3. Conclusion

As Conncl (2005:223) suggests,

masculinity is shaped in relation to an overall structure of power (the subordination of women to men) and in relation to a general symbolism of difference (the oppposition of femininity and masculinity).

Byron was against all forms of imperialism. His questioning of the imperialism of the East had also led him to question the imperialism of the West. He was against Turkish inflexibility but, at the same time, against Greek frivolity and English complacency. His flexible attitude toward politics was also reflected in his attitude toward gender relations. Compared with England, he felt more drawn to the East which reflected for him more liberal views of gender relations and masculinity.

Applying Deleuze and Guattari's ideas to Byron's Turkish Tales, one could observe that performances of masculinity in the tales are imbued with an elasticity and energy that foreground the realm of masculinity as remarkably diverse and constantly shifting. Characters in the tales constantly defy the binary oppositions of masculine/feminine by taking on attributes of both sexes and thus becoming sites of incessant transformations. As a result, masculinities in Turkish Tales are always in flux and thereby unstable. As a romantic orientalist who was able to attain a critical distance from the governing paradigms of his home culture, Byron simultaneously employs and subverts several Orientalist cliches and invites the reader to speculate on the multiple possibilities of identity.

References

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