Muslim merchants and working-class in action : nationalism, social mobilization and boycott movement in the Ottoman Empire 1908-1914

Abstract

The boycott as an economic weapon appeared in the Ottoman Empire after the 1908 Revolution. The revolution paved the way for a chaotic social and political atmosphere in which the order of things changed drastically. This study will trace how the politics of the new era and the Boycott Movement influenced each other. Two weapons—the boycott and the public meetings—would be the most typical tools in the repertoire of the early Muslim/Turkish nationalism. This work will depict how these two crucial instruments of mass politics functioned. The Boycott Movement consisted of different social classes. These different social groups had diverse agendas. This is significant because the historiography depicts Turkish nationalism as an exclusively intellectual current. However, nationalism is also a social phenomenon. Nationalist movements are also social movements that mobilize a wide range of social groups and deeply influence the daily life of the population. The Boycott Movement in the Ottoman Empire contributed to the rise of Muslim/Turkish nationalism and turned particular ethnic/religious problems into a social problem or national question. This thesis tries to indicate how political figures, civil organizations, and different social classes played a role in the rising nationalism and in the elimination of non-Muslims.