Cultural Movements and Political Conflicts in Contemporary Turkey

Turkey has been witnessing many conflicts in the contemporary era. In the present-day history of this country, the struggle of social groups with one another, on the one hand, and the struggles of social groups with the state and the political system on the other hand, indicate the nature of the circumstances which Turkey has been through. Undoubtedly, different variables and factors have influenced these political conflicts to varying degrees.  To clarify the cultural causes and origin of the political conflicts, the question concerning the impact of cultural movements on political conflicts in the contemporary Turkey would be of special momentum. According to Edward Shil's dual concepts  the political conflicts in societies originate in two types of formal – central and peripheral cultures. In other words, cultural movements associated with the center and periphery in the society, play an important role in development and formation of political conflicts. The present article benefitting from the theory of center and periphery as a theoretical framework, seeks to substantiate the relationship between culture and politics as well as contribute towards enriching research in this field by demonstrating the role and influence of cultural movements in the political conflicts in contemporary Turkey.