Motif Akademi Halkbilimi Dergisi

Öz

In this study, the data about the image of Christianity was
determined and evaluated from the examples chosen from the legend, religious
legend, epic, folk story and jokes which are the oral narrative types of
Turkish society. Christian image is dealt with its body, place, moral
qualities, and the relationship between the main heroes in the narratives and
discussed through the characteristics of the image and the functions undertaken
in the narrative. It can be said that the Christian image finds its place in
the Turkish narrative tradition more gloriously than the images of otherness
that can be included in other religious clusters. In addition, it is possible
to say that the image in question is concentrated especially in examples where
the theme of conflict is intensively studied, such as the epic, and in the
genres such as the Religious legend, which becomes evident for the organization
of religious identity. It can be said that the pejorative qualities of the
Christian image, which is regarded as dreadful and dangerous in connection with
symbolic pollution, contribute to the positioning of the struggle that the
producer and consumer of the narratives will engage with the opposing group on
a legitimate basis. Parallel to this, it can be added that the Christian image
in the Turkish narrative tradition is instrumentalized in terms of showing
ideas about the positive qualities of Muslims.