Dark Humor in the Trenches of Gelibolu

Yıl 2018, Cilt: 16 Sayı: 25, 153 - 166, 29.10.2018

Dilek Kantar

https://doi.org/10.17518/canakkalearastirmalari.475841

Öz

This paper investigates the use of dark humor in the Anzac soldiers’ diaries and letters recounting their experiences in the Gelibolu battlefield. It aims to illuminate the psychological mechanisms and functions of war time humor through a philosophical perspective. The ideas of selected classical and contemporary philosophers and critics on the concept of the comic help us understand why many of the most painful and violent scenes described in the soldiers’ narratives involve dark humor. The texts we study reveal that not only the Anzacs but also the Turkish soldiers had recourse to humor sometimes to communicate with the enemy when the trenches between the two sides could be measured by only a few meters, and at other times to poke fun at the combative competence of the Anzac soldiers. However, we do not have any personal accounts of war written by the private Turkish soldier. The Anzacs were better educated than the Turks and they were encouraged by their superiors to keep diaries throughout the war. This study aims to illuminate a relatively less known section of the Anzac and Turkish history which is buried in the unpublished private accounts of the common soldier.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Gelibolu battlefield, Anzac soldiers’ diaries, dark humor, theory of humor

Kaynakça

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