Abstract
In addition to what the studies on the discourse and character modeling of the Valley of the Wolves series say, this chapter argues that there has been a Neo-Ottomanization and religiosity evolution in terms of the discourse and the hero's semiosis. The thesis of this section is that Valley of the Wolves series has evolved in terms of narrative and character since it began to appeal to international target audiences. It is the main assumption of the section that there is a parallel transformation with the public diplomacy practices of the Republic of Türkiye in the process following the fact that the audience groups, especially in Arab geography, Afghanistan and Pakistan, where Islamic influence is dominant, become fans of the Valley of the Wolves. In this section, it is aimed to explain the velvet evolution, which exemplifies the transition from the Republican ideology to the Neo-Ottoman ideology in diplomatic media narratives, through the historical rupture of the Valley of the Wolves.
TopIntroduction
This text reinterprets the process of diplomatic transformation in the narrative/discourse of a television series as ‘velvet evolution’ with reference to the velvet effect of ‘soft power’ instrument. Because the narrative of Valley of the Wolves, which is constructed with the aim of appealing to the Turkish market as a ‘Mafia Series’, becomes more politicized as its sphere of influence expands to cross-border areas and the discourses of its new versions begin to resemble the dominant diplomatic discourse. The narrative transition takes place in 'soft' tones and phases, just as it is an instrument of soft power. The series Valley of the Wolves: Ambush, which constructs a political semiology of the world according to the narrative representations of the ‘Neo-Ottoman’ discourses around which the government's discourse policies have orbited in the last few decades, epistemologically breaks away from the early Valley of the Wolves narrative and acts as a trans-media instrument that paves a diplomatic context of consent to Neo-Ottomanist policies. However, the smooth transition that causes us to call this rupture a velvet evolution is the preference for a gradual transition rather than a sharp transition from the Valley of the Wolves series to the Valley of the Wolves: Ambush series. Because in the narrative/discourse structure of the first seasons of the Valley of the Wolves (before Valley of the Wolves: Iraq), codes of violence and killing, nationalism, flag, identity, family order, masculinity, respect for traditions, good and bad women were dominant (Gültekin, 2006), while in the last seasons the discourse mode of nationalism shifts from the Republican narrative to the Neo-Ottomanist narrative. Although there is a discourse shift in the deep state-mafia dichotomy that covers the Middle East order, a new discourse is constructed in the series The Valley of the Wolves: Ambush that focuses on capital and terrorism, which becomes evident in the state-global order dichotomy. This discourse construction maximizes the political salience of the series and makes it clear that the narrative cannot be reduced to a mafia story. Günerbüyük (2009), as claimed in this text, attempts to confirm the thesis that the Valley of the Wolves legitimizes a discourse parallel to the state/government policy, dominant public nationalist discourse and ownership structure.
The influence of Valley of the Wolves in the Arab, Balkan and Near Asian geography, which constitutes the scope of nostalgic emulation in the historical hinterland of neo-Ottoman discourses, makes the diplomatic discourse construction of this series more valuable. This text, which aims to explain the relationship between the discourse of the series and the organizations of political discourse through the story of this politicization and ‘velvet evolution’ towards the diplomatic instrument, also attempts to provide a critical commentary on the trans-mediatic structure and multi-semiotic collaborations of the dominant public discourse.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Soft Power: Soft power is defined as the work of countries to influence the people of other countries by using nation branding and other public relations activities and to popularize their own culture and policies.
Public Diplomacy: Public diplomacy is a comprehensive influencing activity that aims to create a positive image and a context of consent among the goverments and publics of other countries.
Valley of the Wolves (VoWA) Ambush: VoWA is the continuation of the VoW series. In the series, unlike the VoW series, the struggle between the state and global powers is described entirely from a Neo-Ottomanist perspective. The series, which includes representations and discourses that legitimize the state's foreign policy, is about Turkey's adventure of becoming a great power again in the face of global powers.
Representation: Representation is a show style that includes the events shown in the TV series replacing real events, showing them as real and transforming reality. Reproduction of reality through actors pretending to be real in serials claiming to show reality is referred to as representation.
Neo-Ottomanism: Neo-Ottomanism is an academic name given to government policies that reflect Turkey's economic, cultural, and political re-taking an imperial position and its desire to become a 'great regional power' again.
Valley of the Wolves (VoW): VoW is a 'mafia series' that started broadcasting in 2003 and lasted for four seasons. Centering on the protagonist of Polat Alemdar, the series deals with the struggle between the state and the mafia. The series, which started with the Kemalist state narrative, has moved to the Neo-Ottomanist narrative in recent seasons.
Discourse: Discourse is a multi-layered structure of expression and representation that encodes the reality that dominates the series. The discourse that establishes the reality that dominates the public consciousness and shows it to the audience as a representation works together with the systemic structure of the Neo-Ottomanist ideology in this study. In this study, discourse is the constructive power that defines events and phenomena within the framework of the dominant ideology.