section_path: Culture/Literature, theatre, and visual arts
section_name: Literature, theatre, and visual arts
paragraph_text: Literature, theatre, and visual arts
  
  Turkish literature goes back more than a thousand years. The Seljuk and Ottoman periods include numerous works of literature and poetry. Turkic tales and poetry from Central Asia were also kept alive. Tales of Dede Korkut is an example of the oral narrative tradition. Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk, from the 11th century, contains Turkish linguistic information and poetry. Yunus Emre, influenced by Rumi, was one of the most important writers of Anatolian Turkish poetry. Ottoman Divan poetry used "refined diction" and complex vocabulary. It included Sufi mysticism, romanticism, and formal elements.
  
  Beginning in the 19th century, Ottoman literature was influenced by the West. New genres, such as novels and journalistic style, were introduced. Aşk-ı Memnu, written by Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil, was the "first truly refined Turkish novel". Fatma Aliye Topuz, the first female Turkish novelist, wrote fiction. After the proclamation of the republic in 1923, Atatürk instituted reforms such as the language reform and alphabet reform. Since then, Turkish literature reflected the socioeconomic conditions in Turkey with increasing variety. "Village Novel" genre appeared in the mid-1950s, which talked about difficulties faced from poverty. An example is Memed, My Hawk by Yaşar Kemal, which was Turkey's first Nobel Prize in Literature nominee in 1973. Orhan Pamuk won the 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature.
  
  Turkey has four "major theatrical traditions": "folk theatre, popular theatre, court theater, and Western theater." Turkish folk theatre goes back thousands of years and has survived among rural communities. Popular theatre includes plays by live actors, puppet and shadow plays, and storytelling performances. An example for shadow play is Karagöz and Hacivat. Court theatre was the refined version of popular theatre. Beginning in the 19th century, Western theatre tradition started appearing in Turkey. Following the establishment of Turkish Republic, a state conservatory and the State Theatre Company were formed.
  
  Turkey's visual arts scene can be categorized into two, as "decorative" and "fine" arts. Fine arts, or güzel sanatlar, includes sculpture and painting. Turkish artists in these areas have gained global recognition. Photography, fashion design, graphic arts, and graphic design are some of the other areas Turkish artists are known for in the world. The inaugural contemporary Turkish art sale by Sotheby's London was in 2009. Istanbul Modern and the Istanbul Biennial are examples of art galleries or exhibitions of contemporary Turkish art. Turkey has also seen a resurgence of traditional arts. This includes Ottoman-era traditional arts, such as ceramics and carpets. Textile and carpet design, glass and ceramics, calligraphy, paper marbling (ebru) are some of the art forms for which modern-day Turkish artists are recognized as leaders in the Islamic world.