Class Contradictions in the Economy Policies of the Early Republican Period

Abstract

In the studies concerning the sociological analysis of the Turkish modernisation, there are usually two notions of method. One of them is Weberianism, and the second one is the culture/civilisation distinction. The least frequently used method in the analysis of the same historical period is the historical materialism. The results obtained from the analysis of the Turkish modernisation through historical materialism differ from the results obtained through the first two methods. For example, the modernisation process emerges after being filtered by the societies that manage it. Mass reactions towards modernisation are not against the modernisation process itself, but against its class content. Concerning the modernisation process, the demand of the large parts of the society, who live on labour, is not "returning to tradition". In order for determining these demands objectively, it is necessary to examine the programs and demands of the labour-oriented unions and political parties that were shut down during the Republican era. "Returning to the tradition" has been the demand of more powerful classes that have profits in older social-economic relations. In this article, it was aimed to sociologically examine the alliances and conflicts between social classes, which designated the modernisation process in the early Republican era.

Key Words: Turkish Modernisation, Social Change, Social Classes