THE II. MEDITERRANEAN LITERATURE DAYS HELD

The II. Mediterranean Literature Days, organized by Bodrum Municipality and Livaneli Foundation, took place in Bodrum on June 23-24.

On Friday, June 23, the opening cocktail took place at Trafo Bodrum Hakan Aykan Culture & Art Center with the participation of distinguished figures, while on the second day, discussions on "Literature and History" were held with three sessions at Ramada Resort by Wyndham Bodrum, marking the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Türkiye.

On the second day, moderated by Journalist, Producer and Author Fatih Türkmenoğlu, and moderated by Journalist Writer Büşra Sanay and Actor, Director, and Author Tamer Levent, Bodrum Mayor Ahmet Aras and Livaneli Foundation Secretary General Şule Bucak delivered opening remarks.

Prominent speakers such as Writer Zülfü Livaneli, Literary Scholar and Author Prof. Dr. Onur Bilge Kura, Oksijen Newspaper Writer Prof. Ali Yaycıoğlu, PEN International President Writer Burhan Sönmez, Turkish Advisor to the German Federal Parliament and Turkologist Joseph Sattler, Academician Burcu Karahan, Writer Louis de Bernières, Writer Latife Tekin, and PEN Türkiye President Journalist-Writer Zeynep Oral participated as speakers, discussing literature and history and making evaluations by relating them.

In the opening remarks before the sessions, Livaneli Foundation Secretary General Şule Bucak defended the idea that literature interprets history and historical events through its own filter, and emphasized the significance and importance of the Mediterranean Literature Days.

"Literature and history are inseparable."

Bodrum Mayor Ahmet Aras stated that literature and history are two inseparable disciplines, and he mentioned the historical figures, artists, and writers who contributed to Bodrum. Mayor Aras said the following:

"Literature and History. These two disciplines cannot be separated. Historians write history, but literature presents historical events to people's attention by transforming them into literary works with an aesthetic and artistic touch. We always see beautiful examples of this in our own country. Politics, history, literature—they are all interconnected. As politicians, we are not outside of these disciplines."

"The international aspect of our activities is important."

Emphasizing that culture is the foundation of the Republic in Bodrum, Mayor Aras said, "We host and bring together many events such as Herodotus Week, Mediterranean Literature Days, and Halikarnas Fisherman Memorial Activities in Bodrum. Of course, with the name Bodrum and its historical potential, it has tourism potential, which attracts the attention of the world. Therefore, it is inevitable that all our activities should be at an international level. That's why I am very happy to see important scholars and artists, writers from all over the world among us today."

"Bodrum has hosted very important personalities."

Stating that Bodrum, like Anatolia, has been a geography that hosted very important personalities throughout its historical process, Mayor Ahmet Aras continued:

"Herodotus, known as the Father of History, was born and lived in Bodrum. Now, when we talk about the relationship between history and literature, we must definitely mention Herodotus. After that, many literary figures have come from Bodrum. If we talk about Halikarnas Fisherman, he is one of the greatest philosophers of our time. He combined history and literature in his works in a very concrete way and presented them to the attention of Türkiye and the world, as a very important figure of.

The entire program is organized by Bodrum Municipality and can be watched on the Bodrum Municipality YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@bodrumbelediyesi