Well, on the one hand the Turks have the legitimate need to defend their national dignity - and this includes being recognized as a part of the west and Europe. Orhan Pamuk More Quotes by Orhan Pamuk More Quotes From Orhan Pamuk It is not my intention to explain Turkey, its culture and its problems. My literature has a universal concern: I want to bring people and their emotions closer to my readers, not explain Turkish politics. Orhan Pamuk turkeys culture people It's very gratifying to me to see my works bringing people closer to my country. Orhan Pamuk country people No one drives me into exile, not even the nationalists. Orhan Pamuk exile Great changes in the direction of peace have often come from people who were no great advocates of peace to begin with. Orhan Pamuk great-change people Of course in Turkey I'm seen as being on the 'Western' side, criticised by the nationalists, criticised by the communitarians as not belonging. Even, sometimes, criticised for looking at my country through Western eyes. And in the Western media I'm portrayed as belonging to the East. Orhan Pamuk media eye country I don't read newspapers in the morning. I take a look at the dailies in the afternoon, but only when I've finished my work for the day. Reading about what is happening in Turkey once again would only be demoralizing for me. Orhan Pamuk turkeys reading morning I want to describe the psychological state of the people in a certain city. Orhan Pamuk cities want people Turkish football serves the cause of nationalism, but not of the nation. Orhan Pamuk turkish causes football I am a highly disciplined person. I get up at seven every morning and, still in my pajamas, sit down at my desk where my checkered ring binders and my fountain pen are ready for use. I try to write two pages every day. Orhan Pamuk writing morning two Heroic dreams are the consolation of the unhappy. After all, when people like us say we're being heroic, it usually means we're about to kill each other--or kill ourselves. Orhan Pamuk dream mean people More than anything I am a novelist. But for me, an author's job is not only to create linguistically accomplished works. As an author I also want to stimulate discussion. Orhan Pamuk novelists want jobs I sometimes joke that I am the first writer of historical fiction who can look out his window and point to the objects in his novels. I have a view of the entrance to the Bosporus, the old city, Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque. Orhan Pamuk cities views blue When something explosive is kept hidden away, a tension builds within that must ultimately be released. Orhan Pamuk explosives tension When Turkey began approaching the EU, I wasn't the only one who worried that the dark stain in Turkey's history - or rather the history of the Ottoman Empire - could become a problem one day. In other words, what happened to the Armenians in World War I. That's why I couldn't leave the issue untouched. Orhan Pamuk turkeys dark war Many great authors of the 19th century wrote under conditions of strict censorship. The great thing about the art of writing a novel, is that you can write about anything. All you have to say is that it's fiction. Orhan Pamuk writing fiction art I need a moment of time for myself every day, like a child playing with his things. When I travel, I routinely find a quiet place, open my diary and write something in it. Orhan Pamuk writing children needs Writing my own diary is the best form of remembrance, but only for my own use. I need these notes; it's like an impulse. Orhan Pamuk remembrance writing needs I very much enjoy reading other writers' diaries, mainly because it makes me ask myself: Are they like you? How do they think? Orhan Pamuk reading diaries thinking I am proud to be a Turk, and to write in Turkish about Turkey - and to have been translated into about 40 languages. But I don't want to politicize things by dramatizing them. Orhan Pamuk turkeys want writing I consider myself a person who comes from a Muslim culture. In any case, I would not say that I'm an atheist. So I'm a Muslim who associates historical and cultural identification with this religion. Orhan Pamuk historical atheist culture
