When mystery blends with history
Jackie Kabir admires a narrative rich in poetry and history
9 November 2007, 18:00 PM
My name is red
Orhan Pamuk
Vintage International
My Name is Red is a novel about a beautiful woman named Shekure whose beauty burns many hearts in Istanbul. The narrative is set against the background of the sixteenth century Ottoman Empire which was threatened by the European powers. This was also true in the case of Persian art and culture. Some of the miniaturists or painters of Istanbul struggled to keep their work free from the influence of the Venetian masters.
My Name is Red is a murder mystery. Two of the chief miniaturists are murdered by one of their disciples. Sultan Murat III of the Ottoman Empire is patron of the arts and culture in the sixteenth century; he is most interested in miniatures and books, has ordered the painters of his kingdom to prepare a book which will also depict the thousandth year of the Islamic calendar. Sultan Murat has also asked to be portrayed by the miniaturists. This enrages some of the miniaturists as they believe in Nusrat Hoja's teaching. Hoja preaches that paintings of living creatures are forbidden in the holy Koran.
The story is narrated in different voices and is segmented into forty one chapters, with headings like "I will be called a Murderer", "I am a Corpse", "I am Death", "I am Red". One of the protagonists of the novel has a lifelong passion for Shekure, who is the daughter of Enisthe with a lost husband and two young sons. The parallel murder mystery is treated as the primary plot of the novel. The Sultan has himself assigned Black to resolve the mystery as it is believed that one of the four disciples of Enisthe is responsible for the occurrence.
Orhan Pamuk revealed in his Nobel speech that a lot of the events which he witnessed in his own lifetime as an inhabitant of Turkey somehow came to life as he wrote My Name is Red. The politics, the culture, most of all the historical artifacts of the country are depicted with keen dexterity. The author wants the Turkish way of life to be exposed to the literary world. The modernisation of Turkey is a fearful occurrence for many, like the murderer in the novel. He tries to reason with his teachers and mentors that they should not be influenced by the Venetian masters, that their art should avoid following the European style.
The preacher Nusrat Hoja notes that those who create pictures of animals and human beings are forsaken. Talking about Persian miniaturists, Pamuk has described how they persevere in drawing the same horse from their memory time and time again. They could do that with their eyes closed. Some of the miniaturists of that time were blind; they drew from their memory. This was because they believed that blindness was a perfect condition to create pure art, the painters would not be distracted by other sensory temptations. The reason for painting live episodes was that they felt that the past must be recorded. There was painting from the time of Tamerlane to Sulaiman, from Bukhara to Herat.
The murderer who skillfully deceives everyone and continues to be among the four disciples of Master Osman has to be captured by his fellow miniaturists. These four are called Butterfly, Storke, Olive and Black. All these miniaturists are the best in Istanbul and with master Osman's guidance they produce The Book of Skills, The Book of Festivities and The Book of Victories. According to the murderer: "A city's intellect ought to be measured not by its scholars, libraries, miniaturists, calligraphers and schools, but by the number of crimes insidiously committed on its dark streets over thousands of years. By this logic, doubtless, Istanbul is the world's most intelligent city" (pp.123).
The book is abundant in allusions from history: The Book of Kings by Firdousi written in 1010, the depiction of Leyla and Mejnun, The Flight of Bihzad, et al. The work recaptures scenes of how Istanbul was plagued with homosexuality and fake gold coins in the sixteenth century. The wedding receptions that have bridal processions as part of them, the pilaf that is so very uniquely Turkish are to be found anew in the book. There is mention of all four sects of Islam in the book: Maleki, Hambeli, Hanefi and Shafeti and how they are different regarding the life of a widow is also given a description in My Name is Red.
The position of women in the late sixteenth century was akin to that of property belonging to some male relative or husband. There was no place for a woman without a guardian. It is shown in the book how indecisive a woman can be while there is no one to support her. And love alone is not enough for a woman to survive in a patriarchal world. The messenger who runs errands for everyone on the pretext of selling silk is also a noteworthy depiction in the novel. Altogether it is a brilliant historical love story, it can get a bit tiresome due to the detailed description of everyday chores. However, the gripping story makes up for that.
Jackie Kabir is a literature buff and reviews books .
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