Discussions on Syphilis in Turkey in the Intellectual Atmosphere of the Second Constitutional Years [1908-1918] [Frengi Hastalığının II. Meşrutiyet Yıllarının Fikri Atmosferinde Edindiği Konum [1908-1918]]

Abstract

Syphilis caused by gram-negative bacteria belonging to the order Spirochaetes, the family Spirochaete, and the genus Treponema is an epidemic disease that, if left untreated, can result in cardiovascular syphilis, neurosyphilis, and granulomatous syphilis, along with heart attack, stroke, loss of intelligence, blindness, and deafness. Although the winter point of the disease is usually shown in the late 15th century in the context of the Columbus Hypothesis, there were two more hypotheses called "Pre-Columbian" and Unitarian. The original point that draws attention in the context of syphilis is that the line of spread of the disease, unlike epidemic diseases such as the plague, is not from east to west but from west to east. Although the disease was reflected in documents from the early periods of the Ottoman Empire, the bureaucratic and logistical concerns added to the prolonged wars in 1806-1812, 1828-1829, 1853-1856, and 1877-1878 clarified the appearance in the countryside. Syphilis, which maintained its power in the Western Black Sea region during the 19th century, especially in Kastamonu, Sinop, and Safranbolu, continued at the beginning of the 20th century. This qualitative research uses a survey model and document analysis to reveal the conno-tations and debates that the syphilis legacy created in the intellectual atmosphere between 1908-1918. Within this framework, the spread channels of the disease, the perception of syphilis in Anatolia and villages, the relationship between prostitution and syphilis in the context of gender, treatment discussions, and public awareness concerns were revealed by focusing on the parliamentary meetings and newspapers, magazines and books of the period. As a result of the evaluation of the findings, it was concretized that the perceptions of the period not only marginalized women but also provided a positivist, cause-effect, relationship-oriented accumulation of findings and solutions.