THE LAND OF HEATHENS VERSUS THE LAND OF LIBERTY: MARK TWAIN’S THE INNOCENTS ABROAD AND UBEYDULLAH EFENDI’S TRAVELS

: Mark Twain’s (1835–1910) literary travelogue, The Innocents Abroad (1869), remarks on and/or subverts previously established interpretations of places and objects. Twain’s adopted persona allows him to assume the double role of a fool and an intellectual, simultaneously, by deploying a peculiar type of humor. By openly distaining and emphasizing certain aspects of his travel experiences, Twain’s narrator seems naïve on the one hand, but a savvy social critic on the other. Twain’s account of Istanbul (Constantinople) streets, drinking Turkish coffee, and Turkish bath experience become farcical descriptions of the Ottoman

to cover his expenses.The publication dates of their travel writing differ, since Ubeydullah Efendi composed his impressions at a much later date than his actual voyage.Their dissimilar perspectives and ideological outlooks are also revealed in their narratives.While Mark Twain employs a predetermined orientalist approach with his unique sense of humor, Ubeydullah Efendi's straightforward depictions and occasional witty remarks mirror his personality and offer a more realistic portrayal of the late nineteenth-century American urban landscape.
By comparing and contrasting Twain's and Ubeydullah Efendi's reactions to and depictions of the geographies, cultures, and people they encountered, this article will expose their divergent sociopolitical approaches and, in particular, Twain's orientalism, which stands in stark contrast to the less prejudiced outlook of his counterpart.Twain's descriptions of Istanbul (Constantinople) and Izmir (Smyrna) and Ubeydullah Efendi's portrayals of New York, Chicago, and Washington DC articulate how urban centers located in different continents were viewed in the late nineteenth century from the perspective of a tourist and/or traveler.Here, Stuart Hall's ideological framework of "conceptual maps" can be deployed to unpack the writers' experiences.Hall views "conceptual maps" as an outcome of one's cultural identity, where a "shared culture of meanings" can be understood in a particular environment (Representation 18).He also recognizes language as a signifying practice in the meaning making process and discusses how semiotic and discursive practices are influential in representing the others in a culture (Representation 13-64).Thus, the use of language and the travelers' suppositions in The Innocents Abroad and in Ubeydullah Efendi's narratives can be viewed as cultural representations of the era that supplement their individual accounts.Mark Twain's and Ubeydullah Efendi's outlooks also resonate with Daniel Boorstin's tourist and traveler categories.For Boorstin, a tourist is a passive entity, consuming predetermined sites as they appear, whereas a traveler possesses agency over the journey.Tourists are taken to sites and wait for experiences to arise, as opposed to travelers, who seek and find, and try to be involved rather than guided.In contrast to the "sophisticated pleasures" of earlier eras, tourism has become "diluted, contrived, prefabricated" (79) and a "spectator sport" (84).By pointing out the historical transition from "travail" (trouble, effort, struggle) to "travel" (journey), Boorstin conveys how tourists came into existence, a phenomenon that coincides chronologically with Twain's journey.At the time, overseas excursions were expensive and it would have been unaffordable for Twain had he not convinced his employers to sponsor his travels.Twain saw S. Bilge Mutluay Çetintaş Hacettepe University, Türkiye the whole venture as an adventure and considered himself an observer, rather than a tourist.According to Dean MacCannall, the modern tourist is often criticized for "being satisfied with superficial experiences of other peoples and places" (10), a concern expressed in Twain's accounts.Yet, Twain's narrator intentionally embraces a tourist identity, but for a purpose, and disapproves of his fellow traveler's reactions when they are based on preconceived notions.On the other hand, Ubeydullah Efendi views himself as a traveler from the beginning, stating that he has embarked on the journey "to search for grandness" ("büyüklük aramak ibtilâsıyla"; my trans.;Alkan 97).
John Urry and Jonas Larsen analyze the gaze involved in the act of viewing new places away from home.Interest and curiosity, together with social organization, play a role in these first-hand encounters.The significance of tourist sites is determined by previous texts or by stories associated with places; thus, the scene is already framed and shaped before the visit.By referring to John Berger's seminal book Ways of Seeing, Urry and Larsen assert that "People gaze upon the world through a particular filter of ideas, skills, desires and expectations, framed by social class, gender, nationality, age and education.Gazing is a performance that orders, shapes and classifies, rather than reflects the world" (2).The traveler's gaze (or performance) naturally differs since viewing is a cultural act.Consequently, Twain's and Ubeydullah Efendi's travel accounts display cultural variations on how attention and validation are distributed.
As this study will also argue, Twain's adopted persona allows him to assume the double role of the fool and intellectual, while channeling a peculiar type of humor intended for his middle-class audience.Thus, the intended readers at the time played a determining factor in the creation of his travel accounts.By emphasizing certain experiences and detesting other aspects of his travels, Twain's narrator seems naïve on the one hand, but a savvy social critic on the other.His account of the streets of Istanbul (Constantinople), Turkish coffee, and Turkish baths become farcical descriptions of the Ottoman Empire.His choice of words-such as "the rustiest old barn in heathendom" (264)-presents his sentiments about the places and inhabitants he observes, while confirming his western stereotypical ideological outlook concerning Ottoman lands.In contrast, Ubeydullah Efendi's travel writings were composed about thirty years after his actual experiences, and during the early years of the Turkish Republic when western clothing, the Latin alphabet, and education were officially encouraged.A shift in his readership also impacted the final composition of his narrative.His memoir reveals an awareness of how others viewed On Paradoxes of Travel (and) Narratives RIAS-Vol.17, Spring-Summer, № 1/2024 him-as an amusing Ottoman gentleman with outdated clothing, language, and manners.His depictions do not stem from an internalized Orientalism; rather, they are the result of informed observations based on his cultural and personal experiences and place in a changing world.Examining Twain's and Ubeydullah Efendi's voyages through their divergent gazes not only exposes their opinions as tourists and/ or travelers, but also underscores the prevalent ideas of their respective cultures during the second half of the nineteenth century.

OTTOMAN LANDS IN THE INNOCENTS ABROAD
In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the Grand European Tour followed a certain path of leisurely cultural travel, often designed for young English aristocrats.In the nineteenth century, other inquisitive travelers also traced these much-traversed paths, which made this previously exclusive learning experience more accessible and popular (Ouditt 19).The end of the American Civil War is considered the beginning of the Tourist Age for the United States, when a considerable number of people became interested in traveling to create a diversion for themselves after the war and its social and political effects (Melton 58).In some ways, their "national pride was refreshed and reaffirmed in the process" as a result of this trendy activity (Steinbrink 280).Twain was delighted to participate in this fashionable traveling experience, although his narrative voice downplays the excitement of the traveler, claiming that he was merely "drifting with the tide of a great popular movement" (9).The subtitle of The Innocents Abroad, The New Pilgrim's Progress, is a reference to John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, the allegorical account of a Christian's physical journey symbolizing the journey from Earth to Heaven.Bunyan's and Twain's accounts are written in the first-person point of view, and the journey itself is at the center of both texts.However, the travels in The Innocents Abroad are not allegorical, and the writer does not convey such an intention.Yet, the travels include sacred and holy sites; thus, the "pilgrim" reference is appropriate, because at the time the idea was expanding to include anyone who had the money and means to travel.In the preface of The Innocents Abroad, the narrator states that the book is not "a solemn scientific expedition," but "a record of a pleasure trip," with "a purpose, which is to suggest to the reader how he would be likely to see Europe and the East if he looked at them with his own eyes instead of the eyes of those who traveled in those countries before him" (Preface).

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According to Tom Quirk, Twain's narrator "is not a condescending guide on this pilgrimage but a companionable presence whose peculiar way of seeing the world combines with a sense of humor that never seems forced or artificial" (56).Therefore, the readers are invited to pity, but also feel superior to, needy people in other parts of world, while criticizing the artificial behavior of affluent new world pilgrims, since they cannot recognize or understand the "real" nature of sites they visit.As Eleftheria Arapoglu remarks, travelers erroneously view preexisting texts about the places they visit as dependable sources, which adds to their false impressions: "For those travelers, textual cities precede their experiences of the actual cities, therefore the real-the topos-is 'seen' through the textual, the fictional, the represented-the logos" (105).Twain's narrator does not trust previous textual knowledge and sets off to create his own version.Satirizing travelers who rely on guidebooks or on what they are told, Twain embraces a specific narrative identity.He adopts a condescending eye not only towards the places he visits, but also towards his fellow travelers and the American socio-cultural way of life.His intended readers are middle-class Americans who cannot afford to travel leisurely, but love to laugh at the gullibility of other travelers who are ready to accept uncritically whatever package is offered.
As stated in the preface, the authorial voice claims, "I make small pretense of showing anyone how he ought to look at objects of interest beyond the sea-other books do that, and therefore, even if I were competent to do it, there is no need" and continues, "I offer no apologies for any departures from the usual style of travel-writing that may be charged against me-for I think I have seen with impartial eyes, and I am sure I have written at least honestly, whether wisely or not" (Preface).The claim of telling the truth consists of descriptions of what is missing and trying to arrive at alternative ways of seeing the world (Beidler 38).In his depictions, Twain's narrator repeats certain jokes, such as the "Ferguson" anecdotes-the generic nickname given to the travel guides by the travelers.Thus, he assumes a less cultivated, innocent gaze, that turns into a white male gaze that de-aestheticizes what was romanticized by previous travel writers.Although he presumes that his observations are different from earlier travelers, he is also marginalizing, orientalizing, and judging without a speck of tolerance.
Edward Said describes Orientalism as an essentializing binarism between the constructed concepts of "Orient" and "Occident."These concepts are cultural rather than geographical, and have acquired consistency in the West over the centuries.He adds that " [t]he relationship between Occident and Orient is a relationship of power, of domination, of varying degrees of complex hegemony" (5).Said also gives literary examples of how Oriental characters never speak for themselves, but are always spoken about.Consequently, Orientalism is not only a "created body of theory and practice," it is also a "system of knowledge" for creating hegemonic "positional superiority" (6-7).He is especially interested in how textual and media representations have disseminated Orientalism over the course of time, contributing to created knowledge.Similarly, Stuart Hall speaks about the inclination to categorize and represent with certain images.Since ideas function like a language and become "a system of representation" while providing a "modal for comparison," they develop into "criteria of evaluation" where privileged and unprivileged categories are clarified within a binary system.The West is associated with "good" and "developed," while the East is associated with the "unwanted" and "underdeveloped" ("The West and the Rest" 57).This binary discourse and its associated discursive practices produce reality through repetition, thereby giving the West the upper hand.Obviously, such an approach leads to the perpetuation of racist, dehumanizing, and cultural stereotypes.Said includes Mark Twain in the list of writers who engage in Orientalist practices (157).
According to Fatin AbuHilal and Ayman Abu-Shomar, American travel narratives not only reveal other cultures and geographies, but also the traveler's historical and cultural background.According to them, Twain's narrative-based on the self/other binary-is an indication of the emerging American identity at the time, which is closely tied to power and authority relations.Twain's travels coincided with the aftermath of the Civil War, when a redefinition of American national identity was necessary.This new identity had to be asserted by "the consciousness of the superiority of the self and the inferiority of the Other" (17).Twain's narrative employs "exclusion, expulsion, rejection, dismissal or denial" when the others are described (17).The Innocents Abroad places the narrator in a positional superiority by giving him the upper hand to provide judgments.Through this hegemonic privileged position, the narrator's American "self-affirmation" is confirmed.He is further absolved from searching "knowledge for other cultures and locales" (17), which defies the aim of traveling for learning and mind expansion.
Disappointment over tourist attractions consumes the majority of Twain's text and becomes a recurrent theme.Yet, he is also ready to reconsider his outlook and recreate a romantic vision in his mind for select "civilized" places, such as Venice.On the other hand, his attitude towards Ottoman lands is fixed from the beginning, and Istanbul becomes the most lampooned place.In his descriptions, satire

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and humor completely vanish with the apparent self/other dyad, devoid of any tolerance or acceptance.He disdainfully notes, "If you would see the very heart and home of cripples and human monsters both, go straight to Constantinople" (263).Ottomans are "fantastic pagans" clad in ridiculous clothing; they are grotesque beggars, and whirling dervishes.In the narrow and crowded streets, men wear "outrageous, outlandish, idolatrous, extravagant" clothes with "awful turbans, but the grand mass of the infidel horde wore the fiery red skull-cap they call a fez" (262).The beggars are "distorted out of all semblance of humanity," (262) "the three-legged woman," "the man with his eye in his cheek," "the dwarf with seven fingers on each hand, no upper lip," and "the man with fingers on his elbow" (264) are enough to repulse him.The Grand Bazaar is another grotesque freak show, always smelly and crowded with "dirt, beggars, asses, yelling peddlers, porters, dervishes, high-born Turkish female shoppers, Greeks, and weird-looking and weirdly dressed Mohammedans" (267).Moreover, the Ottoman sultan Abdulaziz is described as "weak, stupid" and "filthy, brutish, ignorant, unprogressive, superstitious" (82-83).Thus, Twain's narrative reflects stereotypical representations of grotesque figures and a despotic Sultan, who banned newspapers and denied the freedom of the press.
Clearly, the narrator has made up his mind about every aspect of the Ottoman life.His experiences in the Turkish baths, drinking Turkish coffee, smoking the narghile (water pipe), and observing food preparations are described as absurd and ridiculous.Wearing traditional wooden clogs, he trips and falls while trying to walk inside a Turkish bath; he complains that the washers peel his skin off while scrubbing him; that the complimentary Turkish coffee is tasteless with muddy sediment; that narghile makes him cough; and the cook uses unsanitary utensils for food preparation.Except for the initial picturesque scene from the ship, he cannot find one good reason to stay in Istanbul.The people and their manners disgust him.There are plenty of mosques and churches, "but morals and whiskey are scarce.The Koran does not permit Mohammedans to drink.Their natural instincts do not permit them to be moral" (268) and "it comes natural to them to lie and cheat in the first place, and then they go on and improve on nature until they arrive at perfection" (269).Thus, everything and everybody he observes is uncivilized, inferior, and part of a strange spectacle.
Twain's narrative also includes some general historical information and cultural details regarding the city's attractions.Nevertheless, St. Sophia is nothing more than the "rustiest old barn in heathendom."The building, once a church but used as a mosque at the time, makes (and) Narratives RIAS-Vol.17, Spring-Summer, № 1/2024 the narrator uncomfortable, as he is forced to remove his shoes to enter the structure.He complains about the cold and shabby situation: "Every where was dirt and dust and dinginess and gloom; every where were signs of hoary antiquity, but with nothing touching or beautiful about it .[…] Nowhere was there anything to win one's love or challenge his admiration."He is appalled that the building contains a "monstrous inscription in Turkish characters, wrought in gold mosaic, that looks as glaring as a circus bill," and beneath these inscriptions are "ragged Turks" engaged in Islamic style prayer, "bowing and straightening up, bowing again and getting down to kiss the earth, muttering prayers the while, and keeping up their gymnastics till they ought to have been tired, if they were not."He concludes that those who admire the site are merely repeating what has been taught to them.He decides that "[t]he people who go into ecstasies over St. Sophia must surely get them out of the guide book" (264-265).Twain's narrative also describes the whirling dervishes he watches with disdain.His prejudices are revealed through his comments on "dancing dervishes" and the "priest" of the ceremony, and his refusal to use the proper designations of "sufi/ whirling dervishes" and "Head of Ceremonies" or "Sheikh."This "barbarous […] exhibition" includes "spinning pagans" with their robes "like a balloon" moving to "rude" music (266).
Twain's account of Ottoman lands is briefly interrupted by his visit to the Black Sea region and Russian territory.The ship returns to Istanbul for a second time to load coal and continues to Izmir (Smyrna) for a visit to Ephesus.The Izmir port reminds him of the Arabian Nights with its covered shops, narrow streets, camels, and attractive, smiling (Christian) Armenian girls, whom the narrator finds "a shade better than American girls."However, as an American pilgrim, he feels ashamed for uttering such a remark, since they "are treasonable words I pray may be forgiven me" (302)-and neither pious nor patriotic.In the city, Muslim Turkish homes are described as dark and located on crooked streets, whereas Christian Armenian homes are large and luxurious.Thus, the narrator does not hide his sympathetic feelings towards Christian believers, once more revealing his prejudices and orientalist gaze.In the three chapters on Ephesus and its history, the narrator's contempt for anything Turkish is revealed once more when tour guides take the group on a three-hour donkey ride to Ephesus in hot weather, making everybody suffer under the sun.
According to James Cox, "Mark Twain's burlesque has its roots in indignation, it moves the reader not toward guilt but toward a laughter arising from recognition of the absurdity of the world; and the laughter is not an acceptance of, or a guilt toward, but a relief S. Bilge Mutluay Çetintaş Hacettepe University, Türkiye from responsibility" (44).On the other hand, according to Jeffrey Melton, Twain showed signs of tourist fatigue from traveling extensively and "foreignness" was losing its charm (68).Regardless of whether or not Twain's description of Istanbul was a deliberate attempt at provoking laughter or whether or not travel was starting to lose its initial appeal, the writer's style and language can be viewed from the lens of poststructuralist and postcolonial studies.Stereotyping and discrimination is an exercise of power in the production of knowledge; whether the reader laughs or not is inconsequential.Twain may use comic exaggeration and parody to entertain his audience, but he also has clear preferences and preconceptions about the places he visits, irrespective of whether or not he was tired, as Melton claims.In short, Twain's orientalist gaze prevents him from accepting and engaging with another culture in a meaningful manner, and it functions as a major undercurrent in his narrative.

THE UNITED STATES IN UBEYDULLAH EFENDI'S TRAVELS
Mehmet Ubeydullah Hatipoğlu or Ubeydullah Efendi, as he is mostly known, is described as a politician and an adventurous person of intellect.This description is limited, since his life writing presents a colorful and unusual individual, whose risk-taking personality defies these identity markers.Without a doubt, he is a man of contradictions, as his acquaintances observe.He is just as likely to fiercely defend a political position as he is to criticize comrades on their shortcomings.Thus, his friends-often confused by the nature of his intentions-fail to understand his motives.He prefers to live frugally, requiring little to eat (Ubeydullah Efendi).His existing photos seem to prove his contradictory nature.A photo taken right after his travels to America shows a young bearded man in western style clothing with no headgear.Another full body shot shows him with a fez, a popular hat during the Ottoman Empire. 1 His western attire consists of a three-piece suit and leather shoes.His official Turkish House of Representatives photo, taken in 1908, shows him wearing an Ottoman style turban with white cloth wrapped around the fez.Moreover, the mandarin collar of his shirt is not suitable for a western tie.His more mature photos with graying 1 In 1826, the fez became mandatory in the army during the time of Sultan Mahmud II.In 1829, this covered everybody except women and the clergy, and the fez became the symbolic headgear of the Ottoman Empire.The fez was initially adopted from Morocco, probably originating in the city of Fez, although several Arab countries also use it as their official headgear.The fez was abandoned following the 1925 Hat Revolution during the early years of the Turkish Republic.On Paradoxes of Travel (and) Narratives RIAS-Vol.17, Spring-Summer, № 1/2024 hair and beard present him either with a turban and jubbah (a type of kaftan), the usual dress code preferred by high-ranking officers or hodjas during the Ottoman Empire, or just the opposite: a three--piece suit with a tie.His clothing, much like his identity, was a fluid mixture of East and West, one that changed based on the demands of the situation.In a group photograph taken during an official London visit, Ubeydullah Efendi is immediately noticeable, as he is the only delegate wearing a kaftan and turban.A later photo as the registrar of marriages shows him immersed in examining documents, dressed in western attire suitable for the job he is performing during the early Turkish Republic.
Several members of Ubeydullah Efendi's immediate family were known for their intellectual contributions to society.His family observed Bektashi traditions, an Islamic sect known for their tolerant attitudes compared to other Sufi traditions.His father, a revered Hodja, and mother were known to possess a substantial number of books, a sign of their devotion to scholarly activities and education.After his early education in Izmir, Ubeydullah Efendi went to Istanbul to attend medical school; however, he decided to travel to Egypt, Syria, Paris, and Rhodes rather than completing his studies.In 1891, he became a member of the Union and Progress Party, known for adopting an oppositional stance on political issues. 2He traveled to Europe and the United States in 1893 and stayed abroad for four years before returning to Istanbul.In 1897, he decided to support the Ottoman Sultan, Abdulhamid II, but, as a result of his questionable political involvements, he ended up being exiled to Taif, located in the Sahara Desert.After five and a half years, he escaped and returned to Anatolia.He was elected into the House of Representatives three times consecutively as a member of the Union and Progress Party.During World War I, he was officially appointed to Iran and Afghanistan to gather troops, but was captured by the British before he could reach Afghanistan, and imprisoned in Istanbul.Upon his release in 1919, he was exiled to Malta for another two years.After the Turkish Republic was established, he was elected to the House of Representatives twice 2 The Union and Progress Party (Ittihat ve Terakki Cemiyeti) was a political movement initiated in 1889, which rose to prominence on the political scene from 1908 to 1918.Once the Ottoman Constitution was adopted during the Second Constitutionalist Era, they started discussions on democratic elections, political parties, military coups, and dictatorships.Some members took part in the Independence War after the party was dispersed.They were called the Young Turks (Jön Türkler), although this term was also adopted for all politically oppositional individuals at the time.
During his travels to America, Ubeydullah Efendi tries various labor-intensive jobs including cooking, selling vegetables and sweets, opening a restaurant, creating hand-made accessories, and reporting for The Chicago World's Fair newspaper.Previously, he had worked for several publications including İzmir's first literary magazine, Nevruz, and the newspapers Sada in Paris, Gayret in Filibe, and Doğru Söz and El Arap in Cario (Ubeydullah Efendi).His Arabic, Farsi, and French translation skills became handy during his travels to the United States.After receiving a reporter's pass to the Chicago World's Fair, he recounts, "What made me very happy in Chicago was earning my life with my pen.This was the first time I was able to achieve this.I had not experienced this generosity in my country.During the times of despotism, even Namık Kemal or Abdülhak Hamid could not earn their lives by writing in my country" ("Benim Chicago'da en ziyade zevkime giden şey, kalemimin maişetimi temin etmesiydi.Dünyada birinci defa olarak kalemimle hayatımı kazanıyorum.Kendi memleketimde ben bu mürüveti görmedimdi.Devr-i istibdadda kalemiyle değil benim gibi bir aciz, hatta Namık Kemal yahut Abdülhak Hamid bile bizim memketimizde kendini geçindiremezdi"; my trans.;Alkan 151). 3  For Ubeydullah Efendi, traveling was a natural activity, probably because of the rootlessness he experienced earlier in life.Reporter, writer, and politician Mehmet Asım Us describes him as a "traveler without a road" ("yolsuz yolcu"; my trans.;Elmas) meaning that he did not predetermine the route, but followed his instincts or seized presented opportunities.Another reporter and writer, Hikmet Feridun Es, characterizes him as a chameleon, having a thousand and one faces when referring to his multifaceted experiences.He depicts him in the following manner: One day he would be having a conversation with the emperor in Buckingham Place, the next day you would see him selling stuffed eggplants in the streets of New York.The wholesale vegetable sellers in Cuba would attack him.He would work as a porter and sleep in parks on an empty stomach for days.Then, you would see that he would be appointed to Afghanistan as the ambassador and revered by twenty-seven thousand on his way.Even the shops would 3 Namık Kemal (1840-1888) is considered to be the national poet of freedom with his elaborate and condescending style.Abdülhak Hamid Tarhan  is often known as the great poet of Turkish literature.He is credited as introducing western literary conventions to the Turkish canon.Ubeydullah Efendi mentions them while remarking on the necessity of supplementary income even for established writers who became famous during their lifetimes.Although many people from the Ottoman lands traveled to the United States during the nineteenth century and even earlier, their travel writing is rare.From a cultural perspective, writing about one's experiences is connected to the European Enlightenment, where reason and individualism had precedence over tradition, and people were encouraged to share their personal experiences.Reported observations by western travelers or missionaries to Ottoman lands were in abundance compared to Ottoman travel writers.The traditional lifestyle of subjects of the Ottoman Empire did not emphasize individual experience, and talking about oneself was often viewed as inappropriate, since it was considered bragging.Ubeydullah Efendi was sixty-seven years old when he gathered the courage to compose his memoirs, mostly at the insistence of friends who had enjoyed his stories over the years.Although thirty years had passed since the events took place, his travel writing starts in an apologetic tone, stating that his intentions are far from boasting.

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Ubeydullah Efendi begins his narrative by listing his motives in a series of rhetorical questions.He asks if he should target those who wish to learn from experienced individuals, if he should give an account of a restless and a fluctuating life, and if he is making a bold move, just to be favored by his readers.He humbly deduces that he is a coward and a lazy person, too sluggish to even give an account of his life, and continues to say that geography classes were limited in his time, but that he loved reciting poetry and writing.After providing his audience with background information about his family, he describes his "escape" from Istanbul in 1893.He writes that he was interested in attending the Chicago World's Fair, which coincided with the four hundredth anniversary of Columbus's "discovery of the new world."He secures the necessary money and hires a small boat to board the ship waiting in Bosporus that would take him to Europe.He boards the ship without luggage, because he fears that the Ottoman authorities will realize his intention to leave and detain him (Alkan 91-100).He travels to Marseille, then to Paris, and finally to Liverpool, where he boards the White Star Line ship, Germanic, to New York.

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Ubeydullah Efendi gives detailed information about his fellow travelers on the Germanic, and how he was viewed as an eccentric foreigner on board since he wore a kaftan and a fez.Other passengers want to talk with him, although he does not speak English but French (Alkan 104), the preferred foreign language in the elite Ottoman education system.Ubeydullah Efendi's social side is also revealed during the time of the voyage.When fellow travelers approach him, he does his best to converse with them and adapts nicely to this new environment.One traveler in particular, a young English woman, Miss Anni Meysın (the spelling belongs to Ubeydullah Efendi, but is most likely Annie Mason), who is also traveling to attend the Chicago World's Fair on behalf of her employees, befriends Ubeydullah Efendi.Because she can speak French, Miss Meysın is able to converse with Ubeydullah Efendi.When Ubeydullah Efendi is asked to give a speech to the other passengers, he translates his Ottoman to French and Miss Meysın acts as the English interpreter.Their friendship continues after they arrive at New York and they travel together to Chicago where they eventually become romantically involved.They enjoy each other's company, exchange sentiments of love, and meet every day until they part when the Chicago World's Fair ends six months later.Ubeydullah Efendi remains in the United States and attempts to open a restaurant in New York but fails.He then works at an ethnic fair in Washington, DC and later in Pittsburg, selling cotton candy in his native costume.He also travels to Cuba where he makes and sells metallic hand-made jewelry and accessories, until he is attacked by vegetable sellers who are unhappy with the location of his makeshift workbench.This hostile incident, and an earlier encounter with an Ottoman government official who encourages him to return, convince him to make the journey back to Istanbul.The details related to his homecoming are not specified, although it is known that he spends some time in Europe before returning to Istanbul (Feyizoğlu).Ubeydullah Efendi's search for grandness is immediately fulfilled as soon as he lays eyes on the Statue of Liberty.He is quite impressed by the size and the symbolic meaning of "Statue of Mrs. Freedom" ("Hürriyet Hanım'ın Heykeli"; my trans.),thinking that such a grand statue would be suitable to represent the founder of Turkish Republic, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (Alkan 140-141).This reference is in fact anachronistic, since the Turkish Republic, established in 1923, did not exist at the time of his travels.As previously stated, Ubeydullah Efendi composed his travel accounts much later and was drawing connections with the current state of affairs.In his accounts, he talks about technological developments that were nonexistent in Istanbul at the time.He is fascinated by New York streetcars moving on electrified tracks, a ferry carrying a train with passengers while crossing the Great Lakes, and sprinklers operated by a button during the opening ceremonies of the Chicago World's Fair.He also comments on the ease of trading and earning money in the United States, together with the necessity of advertising and distributing samples to ensure better profits.Moreover, he does not shy away from criticizing his own actions.For example, he talks about how he worked on the publication of an Ottoman newspaper during the Chicago World's Fair, but did not save a single issue because he had written favorable words about the Sultan without meaning them (Alkan 162).
Ubeydullah Efendi also talks about his encounters with the opposite sex in the United States.Besides Miss Meysın, there are a number of other women who are curious about him, flirt with him, or even coerce him into dancing.He tries to be cordial while observing the etiquette of the era and does not present these encounters as male conquests, although he obviously enjoys the attention he receives.The stories in which women are portrayed as actively displaying their interest were attractive for male readers of the early Turkish Republic, since the cultural and religious convictions of the time restricted relationships between sexes.The (male) readers probably enjoyed such descriptions and may have even lived vicariously through Ubeydullah Efendi's adventures.
Although there are some gaps and omitted details in Ubeydullah Efendi's account, he also confesses his shortcomings and misfortunes.He admits that since the events happened years ago, he cannot remember all the details, but tries to recount as much as possible, as in the case of reconstructing the opening speech at the Chicago World's Fair (Alkan 185).Such intervals could be intentional or simply caused by the effect of time on memory.He also makes a few historical and geographical errors, such as calling Michigan Detroit, saying, "Detroit is the name of one of the States in the United States of America.In this state, there is a city with the same name," ("Detroit dediğim bir Amerika Eyâleti müttehide-i cumhuriyetini teşkil eden eyaletlerden birinin ismidir.Ve bu eyalette, bu isimde bu şehir de var"; my trans.;Alkan 146) or referring to Frederick Douglass as "from Haitian people of color" ("Haiti adası zencilerinden"; my trans.;Alkan 157).Actually, the government of Haiti had appointed Douglass to serve as a representative at the Chicago World's Fair due to his earlier position as United States Minister Resident (Hautzinger).Ubeydullah Efendi's mistake in judgment was probably caused by his observations at the fair.These small inaccuracies are partially due to composing his experiences much later than S. Bilge Mutluay Çetintaş Hacettepe University, Türkiye the actual events as well as the unavailability of specific information due to time and distance.He states, "I do not remember all as I did then.
[…] I do not have an available map to consult and find it.[…] I am only recounting what is left in my mind" (".[…] bugün herşey o günkü gibi hatırımda değil.[…] Yanımda harita yok ki ona müracaat edeyim, bulayım.[…] Ben ancak hatırımda kalanları yazıyorum"; my trans.;Alkan 146).He defends his position by stating, "Those experts should know that meticulously planned travel writing is not hard to compose.Such narratives can be easily compiled by consulting books and filling it with lies rather than reality" ("erbâb-ı mütalaaca mâlum olmalı ki, o yolda dikkatli yazılmış seyahatnameleri yazmak zor bir şey değildir.Onu insan kitaptan pek kolay yazabilir ve baştan aşağı gerçek yerine yalanlar doldurabilir"; my trans.;Alkan 146).In this respect, both Ubeydullah Efendi and Mark Twain seem to agree that travel books written according to specific formulas or preconceptions do not represent reality, although the two authors have different outlooks about the lands to which they travel.
Despite the gaps and omitted events, Ubeydullah Efendi's conscious interpretive readjustment reveals his outlook.Unlike Mark Twain's narrator, he is more tolerant towards religious and cultural differences and praises ethical acts.For example, he appreciates Christian travelers for uttering blessings in God's name before eating (Alkan 112).He comments favorably on their civilized manner of waiting their turn when necessary and promptness in thanking others (Alkan 114), and compliments their friendly manner and their readiness to communicate with him.When his fellow travelers shorten his name and mistakenly call him "Mr.God" ("Mr.Allah"; my trans.;Alkan 126), he is amused rather than being offended.Although he is aware of other passengers' tendency to objectify him as a stereotypical Eastern person, he is not bothered by their inquisitive stares.He does not feel alienated when others observe his kaftan and fez with interest, when they notice his unwillingness to consume alcohol due to his religious beliefs, when they hear him speak in his native tongue, or when they comment on his manners.In short, he can adapt easily to any situation without feeling the need to justify himself or assert a privileged position.

CONCLUSION
After the success of The Innocents Abroad, Twain wrote Roughing It (1872) about the American West, and A Tramp Abroad (1880) about his European travels with his family.He also published the account of his experiences as a steamboat captain during the American Civil War in Life on the Mississippi (1883) and his travels to Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand, India, and South Africa in Following the Equator (1897).
Likewise, Ubeydullah Efendi traveled to other parts of the world and continued to write about his experiences.In The Innocents Abroad, Mark Twain's travels lasted five months, while Ubeydullah Efendi stayed in the United States for a couple of years.Mark Twain followed the predetermined routes of historical and cultural places established by tour companies, as opposed to Ubeydullah Efendi's spontaneous travels that were governed by possibilities and opportunities along the way.Mark Twain's and Ubeydullah Efendi's journalistic travel accounts to each other's countries cannot be separated from their cultural and ideological perspectives, which affect their comparable gazes: Twain accepted the role of a questioning tourist whose inquisitive eye searches for untold interpretations, while Ubeydullah Efendi tries to give wholesome descriptions of events and places, together with an awareness of how he is viewed as an Eastern person.Twain's narrator's peculiar humor and narrative attitude were obviously influenced by the political events of the time, and his views were tainted by his orientalist approach and its power dynamics.Despite his biases, towards the end of The Innocents Abroad he writes, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts.Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things can not be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime" (495).Ubeydullah Efendi's accounts are affected by the lapse of time between traveling and writing, which sometimes causes details to be blurred.He also seems worried about how his readers are going to respond to his travels.He remarks that traveling has expanded his knowledge and changed his perceptions.In the section that explains his aim and the outcome of his ventures, he says, "[readers] will suppose that while searching for grandness, I have actually become smaller.[…] an individual matures by becoming smaller" ("[okuyucular] benim büyüklük ararken küçüldüğüme zâhip olacaktır.[…] insan küçüldükçe büyür"; my trans; Alkan 98).Figuratively speaking, "becoming smaller" in the eyes of the readers indicates a concern with the readers' expectations as opposed to what he actually experiences.Ubeydullah Efendi is trying to underline the significance of any experience contributing to his learning process while preemptively warding off the readers' reactions.
As Berger articulates, "we only see what we look at.To look is an act of choice.As a result of this act, what we see is brought within our reach […] we are always looking at the relation between things

S. Bilge Mutluay Çetintaş
Hacettepe University, Türkiye and ourselves" (8-9).The travel narratives display the narrators' native and personal outlooks as they observe and compare sights and people they encounter.While Twain's narrative portrays Ottoman lands in a hostile or condescending manner, with negative descriptors, Ubeydullah Efendi's accounts are neither negative nor particularly positive.Twain's travel chronicles are "dominant, formulaic, rigid and fixed" (AbuHilal and Abu-Shomar 18).The citizens of Istanbul are depraved of their humanity through unpleasant markers, such as ugliness, shabby outfits, filth, and loudness.These disagreeable features are set opposite of naïve, if not positive traits of the American travelers.The Innocents Abroad treats all Arab and Islamic territories with a similar disdain, yet the Ottoman cities of the time receive the strongest denigration.On the other hand, Ubeydullah Efendi's travel accounts do not create divisions or suggest power imbalances between the viewer and the object of interest.He favors interaction and tolerance in his relationships and his depictions of unfamiliar regions and people are as neutral as possible compared to Twain's narrator's demeaning markers.The act of traveling impacts both narrators' lives and their responses to what they encounter demonstrate their differing ideological discursive formations.
Abstract: Mark Twain's (1835-1910) literary travelogue, The Innocents Abroad (1869), remarks on and/or subverts previously established interpretations of places and objects.Twain's adopted persona allows him to assume the double role of a fool and an intellectual, simultaneously, by deploying a peculiar type of humor.By openly distaining and emphasizing certain aspects of his travel experiences, Twain's narrator seems naïve on the one hand, but a savvy social critic on the other.Twain's account of Istanbul (Constantinople) streets, drinking Turkish coffee, and Turkish bath experience become farcical descriptions of the Ottoman Empire.His choice of words-such as "the rustiest old barn in heathendom"-also confirms his ideological viewpoint of Ottoman lands.
Unlike Twain, Ubeydullah Efendi (1858-1937), who travels in the opposite direction, to the United States from the Ottoman Empire, paints a positive picture of American urban life.He spends most of his time at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893, which he describes in detail.One could argue that since the Ottoman Empire was on the cusp of becoming the Turkish Republic, Ubeydullah Efendi's descriptions of his American voyage were naturally written in a progressive tone.Yet, a closer inspection reveals subtle criticism, as well as an awareness of how others viewed him as an Ottoman gentleman.Thus, his portrayals do not stem from internalized Orientalism; rather, they are the result of informed observations based on his cultural experiences.
Neither Mark Twain's nor Ubeydullah Efendi's journalistic travel accounts to each other's countries can be separated from the ideological and rhetorical dimensions of the era's travel writing.This article will focus on both narrators' approach and gaze in a comparative manner.While Twain portrays Ottoman lands in a hostile or condescending manner, with descriptors such as "filthy," On Paradoxes of Travel (and) Narratives RIAS-Vol.17, Spring-Summer, № 1/2024 "brutish," "ignorant," or "unprogressive," Ubeydullah Efendi's accounts are not so one-dimensional.Twain's peculiar humor and narrative attitude were obviously influenced by the political events of the time, and his views were tainted by his orientalist approach.Conversely, Ubeydullah Efendi's straightforward depictions and occasional humor are connected to his personality and offer a far more realistic portrayal of late nineteenth-century America.
Keywords: Mark Twain, Ubeydullah Efendi, The Innocents Abroad, Orientalism, travel writing Author's bio: Assoc.Prof. S. Bilge Mutluay Çetintaş is a faculty member of the Department of American Culture and Literature, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Türkiye.Her areas of interest include American folk music, cultural studies, literary theory and criticism, contemporary American novel, and life writing.She has published several journal and book articles on related subjects and presented papers in international conferences.She has also edited and served on editorial and advisory boards of academic journals including the departmental journal, The Journal of American Culture and Literature of Hacettepe University (1993-2001), Interactions (2005-2021), and Journal of American Studies of Turkey (2007Turkey ( , 2008Turkey ( , 2022)).Her published monograph is titled Geçmişin Öyküleri, Öykülerin Geçmişi: Çağdaş Amerikan Romanlarında Tarihin Sorgulanması (The Stories of the Past, The Past of the Stories: Questioning History in Contemporary American Novels).She received a Fulbright scholarship and conducted research on contemporary American women's life writing at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor during the academic year 2010-2011.Currently she is working on a book project on autographics by American women artists/writers.