A historical analysis of two American women’s travel to Ankara during the 1950s: mutual understanding, transition and culture in Ankara

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the cultural transformations in Ankara, especially in social and educational life resulting from the increase in the mutual interest between Turkey and the United States, by mainly focusing on the two travel accounts left by two American women who visited Ankara in the 1950s. The accounts by Lucile Saunders McDonald and Elizabeth McNeill Leicester are primary instruments to track the historical touches in these areas. Both women introduced specific characteristics of Ankara with their impression of what they saw and how they perceived it. The transition of traditional society to modern one, the mutual understanding between the American and Turkish people in various areas, are paid attention to analyze these observations about Turkish culture. The changing role of women in the 1950s is also addressed as one of the significant subjects that enable the difference and change to be seen prominently in this thesis.