The innocent secret of things

The Museum of Innocence, Istanbul

Authors

  • Bosse Bergstedt Høgskolen i Østfold

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5617/nm.10075

Abstract

In Istanbul, there is The Museum of Innocence created by the writer Orhan Pamuk. A unique museum based on the author’s novel of the same name. The story is about Kemal who falls in love with Füsun and who for eight years collects objects to preserve the happy moments he had with her. Objects in the museum are collected in 83 cases, as many as the chapters of the novel. This makes the museum a suitable place to explore how connections are made between humans and matter. In the article, this is done through analyses based on posthumanism and new materialist perspectives. The result of these shows how bodies and matter come into being through intra-actions and the significance that glowing moments have for these entanglements. It creates an understanding of what Kemal expresses when he says that the meaning of life is to have “happiness” in individual moments.

Author Biography

Bosse Bergstedt, Høgskolen i Østfold

Professor

Published

2023-01-08