Halid Ziya Uşaklıgil

Halid Ziya, considered a grand master of the Turkish novel, left an indelible mark on modern Turkish literature with his novels and short stories, even as he penned works beyond poetry throughout his sixty-year career. His early novels were influenced by French realism and naturalism, but he later shifted his focus. Ziya adopted a new approach in his novels, emphasizing the artistic analysis of characters' inner lives over plot-driven narratives, viewing the novel as a form for exploring the human psyche. He is also recognized as one of the first true representatives of the short story genre in Turkish literature, with his stories being more natural and localized than his novels. Beyond his fiction, his memoirs stand as his most significant contributions, marking him as one of the most prolific memoirists in Turkish literary history.