Xenophobia Through Doors Hopes and Fears and other Concepts Attributed to The Doors of The Past

DOI: 10.5176/2301-3710_JMComm17.42

Authors: Nilüfer PEMBECİOĞLU and Nebahat AKGÜN ÇOMAK

Abstract: Doors as the gates of security seem to be very functional architectural elements of our daily life. They are the symbols of mobility and transfer of the modern times. However, the transcendental truth of the past and present force people to attribute different meanings to the doors for many centuries. The doors tend to implement hopes and fears as well as tragedies and cultivations. Out of the many doors to be touched and opened, this paper concentrates more on the virtual doors leading to the virtual corridors or the spaces rather than the parts of the buildings leading to rooms, halls or other areas. These doors represent a different simulation, a unique ownership and the passersby might not be able to get back through the same doors. These symbolic doors could be expanded starting from the images of the holy books such as Qur’an and Bible up to the ordinary texts. Doors lead the neighbors, strangers or many other visitors. The insiders are known through the doors even before the people get in. Not only their physical substances are reflected through the doors but also the social, economic, psychological clues are also provided using the mere substance of the door. Doors lead the neighbors, strangers or many other visitors. The insiders are known through the doors even before the people get in. Not only their physical substances are reflected through the doors but also the social, economic, psychological clues are also provided using the mere substance of the door. Each episode of history relies on certain formats representing believes, fears, hopes and positions in an elite way, symbolically. The paper aims to analyze the use of these symbolic doors sometimes having visible faces such as the marble doors of the hell and heaven in High Sophia in Istanbul. The paper aims to analyze the use of the concept of doors and to find out how these are positioned in today’s society. Regarding the basics of communication, it is one of the essential points when the door is knocked and opened thus the knocker could pass the border of communication to get a path through the unveiled gates. Since the door is for the visitors not for the residences, the door itself from the very beginning is a message for the newcomers. The paper aims to find out the new messages of the doors of the past.

Keywords: Doorknobs, Doors, Turkey, Intangible Heritage, Xenophobia, Hopes And Fears