... VE BUNUN GIBI TEDBIRE SIYASET DIRLER. Notes on the Definition of Tursun Bey's Notion of Politics

At the beginning of a text written by him on the history of the conquests of his time, Tursun Bey, who lived during the reigns of Fatih and Beyazit II, gives a definition of politics. His definition originated from the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. Tursun Bey emphasizes that human beings are naturally political. Besides, he asserts that again due to the characteristics of the human nature, a disorderly life would have emerged if they had been led to manage themselves. Thus, politics is the act of making human beings live under a certain authority in a peaceful way. He mentions about the virtues to be possessed by the members of the society, especially by the owners of authority, which he thinks are necessary to constitute such an order.