With the proclamation of the Republic, Turkish theatre entered a period of rapid development. Murathan Mungan contributed to Turkish theatre as a dramaturge within a Western-influenced tradition and, drawing both on his academic mastery of modern theatre and his close familiarity with the people and culture of the region, wrote the Mesopotamia Trilogy. The common elements observed in these plays are examined through the concepts of tradition (custom) and curse. The functions served by cursing in the plays and the consequences it produces are identified. Within the texts, cursing is observed to function as a means of prohibition and of controlling human behavior. In the first play, Mahmud ile Yezida, cursing operates as a mechanism of control within sectarian conflict; in the second play, Taziye, it functions almost as the central pillar sustaining the blood feud; and in the final play, Geyikler ve Lanetler, the entire narrative is nearly constructed around cursing, with the dimensions of fear generated by the curse expanded within a fairy-tale-like atmosphere. This study examines instances of cursing in these plays.
Keywords: Murathan Mungan, curse, cursing, Mesopotamia Trilogy, theatre