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A conquest of rice: agricultural expansion, impoverishment, and malaria in Turkey

Author

Listed:
  • Kyle T. Evered

    (Michigan State University)

  • Emine Ö. Evered

    (Michigan State University)

Abstract

Serving as a parliamentarian in late-1940s Turkey, Dr. Mehmet Serif Korkut wrote of his perceptions of the gravest danger to Turkish workers and the nation: malaria. In his view as physician and politician, the greatest factor exacerbating this disease involved the rapid -though legally regulated- expansion of rice cultivation within the country. Addressing this problem through his writings, Korkut connected this commodity with conditions of unchecked agrarian capitalism and impoverishment. In such a context, he argued, rice farming caused the state to be plagued with corruption and the peasantry with malaria. Relying upon his primary texts and supported by archival research, this article presents and analyses a unique critique of agrarian capitalism from Turkey's early Cold War era. In doing so, it contributes to a broader appreciation for the diversity of sources, ideas, and linkages between histories of agriculture and public health.

Suggested Citation

  • Kyle T. Evered & Emine Ö. Evered, 2016. "A conquest of rice: agricultural expansion, impoverishment, and malaria in Turkey," Historia Agraria. Revista de Agricultura e Historia Rural, Sociedad Española de Historia Agraria, issue 68, pages 103-136, april.
    • Handle: RePEc:seh:journl:y:2016:i:68:m:april:p:103-136
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    agrarian capitalism; poverty; Public health; Turkey;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B31 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought: Individuals - - - Individuals
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
    • N35 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Asia including Middle East
    • N55 - Economic History - - Agriculture, Natural Resources, Environment and Extractive Industries - - - Asia including Middle East

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