Felâtun Bey and Râkim Efendi

by Ahmet Mithat Efendi

  Although his nanny didn’t understand the type of illness these arrangements addressed, Râkım did. He saw the doctor on his way with gratitude and told his nanny to carry out the aforementioned procedures meticulously. Do you think poor Fedayi needed any urging to provide care for such a poor girl? Initially Janan had entered the house to ease Fedayi’s workload but now the tables had turned and Fedayi was willing to give up her own comfort to assist the girl. When Arabs are good, they are really good.

  While Janan is receiving her treatment and education, let us turn to another part of our story:

  Râkım had agreed to devote Fridays to tutoring the two daughters of the English family in Asmalımescit. So, on the first Friday, he left his house to go there early in the afternoon.

  Since one of the main characters in our story is from this family, we need to provide some more information about them. We mentioned earlier that this English family was aristocratic. Indeed, they were. They were aristocrats, but not members of the nobility like barons or dukes. After accumulating five hundred thousand British liras in a paper trading business, the Englishman quit commercial life and came to Istanbul to spend the rest of his life in comfort. In fact, since he didn’t have any sons and his family comprised a wife and two daughters, he calculated that given his fortune, many men would want to marry his girls and thought his wife would also live happily in this way. Now no business, no idea, no thought could prevent this Englishman from pursuing a life of comfort.

  The name he inherited from his ancestors was Ziklas, and naturally his wife was referred to as Mrs. Ziklas. Although his girls could also be called Miss Ziklas, within the household the elder one was called Jan, and the younger one, Margaret. This family hailed from Canterbury. The town’s proximity to France, together with their trade business, led them to develop social relations with the French. That’s why every member of the family could speak French very well. Râkım was confident that he’d be able to teach the girls successfully; after all, he too was fluent in French.

  You know how they say, “two sides of the same coin?” Well, Jan and Margaret were a perfect example of this. Both were tall and delicate like saplings but also had really rosy cheeks, deep blue eyes, and whitish flaxen hair. That’s just how English girls are!

  One might assume from our description that looking at their faces wouldn’t set one’s heart aflutter. Don’t rush to judgment. Every girl has her own unique beauty and, as we well know, can skillfully employ it to pierce the hearts of her admirers.

  Râkım wrote the letters of the Turkish alphabet “ا (aleph) ب (be) پ (pe) ت (te) ث (se) ج (jim) چ (chim) ح (he) خ (khe) د (dal) ذ (zal) ر (re) ز (ze) ژ (zhe),” et cetera, with a thick pen on a piece of good quality English paper, and taught them to spell their names. He asked them to memorize these letters in a week and took his leave.

  Oh, esteemed writer! Is that really all that happened? Didn’t they talk about anything? Not even with their father or mother?

  No! That was it for that day. Concerned about his nanny and Janan, he made his way rapidly by way of Kumbaracı Yokuşu Street down to Tophane, and as he had enough money, took a coach to his house in Salıpazarı.

  Well, well! Doesn’t he travel by foot anymore?

  No, no, you misunderstand! Let me explain: The family gave him an extra lira to permit him to come and go by coach. Since God, in His graciousness, bestowed this extra income specifically for this purpose, Râkım Efendi felt obliged to travel to and from Beyoğlu by coach in appreciation of this blessing. It even troubled him not to ride on a coach in the morning. You see, this was the kind of contract Râkım had with God. It was quite remarkable.

  His nanny usually welcomed him when he returned home, but on that night Janan greeted him at the door. Râkım sensed Janan’s demeanor changing every day. Thanks to his nanny’s care and devotion, Janan was always neat, and her color was improving. Nevertheless, Râkım couldn’t understand why his nanny hadn’t greeted him at the front door, and felt compelled to ask:

  RKIM: My dear Nanny, I am used to seeing your face every night when I come home. I see that this custom changed tonight.

  FEDAYI: My dear son, my master! What is the point in seeing my black face as soon as you come home, now that God has given us a beautiful white female slave?

  RKIM (throwing his arms around her and kissing her affectionately): No, my dear Nanny, no! Your face is as sweet as a mother’s face to me. If a houri came down from heaven, she would not be more beautiful than you are to me. I want to see your blessed face every night. If not, I swear you’ll force me to banish Janan from here. Besides, don’t make her do this. She is just a child. She might get ideas. As for myself, I don’t have any such intentions.

  FEDAYI: Ah, my dear Sir, but why not?

  RKIM: I told you already! If you love me like your child, then you will honor my wishes.

  After having this talk with his nanny, Râkım called Janan over and showed her the Turkish alphabet, thinking, “I started teaching the English girls today! Let’s see how this Circassian girl does. Will she learn faster than them?” Just imagine the joy she felt! Indeed, since the Circassian was very eager to learn to read, there couldn’t be a better way to display his fondness for her.

  It became clear from the first week that Janan was going to do better than the English girls. After all, Râkım spent every evening teaching Janan and although she learned quickly, she often urged him to repeat the lessons.

  At the same time, Râkım had been teaching the English girls for a month now and managed to teach them not only the alphabet but also the different forms of the letters and how to use them in a word. That is, which shapes the Turkish letters take when they appear at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end of a word. He also taught them the vowel markers, and started having them write words like papa, pen, desk, and ear. However, they didn’t compare to Janan. In addition to being able to write four- and five-syllable words within a month, she was able to combine them with the pronouns, My, your, his, her, its, our, your, their.

  This shows that Râkım was progressing along the path he had chosen for himself as a teacher. Yes, that’s right, indeed he was.

  Who do you suppose Râkım ran across one Friday as he was on his way to Mr. Ziklas’s house as usual? What if I said Felâtun Bey! Yes, that’s exactly right. Upon entering the house, Râkım found Felâtun Bey quizzing the girls in his own fashion. When Felâtun Bey saw Râkım Efendi, he smiled and spoke in French, so that the English could understand:

  FELTUN (surprised): Look who’s here! So it is you who is teaching these ladies?

  RKIM (uneasily): Yes Sir, it’s me!

  MR. ZIKLAS: Oh! So this means that you know one another?

  FELTUN (calmly): Yes! I am very fond of this fellow, and I assume our feelings are mutual.

  RKIM: Is there any man in this world that I don’t like? I try my best to be on good terms with everyone, and I like everyone.

  FELTUN (to Râkım): I met Mr. and Mrs. Ziklas two months ago. You have been coming to this house for over a month now but somehow we haven’t run into each other.

  RKIM: It was destined to be today then, Sir.

  FELTUN: It was my father who introduced me to the family. He had the honor of knowing them before I did. Later, he brought me along and introduced me to Mr. and Mrs. Ziklas and their daughters.

  MRS. ZIKLAS: Indeed! We don’t know how to thank his excellency your father for his kindness.

  FELTUN (adding humility to his calm demeanor): Not at all, Sir. It’s your kindness.

  After some casual conversation, Râkım said,

  RKIM: Dear Sir, would you excuse us? Shall we get started with the lesson?

  FELTUN (with that blessed smile still on his face): By all means! In fact, I was quizzing the ladies just now.

  RKIM: Well, did you find their Turkish improving?

  FELTUN (still with that blessed smile): Who am I to comment on the intelligence and comprehension of these ladies? Yet, my
friend, I see certain things in these lessons that I can’t quite make sense of. Do we have these “پ (pe), چ (che) and ژ (zhe)” letters in the alphabet? When we were in school, we learned the alphabet as, “ا (aleph) ب (be) ت (te) ث (se) ج (jim) چ (chem) ح (he) خ (khe) د (dal) ذ (zal) ر (re) ز (ze).” I don’t seem to remember those three letters? What are they?

  JAN: Yes, dear teacher! This is what Felâtun Bey said. We’re confused.

  RKIM: No, no, far from it! There’s nothing to be confused about here. Felâtun Bey knows this perfectly well but must have forgotten. You’re right, this is how we learned the alphabet in school. However, the alphabet we learned is only for Arabic. Turkish requires three more letters. Otherwise how would we write pasha, chavoosh, or mozhdeh? Surely we need those letters?

  It seems that when Felâtun Bey initially saw these letters and didn’t recognize them, he tried to appear like Plato in front of the English family. He insinuated that the tutor the family had hired didn’t really know Turkish properly and that if the family employed such people, the girls wouldn’t learn anything. He underestimated and mocked the tutor even though he didn’t know who he was. When he heard Râkım’s explanation, he blushed deeply:

  FELTUN: Oh, yes! You’re right. I got it.

  MR. ZIKLAS: I agree with Râkım Efendi. We have a little book to help us with Turkish, and it also has those letters.

  FELTUN: I remember them now, too, Sir. I have another question but would like to request the esteemed instructor’s permission to ask it.

  RKIM: Not at all, Sir! We are just trying to help these ladies. How wonderful if we could get some of your valuable suggestions.

  FELTUN: Of course, Sir! Although we know the letter “ب (be),” we have not seen so many different forms of it! What I mean to say is, Sir, it would be better if these ladies’ minds were not confused with such useless jumble.

  MARGARET: But if we didn’t learn these other forms, how could we possibly connect them to each other? The little Turkish instruction booklet my father mentioned is right here. Our instructor’s lessons are consistent with the book and even better!

  Margaret reached for the booklet to point out the forms of the letters in question but Râkım preempted her by taking up a pen and explaining, “Sir! Let’s say we’re writing a name, like Mustafa, in cursive. We don’t write each letter separately. We connect them. Remember that letters take different forms depending on whether they come at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of a word.” As soon as he pointed this out, Felâtun Bey realized his mistake and his embarrassment intensified.

  Come on now! How is it possible that Felâtun didn’t know the alphabet?

  Well, it wasn’t that he didn’t know but there are some men who don’t know how they learned the things they know. Especially in our country, most people who know don’t know how they learned. Felâtun Bey was one of those people. He didn’t know how he learned what he knew. Why does this surprise you? We even knew a clerk with beautiful handwriting who connected every letter when composing formal ministry documents. And yet he wasn’t able to explain the rules of his own handwriting!

  Due to his intense embarrassment, Felâtun Bey didn’t want to stay any longer and soon made his departure. After he left, Râkım didn’t utter a word concerning what Felâtun Bey knew or didn’t know and got on with doing his job. In the afternoon, when he was about to take his leave, he said to the family, “Really, meeting once a week isn’t enough for these ladies and besides I consider your payment to be too much in return for my service. With your permission, I’d like to come and tutor them twice a week.” They quickly accepted his request.

  Do you wonder how close Râkım Efendi became with the Ziklas household in the matter of a month? So close that the family no longer saw him as only a teacher. They respected him so much that they considered him a family friend and an honorable, well-mannered, modest, wise, and mature individual.

  That night, Râkım returned home a bit early and encountered something extraordinary at the house. Janan wasn’t there.

  RKIM: Nanny! Where is Janan?

  FEDAYI: She is here, Sir.

  RKIM: Here, where? Our house is made up of three rooms and an anteroom. I looked everywhere but she is nowhere to be found!

  FEDAYI (sharply): She’s here, Sir. She should be back soon.

  RKIM: Now come on, wherever she is, tell me. If she is somewhere unmentionable, still tell me. Do you want me to think that you are engaging in some secret business?

  FEDAYI: To tell the truth, we decided to do something without your knowledge, but I fear that we’ve made a mistake.

  RKIM (anxiously): What’s going on, my dear?

  FEDAYI: Nothing. Our neighbor, —— Bey hired a piano teacher to provide piano lessons for his female slaves. We felt eager to do the same. We feared that if we told you, you might not have allowed it.

  RKIM (a bit angry): True, my dear Nanny! Of course I wouldn’t! And I still don’t! If Janan wants to learn to play the piano, God, who hasn’t turned down any of our wishes, would also make this happen. Should I tell you what I really think? I don’t consent to Janan leaving the house without you accompanying her. As long as you are with her, take her wherever you want. This is a strange world. And it would be a shame if we squandered the good manners we’ve taught her.

  Poor Râkım uttered these words so earnestly that Fedayi couldn’t help but understand his point. Janan returned home half an hour later. When she found her master home, she approached him shaking fearfully. Râkım realized that if he were to say something harsh, she might faint. Accordingly,

  RKIM: Come here, Janan. Come, don’t be scared my dear. Now, I warned my nanny. From now on whenever you want to go somewhere, you are allowed to go with her. However, I don’t give you permission to leave without her. Are you eager to play the piano, sweetheart? I will buy you a piano and hire a female teacher for you as well.

  The poor little girl was expecting her master to scold her but was offered a piano instead. She felt like hugging her master out of happiness and wanted to thank him. Yet, she couldn’t manage to find the right words in Turkish.

  After this conversation, the desire to obtain a piano and find a piano teacher was at the forefront of Râkım’s mind. Every evening, whenever he looked at her face, he’d think that she was asking, “What about your promise?” At the time, his income, which was about twenty-five or thirty liras, wasn’t enough to pay for a piano, but he could easily borrow some money. The real difficulty would be paying for an instructor who would cost four or five liras a month.

  One day Râkım was at one of his French friends, Mathieu Ancel’s house, in Beyoğlu. A few ladies were playing the piano in the living room, including Mathieu’s wife and sister. Like everyone else, this family liked Râkım and took pleasure in his company. In fact, upon Râkım’s indirect request, a beautiful brunette lady situated herself in front of the piano and played some traditional alaturka songs like “The falling tress of hair,” and “In your beauty.” Those present thought these songs would please Râkım, and so were puzzled to see him sorrowful. They even inquired why he looked so sad. Although Râkım tried to brush it off by saying, “You know how silly I get sometimes,” some thought that Râkım was burning with love, and others interpreted it differently. So Râkım had to explain, “No, no ladies and gentlemen! My heart is very sensitive. Yet it’s not chained to anyone; it’s completely free. It’s something else. I have a slave who wishes to learn to play the piano. I heard that she was taking some piano lessons from a lady along with other female slaves. But she is very inexperienced and doesn’t know much about the outside world, so I didn’t let her continue for I was concerned about letting such a girl go there by herself. I promised to buy a piano for her, and now I am reminded of that . . .” As he was saying this, the brunette lady in front of the piano rose from her seat, “Yes, dear Sir! You took my most talented student from me. I can’t teach anything to the other hussies! It’s been five weeks since you pro
hibited her from taking lessons. She would have improved a lot more by now.” Râkım was surprised at the coincidence:

  RKIM: Oh, so you were her teacher, Madame?

  BRUNETTE LADY: Yes, Sir, I had that honor.

  RKIM: Don’t mention it! But . . .

  BRUNETTE LADY: You’re excused if you prohibited her in order to protect her morals, for her fellow students are very naughty indeed.

  MATHIEU: All right, but what we do now?

  RKIM: To be honest Sir, the solution is to ask this lady to teach my girl, but . . .

  MATHIEU: Yes, and that’s the problem. Râkım can’t afford a teacher who costs one lira.

  BRUNETTE LADY: I wouldn’t go to Râkım Efendi’s house for a mere lira! I would go for something more substantial.

  EVERYBODY: And what would that be?

  BRUNETTE LADY: Something really big, Sir, huge! Râkım Efendi’s friendship! If he pays me with his friendship, I can go to instruct his slave every week after I leave —— Bey’s house.