Nietzsche's Children: Redefining Innocence in New Turkish Cinema

This study examines the transformation of the concept of innocence in post-1990 New Turkish Cinema through a Nietzschean philosophical framework. While classical Yeşilçam cinema largely reproduced dominant moral codes by associating innocence with conformity, virtue, and social harmony—often embodied in idealized child figures—New Turkish Cinema challenges this moral paradigm. Drawing on Friedrich Nietzsche’s critique of traditional morality and his metaphorical stages of the spirit (child–camel–lion–child), the study analyzes how contemporary Turkish filmmakers reinterpret the image of the child and childhood as sites of instinct, rebellion, and value creation rather than moral purity. The article employs a qualitative, interpretive film analysis and purposive sampling to examine three representative films: Kasaba (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 1997), Çoğunluk (Seren Yüce, 2010), and Hayat Var (Reha Erdem, 2008). Through these case studies, the research investigates how child and adolescent characters function as philosophical metaphors reflecting Nietzsche’s ideas of the will to power, nihilism, and the revaluation of values. In Kasaba, the figure of the child embodies the pre-moral stage of instinctual existence, where cruelty, play, and creation coexist without moral responsibility. The behaviors of the children—often perceived as “innocent cruelty”—demonstrate Nietzsche’s notion that actions preceding moral judgment cannot be classified within conventional good–evil binaries. In contrast, Çoğunluk portrays the transition from childhood innocence to social domestication. The protagonist Mertkan represents the Nietzschean “camel,” burdened by inherited social values, nationalism, and herd morality. His inability to resist these pressures illustrates the internalization of dominant moral structures and the resulting loss of individuality. Finally, Hayat Var depicts the stage of rebellion against this imposed moral order. The protagonist Hayat embodies the Nietzschean “lion,” a figure who rejects socially imposed values and attempts to construct an autonomous identity beyond the constraints of family, culture, and institutional authority. Overall, the findings suggest that New Turkish Cinema reconfigures the child figure not as a symbol of moral purity but as a complex site where instinct, violence, resistance, and freedom intersect. By foregrounding characters who oscillate between innocence and cruelty, these films challenge the moral binaries established by earlier cinematic traditions and reflect a broader philosophical shift toward questioning dominant ethical frameworks. In this sense, the representation of childhood in contemporary Turkish cinema resonates strongly with Nietzsche’s critique of morality and his call for the creation of new values beyond conventional notions of good and evil.