The Concept of "Justice" in Fuzuli's Linguistic Worldview

Abstract Every nation holds certain views about the world. These views of the people uniquely manifest themselves in their language. In this historically developed process, reality is conceptualized in a particular way. Language plays the leading and carrying role in this process. Humans express their knowledge of the external and internal worlds through language, which preserves and transmits this information in linguistic material. The relationship between language and consciousness can help clarify many issues related to language and culture. Language is both the carrier and transmitter of culture, as well as an inseparable part of it. The expression of national mentality through the national language leads to the reflection of national-cultural characteristics in the language. This process results from the mutual and harmonious effort of language and consciousness. Memory, habits, and individual subjective characteristics also play roles in this process. Each linguistic unit can reflect both universal and national-cultural features. From this perspective, concepts are important components that reflect this language-consciousness relationship. The period in which Muhammad Fuzuli lived coincides with numerous changes of power in Baghdad. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Baghdad was alternately under the dominion of the Akkoyunlu, Safavids, and Ottomans. The inhabitants of the city, caught between these powers, faced harsh living conditions. Fuzuli wrote and created under these circumstances. Through the pen of a poet, he conveyed the hardships of his era and the injustices in society. Whenever necessary, the poet raised his voice in protest and refused to tolerate social inequality and injustice. The theme of social justice in Fuzuli’s works also manifests itself in forms such as injustice and complaints about the era. Although complaints about fate and the age are among the most frequently used motifs in Divan literature, in Fuzuli’s works, such complaints appear both as formal signs and literary techniques, and also authentically express dissatisfaction with fate, time, people, and society at large. The concept of “justice” in the poet’s works carries various semantic nuances. Here, attention is drawn to the traditional usage patterns of the word. The main factors influencing the word’s usage and similarities in tradition are the shared Turkish and Muslim cultures as well as the general tradition of poetry and literature. Despite the traditional use of the “justice” concept, the semantic features employed by the poet are unique. His goal was to capture the expression of the underlying meaning, and through the use of the “justice” concept, he demonstrated his poetic skill. In this article, we aim to answer questions such as how social, educational, and social justice issues are reflected in Fuzuli’s works, their place and role in his works, and their effects on the formation of Fuzuli’s linguistic worldview. Additionally, the article defines the role and meaning of the word “justice” in Fuzuli’s literary works.