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Das Uhrenstellinstitut
Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü
The Time Regulation Institute
L I B R E T T O
In Turkish with English translation
“For all its historical and cultural specificity, “The Time Regulation
Institute” is before all else a first-rate comic novel, one with a fairly large
foot in the Western literary tradition called Menippean satire. Works
within the orbit of this genre stretch across the centuries, including
Aristophanes’ “The Clouds,” Erasmus’s “In Praise of Folly,” Huxley’s
“Point Counter Point” and those “Fortuna’s wheel” sections of Toole’s “A
Confederacy of Dunces.” What such otherwise dissimilar books have in
common is a delight in exposing the limits of human reason, with
particular scorn for any intellectual system that attempts to
comprehensively explain the world. Throughout history, whenever a
theory arises that seeks to encapsulate human experience — politically,
philosophically, economically, whatever — a Menippean satire emerges
to make fun of it. So too with “The Time Regulation Institute,” in which
Tanpinar creates an allegorical premise at once specific and broad
enough to effectively satirize the entire 20th century, a century of systems
if ever there was.„
- The New York Times
2019 hat er den ersten Preis im Sektion Kammermusik von der Torre
della Quarda Kompositionswettbewerb für sein Duo Neume
gewonnen.
Summary -Hayri and Halit are -Hayri can not go on -Halit brings him to The public becomes Hayri´s work is
depicted working further: a tavern where he doubtful of the Time interrupted as the
at the Institute. -“I just miss my old demonstrates his Regulation Institute religious figure
-The static scene self„ power of bringing altogether and Halit incarnates before
Halit´s full attention him and offers
reveals Hayri´s the public opinion quickly fabricates a
him the truth.
discontent with his is directed on Hayri. to his will. story to reestablish
Hayri asks for
position as well as He must convince credibiity.The unwilling only a part of it.
the hiearchy Hayri to go on. Hayri is given the task of He is therefore
between the two writing a historical study brought to the
characters. on a fabricated religious realization that he
figure. himself is to
blame for his
problems.
Place The Time Regulation The Time Regulation A crowded tavern at The Time Regulation The Time
Institute’s Institute’s night Institute’s Headquarters Regulation
Headquarters Headquarters Institute’s
Headquarters
Choir(SATB) Silent at the Silent at the backstage. -The choir crowds the Silent, either backstage or Silent, either
backstage. stage. on the stage backstage or on
the stage
4
Das Uhrenstellinstitut
Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü
The Time Regulation Institute
L I B R E T T O
In Turkish with English translation
I. Scene
[Hayri and Halit are sitting at a rather big table. Hayri has a huge pile of matchboxes in
front of him and struggles with the duty of constructing a scale model for a clock-
shaped building using them despite clearly not having any knowledge of architecture.
Halit is relaxed, patronizing, hidden in his newspaper, occasionaly paying attention to
Hayri´s work only to return to his former state in disappointment. They are singing
their lines simultaneously but do not necessarily communicate.]
Hayri:
Halit:
-Saat, zaman ve ayar fikrini binanin icinde ne And in what way did you express the essence of
suretle ifade ettiniz? timepieces, or of time and regulation, in the buildings
Bunlar herhangi bir binada yapilabilecek interior?
seylerdir. Such ornaments can be tacked onto any building.
Saat fikrinin binanin bünyesine girmesini We want the concept of a timepiece to be embodied in the
istiyoruz.
Binanin kendisinde programimizi ve gayemizi very structure of the building.
görmek istiyoruz. We want to see our programs and goals manifested in the
Hayri:
II. Scene
[Hayri slowly walks toward a standing clock on the stage and sits on the ground in
front of it]
Hayri:
Halit:
[looks directly into Hayri’s eyes]
-Hayri bey, bize nicin inanmiyorsunuz? Hayri Bey, don´t you believe in what we´re doing?
Hayri:
-Bana müsbet bir isimiz yok gibi geliyor. It´s just that we don´t seem to be engaged in
meaningful activity.
Halit:
[stands up
-Dostum isler bizden sonra dünyaya My good man, first there was man and then work.
gelmislerdir. Work was created by man to be executed by man.
Isleri onlari görecek adamlar icat eder.
Biz de bunu icat ettik. And we have created this.
Etrafimiza zaman suurunu verecegiz. We´ll give our people a consciousness of time.
Razi misiniz? Vazgeciyor musunuz? Are you up for the task or will you fold?
Hayri:
Halit:
[walks towards Hayri]
[The ongoing music stops and after a brief hesitation the ensemble starts with a
grotesque dance. Enter choir]
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III. Scene
[Halit brings Hayri to the table]
-Siz harbe girmeden maglup olmus bir You are like an army convinced of its defeat
orduya benziyorsunuz.
Sonra idealistsiniz. Realiteyi before entering the war.
görmüyorsunuz… And you fail to comprehend the reality around
you. You´re an idealist.
Hayri:
[Offended]
Halit:
-Biraz realist olsaniz bir parca, ufak bir If only you had a shred of realism in you. Just
miktarda, hersey degisirdi. only so much, a wee bit. Oh, then
everything would change.
Hayri:
-Ben öyle saniyorum ki her seyi oldugu gibi It seems to me that I am the only one who
görenlerdenim. sees things for what they truly are.
Hatta fazla realistim, rahatsiz edecek
kadar. Indeed I am too much of a realist, I´ll have
Realist olmasaydim size vakayi böyle you know- so much that it pains me.
anlatabilir miydim? Would I have told you all I have in the
Size baldizim hakkinda en ufak bir ümitle manner that I did if I weren´t a realist?
bahsettim mi?
Have I spoken to you about my sister-in-law
with any inkling of hope?
-Ah bir görseniz, yahut dinleseniz, Ah, but if you could only see her, or rather
Parmaklarini catirdata catirdata listen to her,
Kirmizi topuklu eskarpinlerinin üstünde
Sallana sallan size Gelse o suh mecliseyi Singing there right before you like a great
bir kere okusa! barrel wobbling on her crimson high heels
Daha Isfahanla Mahuru, Rastla Singing If only my love would come join this
Acemasirani birbirinden ayiramiyor. joyful scene
Kulagi yok efendim, hic yok. Sesleri
ayiramiyor. She can´t tell the difference between a
Mahur and an Isfahan, a Rast from an
Acemasiran.
She has no ear sir, none at all. She´s entirely
tone deaf.
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Halit:
-Realist olmak hic de hakikati oldugu gibi Being a realist does not mean seeing the
görmek degildir. truth for what it is.
Hakikati görmüssün ne cikar?
Hakikati oldugu gibi görmek…. To see the truth as it is… is to admit defeat.
Yeni adamin realizmi baskadir. But the realism of today´s man is something
Elimde bulunan bu mal, bu nesne ile, else.
Onun bu vasiflariyla, What can I make with the material at hand,
Ne yapabilirim?
Iste sorulacak sual! With this very object and all it has to offer?
That´s the question to ask.
[Sister-in-law sings better and masterfuly. Everyone on stage cheers and applauses]
[Instrumental Intermezzo]
Scene IV
Choir :
[The joy of the choir has given way to a doubtful discontent]
Halit:
[Thinks quickly before adressing the choir]
-Evvela büyük bir etüdümüz var. Firstly, we have quite a substantial study.
Arkadasim Hayri Bey´in A book my friend Hayri Bey has devoted most of
hemen hemen bütün ömrünü his life to.
sarf ederek yazdigi bir kitap! It is a source of great happiness to us!
Choir(including Sister-in-Law):
-Kitabinizin ismi nedir Hayri Beyefendi? What is your book called, Hayri beyefendi?
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Hayri:
-Seyh Ahmet Zamani Efendi Hazretleri`ne ait bir It´s a historical study of Sheikh Ahmet Efendi the
etüt. Timely.
Choir:
Hayri:
Halit:
-Bir Venedikli vasitasiyla devrin garpli Did you mention that he corresponded with
riyaziyecilerile mektuplastigini söylüyordunuz… Western mathematicians through a Venetian
contact?
Hayri:
-Eve ama, müsbet bir sey bulunamadi. It´s right, but nothing has been proven.
Nuruosmaniye Kütüphanesindeki kitap If only that tome hadn´t been lost by the
kaybolmasaydi. Nuruosmaniye Library.
Choir:
Hayri:
Halit:
-Zannederim ki gelecek nisana yetistirirsiniz. I imagine we´ll have it ready by this coming April.
Gelecek nisanin sekizi Ahmet Zamani Efendi This April will be the hundred and eightieth
´nin ölümünün yüz sekseninci yildönümüdr anniversary of the death of Ahmet the Timely.
de…
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Choir:
[Exit choir]
Halit:
Yasasin Saatleri Ayarlama Enstitüsü! Long live the Time Regulation Institute!
Siz kitabi ne zaman bitireceksiniz? When will the book be done?
Hayri:
-Nasil yazarim ben bu kitabi? How will I ever write such a book?
Mevcut olmayan bir adam icin.. And about a man who never even existed?
Halit:
-Nasil mevcut olmayan adam? What do you mean, a man who never existed?
Daha demin kendiniz bahsediyordunuz. You were just talking about him.
Dördüncü Mehmet yamaninda yasamis, sari Didn´t he like the color yellow?
rengi severmis. The color of the sun, as he used to say.
Günesin rengidir dermis.
Hayri:
-Iyi ama bütün bunlar manasiz seyer. Hepsi That´s all well, but all this is nothing more than
uydurma! nonsense. I made it all up!
Halit:
-Adi olan her sey mevcuttur Hayri Bey! Anything with a name exists, Hayri Bey!
Binaenaleyh Ahmet Zamani Efendi vardir, So, yes, Ahmet Efendi the Timely exists.
Biraz da ikimiz böyle istedigimiz icin vardir. He exists in part because we want him to.
Bu kitap yazilacak. You will write the book.
Yahut da gider iceriye
Istifanamenizi yazar getirirsiniz! Otherwise you will step inside
And write your letter of resignation!
[Exit Halit]
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Scene V
Hayri:
Engulfed,
-Gömülmüstüm. I had become a confabulation
Ucunu bucagini bilmedigim And the term of my sentence was indefinite;
Her gün yeni bir parcasiyla karsilastigim My life was presented to me in daily installments
Adeta tefrika halinde bir yalan olmustum. like a serial in a magazine.
Nasil yazarim ben bu kitabi?
Ya, kitap beüenilmezse? How will I ever write such a book?
Ya yalan oldugu ortaya cikarsa? What if it will be disliked?
What if it will be found out to be a lie?
Ya pir!
Fakat yalancilarin piri kimdi acaba? Oh my patron saint!
But who was the patron saint of liars?
Seyh Ahmet Zamani Efendi Hazretleri:
Sari rengi pek severmis. His Holiness Sheikh Ahmet Efendi the Timely:
Uzun boylu, Sarisin, Kumral sakalli, Siyah gözlü He loved the color yellow.
Dili genlciginde biraz peltekmis
Garip huylari varmis. He was a tall man.
Fair but with a brown beard and black eyes.
Mesela cok iyi meyve yetistirdigi halde
He had a slight lisp when he was a child
Üzümden baskasini yemezmis.
He had a number of peculiar quirks of personality.
For example, though he grew a variety of
excellent fruit,
He ate nothing but grapes.
Vaktiyle ne masum yalanlar söylermisiz! What innocent lies we told each other back then!
Eski halime hasret cekiyorum… I just miss my old self…
-Dönünüz! Hasretini cekiyorsaniz, dönünüz! Then go back to it! If you are longing for it, then
Amma dönemezsiniz. Artik dönemezsiniz, go back!
Cünkü hicbir seyden vazgecemezsiniz. But you can´t. You can´t turn back now,
Hülasa bir ahtapot gibi sayisisiz kollarla Because you aren´t willing to give anything up.
dünyaya yapismissiniz! At the end of the day, you´re an octopus, with
your eight arms wrapped around the world!
Hayri:
-Makul… makul…Hayir sizin aradiginiz baska Reasonable! Reasonable! No, you´re after
bir sey. something else.
Hayri:
-Dogru, ya bütün olur, ya hic olmaz… Truth is either whole or not there at all.
Dostum, bahsettiginiz saglam kiymetler My good friend, these unassailable truths you´re
ancak bir lokma, bir hirka yasamaya razi seeking
olan icindir. Are there for those who are content to live with nothing
Sizin gibi her seyi ve hepsini birden isteyenler but the shirt on their back and the odd piece of bread.
icin degil! They are not for someone like you, who wants it all and
Bütün ve halis sahsiyet her seyden evvel straightaway!
kendisiyle yetinmeyi icap ettirir. An individual who is pure and complete seeks first of all
to meet his own needs.
Hayri:
[Silence]