O Ergatis, 1908-09:|Ottomanism, national economy and modernization in the Ottoman Empire through a Greek-language newspaper of Izmir

Abstract

O Ergatis (The Worker) is a Greek-language newspaper published in Izmir from August 1908 until April 1909. It was being published by a group belonging to the Ottoman Greek bourgeoisie, with the cooperation of a Muslim, a Young Turk from Izmir. Its purported aim was to be a workers' newspaper; its programme is based on Ottomanism and national economy. As is shown in the first part of this study, Ottoman Greeks did support the strengthening and modernization of the Empire and, thus, could have cooperated with the Young Turks. However, very soon, Ergatis came into conflict with the Young Turks. Looking at this failure only through Ergatis, the second part of this study shows why the newspaper's programme could not have constituted an alternative for the organization of Ottoman society. The main argument is that this programme does not promote a deep democratization and modernization: in order for its aims to be achieved quickly and without social upheaval, it espouses a corporatist and elitist outlook. In fact, the Ottoman Greek bourgeoisie see themselves as a social élite who should lead the modernization of the Empire; in order for them to legitimize this claim, they need to draw on traditional elements, mainly religion; this impairs their whole modernization project.