In the past two classes, we have been learning about janissaries. Janissaries made up the army of the Ottoman Empire, and they were mostly Christian. The members of the janissaries were chosen through the process of the devshirme, or "boy tax." The devshirme occurred every seven years, and it was when the Ottoman Empire would come to a village priest and ask him for the names of all the boys in town between the ages of seven and seventeen. These boys could not be taken if they were the only son, or if their mother was a widow. These young boys would be traine for another seven years before they joined a troop. Janissaries could retire at the age of forty five and only then could they get married. When a janissary died, the wealth that he accumulated would go back to the Sultan. Every boy who became a janissary was converted to Islam, but if you were born a Muslim, you could not become a janissary.
There are many connections between what we are covering in class and what I have read so far in The Red Apple, by Jonathan Levitan. The book is about a young boy who is taken from his mother to become a janissary. The interesting thing about the book though is that even though the boy, Ibrahim, is the only son of a widowed woman, the Ottomans still take him to become a janissary even though that is not allowed. The novel gives a very detailed description about the life of a janissary and the hardships they face. There were two scenes that I found difficult to read in the pages that I have read so far. They were the scene when Ibrahim had to say goodbye to his mother and when he was circumcised. Although these scenes were difficult to get through, it made the novel seem more realistic, and it really put into perspective what these young janissaries had to endure.
As we continue learning in this class, I expect to make more connections between my class notes and The Red Apple.
There are many connections between what we are covering in class and what I have read so far in The Red Apple, by Jonathan Levitan. The book is about a young boy who is taken from his mother to become a janissary. The interesting thing about the book though is that even though the boy, Ibrahim, is the only son of a widowed woman, the Ottomans still take him to become a janissary even though that is not allowed. The novel gives a very detailed description about the life of a janissary and the hardships they face. There were two scenes that I found difficult to read in the pages that I have read so far. They were the scene when Ibrahim had to say goodbye to his mother and when he was circumcised. Although these scenes were difficult to get through, it made the novel seem more realistic, and it really put into perspective what these young janissaries had to endure.
As we continue learning in this class, I expect to make more connections between my class notes and The Red Apple.
I completely agree. Those parts were really hard to read. It was a great book though and reallt broaden my mind to the lives of people from the past (even though it's fiction). I also found interesting that they do not take boys who are Muslim but make them convert once they are chosen to be Janissaries. I liked this book alot. Metcalf picks really interesting books.
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