Neriman, a young student of the oud at the conservatory, lives in the traditional Fatih district with her father, Faiz Bey, a man deeply attached to Eastern culture. For seven years, she has been engaged to Şinasi, a kemençe player who reflects her father’s values. However, a chance meeting with Macit at the conservatory awakens a dormant desire in Neriman for a Western lifestyle. Envious of the glittering life in Beyoğlu and Harbiye, she begins to resent her own environment—her home, her father, her fiancé, and even her cat, which she comes to view as a symbol of the East.

The novel depicts Fatih and Harbiye not just as districts connected by a tram line, but as two incompatible worlds representing a profound cultural and mental conflict. Through this tension, Peyami Safa holds a mirror to the agonizing process of modernization in Turkish society. A prolific writer, Safa uses objects, people, and spaces to explore the clash between East and West, a theme that has kept Fatih Harbiye relevant enough to inspire modern television adaptations.