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THE PROBLEM OF GENRE TRANSFORMATION – 2017-3

Summary

G. K. Shashikyan

Key words – narratology, narrator, text, intertextuality, paratextuality, metatextuality, hypertextuality, architextuality, Aghasi Ayvazyan, Objective-18.

The article analyzes the book «Objective-18» by Aghasi Ayvazyan as an interesting example of knowingly cited quotes (exact or modified, when a text or part of a text refers to or mentions another text or part of a text) from one’s own and other authors’ texts. In literary works, as well as in any type of text, the title and the epigraph have most important functions due to the place they take; they express the author’s position and guide the reader, they create an intertextual link, change the meaning of the text or give it a new meaning, serve as hints for coming events and so on. The author of the article examines the internal connections between the title, the epigraph and the text, which led to the transformation of the genre.

THE «LATE» VAZGEN SHUSHANIAN – 2017-3

Summary

Nelly A. Tadevosyan

Key words – Western and Diaspora literature, the «pagan» literarymovement, Daniel Varuzhan, VazgenShushanian, HambardzumAraqelyan, «O, Lalage», criticism, worship of beauty, romanticism.

The article presents the main concepts of the «pagan» literary movement, particularly, the positive influence of the movement leader, great Western-Armenian writer Daniel Varuzhan on French-Armenian novelist Vazgen Shushanian’s creative system. Examining V. Shushanian’s «Gentle Letters of Spring Love» and «Summer Nights» we attempt to demonstrate the deep literary relationship between the two artists, along with analyzing D. Varuzhan’s «pagan» heritage program.

KURDS AND WORLD HISTORY – 2017-3

Summary

Gevorg S. Khoudinyan

Key words – Abdullah Öcalan, defense speech, civilization, capitalism, democratic society, democratic nation, United and independent Kurdistan, Democratic confederate Kurdistan, W. Wilson’s arbitral award.

The five volumes of Abdullah Öcalan’s works that are published in Russian in Moscow in 2011-2015 are written as extensive arguments of his defense speech in the Turkish court, but in fact they are scientific and political justifications for the political claims of Kurdish people. The rich knowledge and desire to find universal solutions to national problems show that in the person of A. Öcalan, who has achieved great intellectual progress of the Kurdish people, we are dealing with a surprisingly harmonious image of the national figure.

In the first volume of his works, representing the alternation of the cradle of Near-Middle Eastern civilizations and separate civilizations that emerged from GöbekliTepe-Portasar (not far from his native Urfa), Öcalan uses the fact that the geographical coordinates of the Taurus-Zagros arc as «Fertile Crescent» base correspond to the current places of residence of the Kurds and reckons them among a number of famous peoples of the Axis time, such as Assyrians, Armenians, Greeks, Jews or Persians. Thus, he repeats the groundless attempts of some Kurdish authors who make such judgments based on the play of words with historical tribes and toponyms that are close to the word «Kurd». This he distorts the fundamental principles of F. Braudel, whom he repeatedly quoted. The Brodelian notions of historical times and the «longue durée», necessary for assessing the history of civilizations, are completely distorted.

In the second volume of A. Öcalan’s works «Capitalist civilization» an attempt was made to overcome the Marxist perception of this concept and to view capitalism as a System that was formed along with commodity-money relations, and then together with the city and the state. Thanks to this, Öcalan identifies civilization and the social system, which allows him to give some civilizational essence to the struggle against capitalism, which he believes repeats the Hitler experience of creating an indicative society through his three branches (sex, sport and show).

In the third volume of his works A. Öcalan sees the solution of the fundamental problem of building a democratic civilization in the formation of political and democratic confederations to unite nations, which, in his opinion, is the only way to overcome homogeneous nation-states that are not alien to genocides and other state crimes.

In his fourth volume entitled «The Crisis of Civilization in the Near and Middle East» A. Öcalan passes to the problems of the region where he was born and fought for the solution of the Kurdish problem. Here he tries to gently transform the fact of the correspondence of modern geographic coordinates of the Kurds settlements with the cradle of ancient civilizations and turn it into the idea of the Kurdish homeland. To do this, he again and again creates unreasonable, absolutely fictitious and unscientific parallels between Sumerians and Hurrites and the Kurds now living on this territory.

The Öcalan program on the solution of the Kurdish question is more extensively presented in the fifth volume entitled «The Kurdish Question and the Implementation of the Democratic Model of the Nation». Although Öcalan considers Armenians to be a direct and immediate heir of Urartu culture, but in his vast historical digression the concept of «Armenia» is almost absent, And from the 11th century, when the Seljuks appear, he immediately replaces Armenia with the non-existent «Kurdistan». He stubbornly avoids answering one elementary question – which state existed in these territories for two thousand years after the fall of Urartu.

In the issue of assessing the causes of the Armenian Genocide, Öcalan partially repeats the statements of Marxist historians about the «expansionist goals» of the Armenian bourgeoisie as a result of the early development of capitalism among the Armenians. He also partially repeats the thesis about the «Turkish rebuff», invented by Turkish historiography, on the Armenian demand for independent statehood on the eve of the First World War. By transforming the internationally recognized (in 1914) problem of implementing reforms in Western Armenia in «Armenian separatism», he bypasses the issue of the responsibility of the Kurds for the Armenian Genocide. Meanwhile, the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and the responsibility for it not only of Turkey as a state, but also of the Turkish and partly Kurdish people who directly and voluntarily participated in this bacchanalia, is the only way to build a democratic society in our region.

Moreover, based on the ideas of a democratic society and democratic nation (which were discussed by A.Öcalan), the greatest democrat of the first decade of the 20th century – US President Woodrow Wilson, on November 22, 1920 has already made a true fraternal division of Armenian historical lands between Armenians, Turks and Kurds and the results of his arbitral award are fixed on the corresponding map on the basis of the international mandate. According to this arbitration, Armenians do not get «Great Armenia», as the Turkish falsifiers of history say, but only a third of their historical lands.

And irrespective of whether this division comes from the San Remo conference decisions, from the Treaty of Sevres or Woodrow Wilson’s arbitration, which retained its legal force, it was the greatest victory of democracy in our region, which was only temporarily suspended by the joint efforts of the Kemalists and the Bolsheviks. These decisions of the international community have nothing to do with the neo-imperial program of the United and Independent Kurdistan or the Democratic Confederate Kurdistan, which is the cover of the first. Because the creation of the Great Kurdistan instead of Turkey is not part of the plans of world powers.

THE ISSUE OF LANDING THE ANTANTA TROOPS IN ALEXANDRETTA – 2017-3

Summary

Samvel A. Poghosyan

Key words – Alexandretta, Cilicia, Entente troops landing, Dardanelles, Gallipoli.

Immediately after the outbreak of World War I, the British authorities discussed the issue of landing the troops in Alexandretta. It was an important port in Cilicia, in the northeastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. The landing would entail the destruction of the Ottoman Empire. For this reason the Turks and Germans were worried, because Britain would need only 30,000 soldiers to organize this military action. Cilicia was populated mostly by Armenians, who were ready to help the British troops. The British Intelligence Service examined the area in detail and gave a positive conclusion on the landing. In January 1915, the British authorities decided to attack the Dardanelles by the forces of the navy and at the same time land at Alexandretta. Nobody in the British elite doubted the success of landing in Alexandretta, but some did not believe in success in the Dardanelles. However, the military operation in Alexandretta was eventually rejected by the British authorities. There were some reasons for this: the French authorities opposed this because they wanted to colonize Cilicia after the war. They were worried that if Cilicia was occupied by British troops, later they would not be able to get it back. The British recognized the rights of France in Cilicia and Syria, but at the same time they wanted to get Alexandretta. The latter was the most important port in the East of the Mediterranean Sea. Thus, Britain and France prevented each other from landing at Alexandretta. In the end, the Allies decided to land at Gallipoli, which was a great catastrophe for them. Thus, imperialism won, and the allies lost an important chance to overcome the Ottoman Empire. The refusal to land at Alexandretta and the failure in the Dardanelles gave the Turkish government a chance to organize the Armenian Genocide. This is one of the episodes of the story, when an almost real operation was revised at the last moment and this led to negative consequences.

MORALITY AS A PREREQUISITE FOR CULTURE – 2017-3

Summary

Siranush G. Hovhannisyan

Keywords – art, literature, religion, society, Human quality, Lord, Slave, spiritually-intellectual world, antimorality, amorality.

The article focuses on the type of human society and the quality of relations between members of that society, as well as morals and morality, as concepts that organize inter-human relations and culture. There are three types of morality – morality, antimorality and amorality. These three concepts are presented as prerequisites for the development of culture and the main indices of the way of becoming out of man by Man. As well as the article considers literature as a form of culture and language, as a means of forming a culture. The fact is underlined that the human creature is always in the positives of morality consciously or in the subconscious level of thinking.

ARMENIA AND KURDISTAN: NEIGHBORHOOD IN CUSTODY – 2017-3

Summary

Key words – Iraqi Kurdistan, Eastern Question, Armenian Question, Kurdish Question, Treaty of Sèvres, Alliance between Lenin and Ataturk, Khoyboun, Treaty of Saadabad, Abdullah Ocalan, Kurdistan Workers’ Party.

The geopolitical processes that began after the referendum of the Iraqi Kurdistan on September 25, 2017 come from both the current political calculations of separate states and the strategic goals of transforming the entire region. In order to neutralize the influence of the Russian «hammer» in the north of our region, the United States has already secured its presence in Georgia, therefore, while when forming the Iraqi Kurdistan, which casts doubt on the integrity of the Turkish «anvil», geopolitical pressure on the two geopolitical «locks» of our region begins. The first of these is based on the agreements signed by Lenin and Ataturk in 1920s. Relatively speaking, this is the «lock» put on the Armenian question, and the second one is the «lock» put on the Kurdish question, i. e. the Saadabad pact in 1930s. The first «lock» closes the future geopolitical changes in the vertical, and the second one – horizontally. And this means that, as in the past, so today, the fate of Armenians and Kurds intersect with each other, but this time not in the form of a head-on collision of mutual interests, but in the form of intersections of two neighboring geopolitical «prisons cells».

The program of fragmentation of the region is impossible without Armenia’s active participation. And in this case we do not pretend to the territory of «Great Armenia», as Wilson’s Armenia and the Republic of Armenia together with Artsakh and Nakhijevan make up one third of the historical lands of Armenia. On November 22, 1920, with his wise arbitration award, the President of the United States, the greatest Democrat of the time, W. Wilson clearly divided the historical territories of Armenia into three parts, so that none of the three parties – Kurds, Turks and Armenians, would be unhappy. This was the verdict of a civilized world, the implementation of which was postponed due to the formation of the alliance between Lenin and Ataturk, but not removed from the strategic agenda of the superpowers.

HISTORICAL AND DEMOGRAPHIC IMAGE OF WESTERN ARMENIA ON THE EVE OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE – 2017-2

Summary

Gegham M. Badalyan

Key words – Headmost villages, Holoyan-Petoyan, Talvorik, Khut-Brnashen, Hazo city, Khulp, Isyan princedom, Kharzan princedom, Taghi glukh, vicar church of Karmrak Surb Nshan, Aver meidan, Avekhu district, Tsaprkoru district, Gomotz district, St. John The Baptist of Amirdol, Khndrakatar Surb Astvatsatsin.

This article is devoted to the historical-geographical district of Sasun and to the town Bitlis. The district of Sasun, which occupies the most part of the southwestern province of Bitlis, has a unique place in the history of Armenia. Until the beginning of the 20th century, Sasun was the place where fragments of Armenian statehood were preserved. Semi-independent Armenian rule of Sasun was a federation of several noble families, where the dominant family was the Holo dynasty (Peto) with its branches. In Sasun an important role was also played by the Princes (Ishkhans) of Talvorik, Kajarents, Bermtsi and Asetsi. It should be noted that in some parts of Sasun (Khut-Brnashen, Kharzan or inland Sasun) in the 18-19th centuries there were mixed-national autonomous units, where, equally with the Armenians, the Yezidis and Kurds, who had penetrated into Sasun in the 15th and 16th centuries, had managerial rights. It should also be noted that members of the local Armenian council retained their high position and privileges in the west of Sasun (Koghb or Khulp) and in the southeast (Hazo-Khabiljos or Hazvan), where semi-independent Kurdish governments (hükümet) were formed. The most important role of Sasun is also visible in the preservation of the Armenian armed forces. A number of facts make it possible to assert that the military forces of the districts of Upper Sasun (Shatakh, Tsovasar, Talvorik, Psank, Ishkhandzor) reached 4-4.5 thousand as a whole in the 80-90s of the 19th century. Unfortunately, as a result of the treacherous policies of the Ottoman state power in the late 19th century, the Armenian rule of Sasun was significantly weakened and lost its positions. Nevertheless, in the 1890s, the Armenians of Sasun again assumed the role of the flagship of the struggle for freedom, rebelling against the Turkish-Kurdish dictatorship. The tragic events of 1894 and 1904 did not break the rebellious spirit of the Sasun Armenians. Moreover, despite the large losses, the overwhelming majority of the population in Sasun until 1915 was still Armenian, i. e. 55000-60000 people. Meanwhile, the population of Upper Sasun was only Armenian. The tragic year of 1915 was a year of severe trials for the heroic Sasun. The advantage of the enemy did not discourage the freedom-loving inhabitants of Sasun, who had been in battle for life and dignity for the last six months. With terrible losses, 11,000 Armenians from various provinces of Sasun were able to move to Taron in 1916, whence they moved to Eastern Armenia, where they made a great contribution to the noble cause of gaining Armenia’s independence. It should be noted that even the infernal conditions could not completely destroy these mighty people of the sacred land. And even today the Armenian highlanders live lives in some parts of Sasun.

The mountainious town of Bitlis (Baghesh) was a well-known handicraft and trade center of Western Armenians. But Bitlis was famous primarily for his spiritual and cultural centers. In the late Middle Ages, the monasteries and churches of St. John the Baptist of Amlordvo (Amirdolu), St. Astvadzedzin (the mother of God) (the monastery of Saint Thaddeus), Surb Karapet Tsaprkoru, Khndrakatar of St. Mary’s, Tatraakabnak St. Astvadzedzin (the mother of God) or the monastery Gomots, Karmrak (Karmirak) surb Nshan or St. Kirakos were known here. Turkish-Kurdish violence had serious negative consequences also for this densely populated Armenian city, where in 1915 the Armenian population was sharply reduced to 10,00011,000 (total of 30,000). Despite this, Armenians were engaged in trade and crafts in the city before 1915. The Armenian Genocide almost completely destroyed this part of the Armenians in their homeland.

This article summarizes the study of the demographic situation in 1914 in the three most important vilayets of Western Armenia – Van, Erzurum and Bitlis. It should be noted that the current study, which covers mainly the borders of Wilsonian Armenia, will be continued. We are planning, after some pause, to proceed to other vilayets in order to complete the study of the historical and demographic image of Western Armenia on the eve of the Armenian Genocide.

THE DIARY OF THE LAST YEARS OF LIFE – 2017-2

Summary

Margarita M. Khachatryan

Key words – Hamastegh, Hakob Khashmanyan, Aram Haykaz, concerns of Diaspora Armenians, faith in the future, nostalgia for the homeland, special message to the Armenians around the world.

Hamastegh is one of the prominent figures of Armenian literature in the Diaspora. His rich literary heritage after a whole century makes the reader happy with new ideas. Fortunately, the archive and most part of the books in Armenian of the writer’s library are kept in the Yeghishe Charents Museum of Literature and Art,, Thanks to that it is possible to reach a better understanding of the writer’s inner world through his letters, and to see the origin of his nostalgia that is hard to translate into other languages. Aram Haykaz and Hakob Khashmanyan were friends of Hamastegh. Hamastegh and Hakob Khashmanyan were members of ARF Dashnaktsutyun, and Aram Haykaz was an active supporter, but they skilfully avoided party political barriers, and noted with satisfaction the positive changes that took place in the Soviet Union. However, Hamastegh could not fulfill his dream and he never saw his country in the shadow of Mount Ararat, which is part of the homeland of Armenians, but he was always writing and speakng with pride about the efforts of the Armenian people to preserve and enrich their identity and culture.

In the autumn of 1966, the 70th anniversary of Hamastegh and the 70th anniversary of his literary activities were celebrated. Hamastegh participated in three jubilee events. At this time, the writer was concerned about the guests who came from Soviet Armenia to visit him. The letters will help the reader to understand the problems and disappointments of Armenians living in the United States, as well as their faith in the future of the Armenians.

THE ORGANIZATION OF MILITARY–INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX IN ARMENIA DURING THE FIRST YEARS OF THE INDEPENDENCE (1991–1993) – 2017-2

Summary

Karen H. Khachatryan

Key words – Republic of Armenia, military-industrial complex, military-industrial Commission, manufacturing, weapons, ammunition, military equipment.

During the first years of Armenia’s independence the authorities have mainly succeeded in forming a quite flexible system of management of the MIC (military–industrial complex), which contributed to the organization of military production and its development within the country. In the conditions of blockade, socio-economic crisis, war activities the MIC enterprises produced and provided the army with a large amount of weapons and ammunition, military equipment and uniform, renovated and equipped military equipment, etc., thereby greatly contributing to the glorious victory of Armenians in Artsakh war, as well as in the strong defense of newly–independent Armenia’s borders.

THE ISSUE OF OVERCOMING THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE – 2017-2

Summary

Armen.Ts. Marukyan

Key words – Overcoming of consequences of the Armenian Genocide, Road map, Republic of Armenia, Armenian Diaspora, Ottoman Empire, Turkey, Arbitral award of Woodrow Wilson, Treaty of Sevres, Treaty of Lausanne.

Recently have begun to extend opinions on allegedly impossibility of process of overcoming consequences of the Armenian Genocide because of lack of mechanisms and methods of realization of this process have begun to extend. Willy-nilly the problem becomes primitive by similar reasonings, discussion of a question is transferred to unscientific, household level, than, in fact, the idea of compensation for the Armenian Genocide depreciates. Meanwhile, if not to go into extremes and to be guided by realistic concepts, then it is quite possible to find rational solutions of this problem. On the basis of historic facts, norms and the principles of international law, and also in particular on a precedent on which compensation to the Jewish people for Holocaust consequences is still carried out, it is quite possible to develop certain tools, methods and mechanisms of realization also of compensation for Genocide to the Armenian people. In this article are offered certain methods and mechanisms of overcoming territorial, cultural and civilization, material, and also moral and psychological consequences of Genocide made concerning the Armenian people.