Modern literature

Modern Armenian literature has been created in unusual conditions. On the one hand, it is influenced by a huge literary heritage of the past, on the other hand - with new reality and modern technologies.

At the end of the 20th century, Armenia confronted earthquake, the consequences of the collapse of the USSR, war, found itself in a blockade that brought the inhabitants of the country closer to the industrial disaster situation. This in many ways influenced the literature as well. The topic of the civilization’s collapsed world was reflected both in the stories with franka and tough realism, and in works with certain magical attributes. Tabooed emotions, descriptions of life's adversities, naturalistic scenes - everything that was highly discouraged throughout the 20th century, broke out on paper at the end of the century. The topics of the unfavorable, injured individual were relevant and demanded by the society as never before.

This happened after years of Soviet standards’ domination in the literature that denied living human feelings and glorified the heroism and height of aspirations. While the literature of the 20th century demonstrated to reader the point to which he or she should strive, throwing away all personal feelings, the new literature responded to the reader's need to talk about what torments him.

For instance, in Lusine Vayachyan's novel «Bologoe», in addition to an acute plot, the theme of women's destiny is revealed. The heroine tells about her broken marriage, she says without regret, speaking specifically about woman emotions and experiences that are not accepted in society. Another novel – «Good-bye, Bird» by Aram Pachyan, narrates about a guy with a broken mentality in the army.

Mariam Petrosyan's novel «The house in which», filled with magical realism, has received international recognition. The action takes place in the boarding school, the newcomer gets into the conditions of the rules determined by the inhabitants of the «home», and learns the peculiarities of the local perception of the world and his own presence in it. The book has been translated into 8 languages and it has received many awards.

Gevorg Gilantz's strict, sometimes gloomy poetry definitely stands out. The poet responds to the fate of his people, the actual political situation, giving his experiences impressive, deep images.

The peculiarities of the pain experienced in the beginning of the twentieth year, not released in Soviet times, are reflected in the works and translations of Gohar Gharibyan (Rshtuni). In her works one can trace the unbearable sadness of the lost home in the territories that were transferred as the consequence of the Armenian Genocide in Turkey.

Now, thanks to internet technologies, the world recognizes Narine Abgaryan. She began her career on a blog where she spoke with particular warmth of stories from her childhood in Berd. She became popular after the publication of the autobiographical story «Manyunya». In the future, the author wrote a trilogy about the adventures of a little girl and several other novels and stories.