Poetry
Գիրք ճանապարհի
Not translated into English
Yeghishe Charents · 1933
Opening lines
Արեգա՛կ, օվկիան զորության,
Րոպե առ րոպե քո հրով
Փայփայի՛ր, տուր զորություն
Էակին այս երգի ու սիրո.
Sun, ocean of might,
Minute by minute, with your fire
Caress, give strength
To the being of this song and love.
Translation by Erostrate
Text quoted from hy.wikisource.org
Synopsis
The poet's last collection unrolls, part after part, a panorama of Armenian history, from the origins to the Soviet period, in verse and even in a dramatic interlude in which an actor accuses the director of his theatre of having falsified the writings of the founder. Among its pieces is “Message”, an apparent hymn to power whose initial letters form another sentence: O Armenian people, your only salvation is in your united strength.
Context
The book was printed in 1933, but the authorities blocked its distribution; it came out only in 1934, after the author had withdrawn several pieces that had been challenged. It was read as treating subjects that had become taboo since the twenties, and the acrostic of “Message”, at first unnoticed by the censors, was held against its author, who was accused of nationalism. His books were subsequently removed from libraries and bookshops.
Who it is for
A large collection, which assumes knowledge of the country's past, its kingdoms and its catastrophes, and of the climate of the thirties in the Soviet Union.
Prizes and reception
The poet's most important collection, whose sole acrostic has become one of the most famous texts of Armenian literature.