Writing prose in Armenia is as difficult as life itself

By Hovhannes Yeranian

Yerkir/arm
19 Aug 05

On September 10 and 11 Alvard Petrossian’s play `I Am an Apricot Tree’
will be staged at Gabriel Sundukian Drama Theater in Yerevan. Despite
being involved in political and public affairs Petrossian continues to
write.

Usually poets start writing prose but in this case Alvard Petrossian
published a volume of poetry that does not look like a piece of novice
work in the world of poetry. Whatever Alvard Petrossian writes her
works go back to her childhood being identified with her
biography. This is why we started our conversation with her with her
childhood memories that have become the source of her literary work.

A.P.: When I was in the fifth grade I used to write essays that were
discussed by the board of teachers at our school. And I was writing
because I had lived a much more saturated and difficult life than my
classmates. My father was an `enemy of the people’ and a political
prisoner. I could see that I had to go through certain things that
were never happening to other children. As a family of a `people’s
enemy’ we lived in Aresh. There were repatriates from Greece and Egypt
here, children of killed soldiers, starving kids, robbers and thieves,
excellent craftsmen that were often arrested for doing private
business. All this could not but make me write. The thieves in Aresh
were always buying pencils and paints for my brother, painter Samvel
Petrossian. People treated my mother with unbelievable tenderness
since they knew thatshe was the wife of a famous prisoner. Children at
school were getting sandwiches but I never got any since I was a child
of an `enemy of the people’. But my teacher used to give me some bread
after the classes were over. I donâ=80=99t want to tell about all
these painful things but Aresh of those times is always with me and I
can never let it go.

Q: The bitter childhood is crystallized through literary expression,
it acquires meaning and is generalized. Maybe art is a way of getting
rid of this bitterness, maybe literature is a way of revenge? A: This
bitterness can either spoil a person or crystallize him. I am proud
that I was brought up in a very proper manner. Both in literature and
in life there were several criteria for me that have always been
indispensable â=80` conscience, morality, honesty. I started writing
at a very early age and my first story was published in Garun
magazine. Then I was the most frequently published author in the
press. But I did not want to hurry with publishinga book.

Q: Your generation had many difficulties with entering the world of
literature. Did you have problems with all kinds of publishing
procedures and ideological corrections? A: I did not have such
specific and serious problems as some of my fellow writers. As I said,
I was taking my time with publishing a book and this was in a way an
act of solidarity with my fellow writers whose books were kept
unpublished in for years, sometimes decades. On the other hand, I
canâ=80=99t stand protectionism. I never wanted and never allowed
anyone to treat my work with an air of condescension because the
author is a woman. I have always competed with men in my work. I
didn’t want to publish a book because therewas a generation of
rejected writers, a literary brotherhood and I was part of it. There
is a need for such a brotherhood today. The door to our house was
always open and my friends and my husband Lorents Arushian’s friends
could always stop by even late at night. We had discussions and
debates on art and literature all night.

Q: Let’s talk about the present. Your play `I Am an ApricotTree’ was
staged at Sundukian Drama Theater. What are your feelings when you see
your first play staged in the theater? A: To be honest, ,maybe you
won’t believe me, but I have never felt anything like that before. You
know that I have never lacked audience and applauses. But what you
feel when you appear on the stage as the author of the play, it’ s an
incredible feeling. When I looked at the audience from the stage I
felt like a child. Now I want to have another premiere performance
just so thatI can appear on the stage once again. My soul was filled
with a strange feeling that I had never experienced before.

Q: Summing up our conversation let’s speak about your last poetry
book. What does this transition from prose to poetry mean? A: There
comes a moment when you turn out to know much more than you can
express in writing. It is very difficult to express beautiful and deep
meaning in a short story, in Armenia it is as difficult as life. I was
too tired for writing a novel, I didn’t have time and strength for
that and I was in a depression. And I started writing poetry. I have
to say I was always ashamed of writing poetry. But I collected my
poems, I don’t know what came out of it – you are the ones to read and
judge.

P.S. – Alvard Petrossian has always surprised and sometimes made me
angry, poet Davit Hovhannes says. I am surprised and angry that
whatever Alvard does she succeeds in it. And I am filled with
masculine anger – why should a woman write so well and not a man?