AN ATTEMPT TO REINTERPRET THE NOVEL GENRE BASEDON THE ARMENIAN NOVEL MATERIALS

AN ATTEMPT TO REINTERPRET THE NOVEL GENRE BASED ON THE ARMENIAN NOVEL MATERIALS

Valery Piloyan

Key words: genre, plot, Yerukhan, Grigor Zohrap, H. Tumanyan, Nar-Dos

Dictionary descriptions of the novella, which note the unusual plot, acute conflict, rapid development of the action and an unexpected abrupt ending, are essentially incomplete. Today, there are three approaches to defining the genre: normative, genetic and conventional. It has been noted that “the normative approach is necessary but insufficient”, the genetic approach is a product of the concept of “genre memory”, and the conventional approach implies “the coexistence in the minds of the writer and reader of certain attitudes that allow them to perceive and accept any work of art or original text as an expression of this genre.” Other theorists approach the novella as a combination of genres and do not consider the difference between the novella and the short story to be fundamental. In this sense, let us try to add two more features to the genre definitions of the novel, related to the “organizing principles” of the short story:

  1. in fact, the novella has an “unexpected, abrupt ending”. Let us try to find the answer to this question by comparing the exposition and epilogue of the short stories by Grigor Zohrap, Yerukhan, H. Tumanyan, Nar-Dos. Here we do not face an unexpected ending, but see a psychologically predictable ending, which was hinted at in the exposition. The reader, internally agreeing with the author, pays attention to this fact only during the denouement;
  2. the novel is characterized by a double ending, when the first ending prepares and predetermines the second. The ending gives the work a new meaning. The first ending is formed by the logic of life and artistic conventionality, the second ending – by the coercion of the soul and psyche, which are derived from life. This is evidenced by such novellas as: “Zabugho”, “Magdalena”, “Afterlife Love”, “Anchor” and other works by Grigor Zohrap.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.58726/langlit-99-113

  PDF