ՃԱՄՓՈՐԴՈՒԹՅՈՒՆ ԵՐԱԶԻ ՄԻՋՈՎ. ԷԼՊԻՍ ԿԵՍԱՐԱՑՅԱՆԻ "ՈԳԻՆ ՀԱՅՐԵՆԱՍԻՐՈՒԹԵԱՆ" (ԵՐԵՒԱԿԱՅՈՒԹԻՈՒՆ) ԷՍՍԵՆ

Abstract

The aim of this study is the interpretation of women’s issues in the 19th century Western Armenian literature, in particular in Elpis Kesaratsyan’s “The Spirit of Patriotism” (Imagination) essay, an Armenian female author who edited (and published in) “The Guitar” - the first Armenian language journal “about and for women” with a slogan “An Invitation for Armenian Young Women” in 1861-1863 in Constantinople. In this study (in the context of the essay) we looked at the women’s issues in the Western Armenian literature of the second half of the 19th century and the historical period (as a historical and social, moral-psychological and ideological-aesthetic unity). In this study phenomenology (semantic and typological procedure, peculiarities, role, significance and spheres of influence in socio-political life, methodology of understanding), and historical-comparative (traditional revision of values and orientations, trajectory of literary developments) methods were used. It can be councluded that Elpis Kesaratsyan's essay "The Spirit of Patriotism (Imagination) summarises the author's awareness of national identity and aesthetic references, which she connects with the historical and social, moral-psychological and legal-political issues. The present study is relevant not only in terms of systematizing the work of Elpis Kesaratsyan, but also in terms of examining women's issues in Armenology.