Ultraviolet / S01 E04 / The «Eureka» Moment for Armenian Literature in Germany

In June 2024, Violet Grigoryan participated in the "Poetry of Neighbors" literary program held in Edenkoben, Germany. In a reflective essay, she shares insights from the event, focusing on the performance of Karen Karslyan’s poem Workphobia and exploring the broader question of how we "translate" ourselves to be understood across cultural boundaries.

Grigoryan critically examines the extent to which the desire for recognition and comprehension by a foreign audience aids or compromises the integrity of a work of art. She questions whether adapting a literary voice to fit the expectations of a specific audience ultimately enriches or diminishes the original creation. 

Furthermore, she reflects on a deeper concern: whether the persistent effort to make the culture of a small, often overlooked nation intelligible to the so-called "centers" of the world inadvertently fosters a form of self-colonization—even when, as Grigoryan asserts, in the case of Armenian literature, Armenia should be regarded not as a periphery, but as a cultural center in its own right.