Hamazkayin Lebanon’s Central Executives organized an event on Sunday, October 11, 2015 at the Hamazkayin Levon Shant centre’s “K. and H. Armenian” hall. . The evening entailed a discussion regarding the portrayal of Lebanese- Armenian and Turkish-Armenian reality in our literature. The panellists were Norvan Archbishop Zakarian, Krikor Beledian, Haroutioun Kurkdjian and Sevan Deyrmedjian.
The opening remarks were given by Shaghig Mgrditchian. She remarked by using Krikor Beledian’s books as reference that how much our environment impacts our creative output, and the influence our surroundings have on literature and to what point does it show in writings.
Norvan Archbishop Zakarian was the first panellist. He started by taking a glance at the year 1975 when Lebanon was in civil war, and Krikor Beledian, who was living in Paris at the time, influenced by those events wrote Topography for a City Being Destroyed (Տեղագրութիւն քանդուող քաղաքի մը համար). Archbishop Zakarian stated that this is a work of grand esteem and quality by Beledian that shows the author’s wit and mastermind. He read a passage from the book that represented Beirut’s reality. He pointed out that Beledian’s creative genius and abilities are prominent in his work, because for a brief moment, readers believe that Beledian was himself in Beirut writing this work, yet in reality he was miles away in Paris.
Summing up his thoughts, Archbishop Zakarian said that Beledian has represented the Lebanese-Armenian community’s reality through his literary work.
Following Archbishop Zakarian, Roubina Mgrditchian read from the book “Sermer” and presented a brief analysis.
