«Հայը» - Դերենիկ ԴԵՄԻՐՃՅԱՆ

Derenik Demirchyan's article "Armenian" is devoted to the analysis of an essay by the outstanding Armenian writer, author of the novel "Vardananq," first published on August 2, 1920, and rarely reprinted since then — mainly in the Armenian press of the Diaspora (Spyurk). This publication presents the reader with the Armenian original of the text together with its complete translation into Russian and English.

Introduction and Context of the Publication
The author of the article emphasizes the exceptional status of the essay as a rare and little-known monument of early 20th-century Armenian publicist thought, created at a pivotal historical moment for the Armenian people — shortly after the genocide and in the midst of the struggle for statehood. The significance of the text lies in its attempt to give a holistic, paradoxical portrait of the Armenian national character through a series of antitheses and contradictions.

Key Thesis
Demirchyan constructs the image of the Armenian as a fundamentally elusive, "deceptive" essence that escapes unambiguous definition. The main idea of the essay is expressed through a series of contrasting sketches:

• The Armenian-tradesman, stingy in everyday life, yet capable of giving away his entire fortune to society;
• The Armenian-laborer, exhausting himself with work, yet turning into a lazy servant or a homeless beggar in exile;
• The Armenian — builder of magnificent monasteries and khachkars, while remaining indifferent to formal religiosity;
• The Armenian — a commoner who rejects ranks and ceremonies, yet capable of heroic self-sacrifice at a moment of extreme danger.

Thematic Lines
Particular attention in the essay is given to:

– the political inconsistency of the Armenian, his tendency to fight "on three fronts" and his orientation toward an absent force;
– his ability to provoke hatred where other peoples might earn love;
– his rare readiness for forgiveness even after the greatest historical tragedies;
– a deep, hidden grievance comparable to a samurai's honor, ready to turn vengeance upon himself.

Central Image and Conclusion
The culmination of the essay is the metaphor of a captive eagle brought down from the high mountains — an image symbolizing the loss of freedom as the sole true condition of a people's existence. Through this image, Demirchyan formulates his key conclusion: the Armenian prefers suffering to the freedom of slavery and to the happiness of submission, placing Freedom above life itself. It is precisely in this paradoxical unity of contradictions, grievance, and greatness that the author perceives the true essence of the national character — inaccessible to rational explanation, yet comprehensible through compassion and historical memory.