Remembering Silva Kaputikyan: A Consummate Poet, A Valiant Activist

Kaputikyan launched her social activism when male chauvinism was rampant in Armenia. And referring to her courage, the poetess boasted: “There is only one manly man in Armenia and she is a woman.”

During the Soviet period, Silva Kaputikyan was credited for her continued contacts with the diaspora. She connected the diaspora with Armenia’s intellectual life, enriching both in the process. The Tekeyan Cultural Association invited the poetess to her first diasporan tour. Her visits to Lebanon and Syria were of historic proportions. Her superb rhetoric, blended with her poetry and patriotism carried the day. She was treated as a living saint. Huge crowds packed concert halls to hear her inspirational and poetic message. She reflected in her message Armenia’s cultural evolution which was at its height then.

As much as she reflected Armenia’s life in the diaspora, she also helped the reverse process. As she continued touring the Middle East, Europe and America, she began publishing her memoirs. She published two monumental volumes, The Caravans Still Marching and The Mosaic Composed of the Colors of Soul and the Map.

She used her literary talents to make those volumes extremely readable; humorous anecdotes, historic encounters and philosophical musings were used to put diasporan life in a readable and informative context.

Of course, some incidental events were interpreted through the lens of Soviet-trained intellectual perspectives, but overall, she laid out a colorful tapestry of Armenian life around the world.

Silva Kaputikyan’s adulation extended beyond her reputation as a poet; she became a national icon. Visiting her apartment in Yerevan inspired diasporan Armenians with the awe of entering a sacred shrine. And she savored that veneration with obvious delight.

When independence came to Armenia, many believed that Kaputikyan’s free spirit would welcome that historic event with open arms. But surprisingly, the opposite happened. Her idealism clashed with the opportunism of the newcomers. It was unbelievable to find the first president of independent Armenia, Levon Ter Petrosian, with solid academic credentials, treat the writers, intellectuals and artists of the country as a philistine. The intellectual elite, who had enjoyed a reverential position during the Soviet period, became the underdogs. That infuriated Kaputikyan, who took Ter Petrosian to task.

At that period, the Tekeyan Cultural Association once again had invited the poetess to tour, this time around in the US and Canada, to celebrate her 75^th birthday. A collection of her new poems was published, with this writer’s introduction, to mark the occasion. But Kaputikyan turned that literary tour into a political campaign. She used every forum in every city to criticize Ter Petrosian himself, his government and his policies. And she asked dismissively the rhetorical question: “Who the hell is this scholar of Assyrian studies who has enrolled himself as a member of the Writers’ Union, among creative writers?”

She embarrassed her hosts to no end, because they were trying to maintain friendly relations with the first president.

But the worst was yet to come with the regime of the second president, Robert Kocharyan, who she believed impoverished Armenia and encouraged its depopulation.

But her antagonism came to a boil with the massacre at the parliament on October 27, 1999.

“Any president with dignity and integrity would have resigned after this carnage,” she proclaimed and then added, “A huge abyss has been created between Armenia’s population and its ruler.”

To give a higher pitch to her anger, she returned the Mesrob Mashtots Medal, which President Kocharyan had bestowed upon her, accompanied with an abrasive poem composed for the occasion, titled, “Revolt,” in which she wrote, “I am not living any more, yet I am not dying either. My not dying will last very long, until I see the day of your judgement.” And that irony became a reality.

Now that Kocharyan is behind bars, waiting for his day in court, Kaputikyan’s poem has found new popularity and resonance.

Kaputikyan’s poetry enriched the Armenian literary canon in many ways. She was already a classic during her lifetime. Future generations will come to be inspired by her legacy of impeccable poetry. But above all, she will stand tall in Armenian history as an icon of liberty and patriotism.

Kaputikyan died in 2006 and after a state funeral, was buried in the Komitas pantheon.

From Van to Yerevan, she continues to remain as important as ever 101 years after her birth.