Paegle-Mkrtcjana
At the end of 2019, the Latvian publishing house “Jānis Roze”
published the Latvian translation of Franz Werfel’s “40 Days of Musa
Dagh” translated by Ilze Paegle-Mkrtcjana with extensive comments. In
addition to the translator’s preface, Israeli professor, genocide
scholar Prof. Yair Auron wrote a special introduction for the book,
and Dr. Vahram Shemmassian, a genocide scholar from the University of
California, Northridge, provided an afterword article.
Special recommendations for the book have also been provided by
world-renowned genocide scholars Israel W. Charny (Israel), Frank
Chock (Canada), and Ojārs Spārītis, the President of the Latvian
Academy of Sciences.
The publication and translation were initiated and implemented by the
Embassy of Armenia in Latvia and the “Jānis Roze” Latvian publishing
house, sponsored by Creative Europe program (EU), the Ministry of
Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Armenia, the
Government of Austria, Latvian-Armenian businessmen Mkhitar Mkhitaryan
and Hovik Mkrtchyan.
On April 27, the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to Lithuania
published an interview with Ilze Paegle-Mkrtcjana, who is mainly known
as the translator of works by such Japanese authors as Natsume Soseki,
Tanizaki Jun’ichiro, and Akutagawa Ryunosuke. She has translated into
Latvian also fiction and non-fiction from English, Russian and German.
She is the spouse of Tigran Mkrtchyan, Ambassador of the Republic of
Armenia to Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.
When asked by Prof. Ilva Skulte what sparked her interest in such a
mammoth project, Paegle-Mkrtčjana explained that she wanted to “deepen
the mutual understanding and respect between Latvians and Armenians”
and that “ultimately it was also a wish to repay my debt of gratitude
– to Latvia where I was born and bred and to Armenia which is my home
now.”
She went into the field of translation, she said, in order to bridge
the language and cultural divides among people. While she doesn’t
translate from Armenian, she seeks Armenian writers who write in other
languages. “There are many such authors, Narine Abgaryan and Chris
Bohjalian are just two good examples. As for the Austrian writer Franz
Werfel—his “Musa Dagh” is an absolutely classic work which often and
quite fittingly has been called his ‘Armenian epos.’ I am very
delighted and very grateful that I was given the chance to translate
it,” she said.
Paegle-Mkrtčjana explains that Werfel had very painstakingly and for a
long time studied all available literature and sources on the Armenian
community in the Ottoman Empire and especially on the Armenian
Genocide, which began but by no means ended in 1915, and incorporated
in the text of his novel lengthy quotes from eyewitnesses accounts,
letters, and other documents. “Sometimes they are quite substantial
fragments, studiously reproduced and with minimal alterations. It was
an amazing discovery which also helped to understand some other
things,” she said.
“I can say with the utmost certainty that “Musa Dagh” is one of those
historical novels which can be called almost perfect. The imagination
of the author and the known accounts of the events are ideally
balanced. So ideally that sometimes even curious things might happen.
I happened to read an article written by a retired American officer, a
military historian who certainly couldn’t be accused of pro-Armenian
bias. Well, in this article he concludes that battles and skirmishes
around Musa Dagh described in Werfel’s novel correspond quite
beautifully with official reports written by… Ottoman military men who
were involved in them in reality,” said Paegle-Mkrtčjana.
She explains that even amidst the vast number of literary works that
touch upon the theme of the Armenian Genocide, Werfel’s novel “The
Forty Days of Musa Dagh” is unique. “First of all, it was the first
major novel that focused exclusively on the Armenian Genocide.
Secondly, the novel wasn’t written by an ethnic Armenian but by an
Austrian writer of Jewish origin who was able to feel the pain of
people not his own. And, thirdly, the novel is quite unique because
its main focus is not the tragedy of victims but an episode of armed
resistance. Such episodes in 1915 were very unusual, therefore
Werfel’s choice of the subject is even more admirable,” said
Paegle-Mkrtčjana.
His choice wasn’t always well-received. Werfel, who wasn’t Armenian,
describes events he didn’t participate in, events that had happened in
faraway places he never visited. For such audacity Werfel was bitterly
reproached by a fellow writer Armin Wegner, an eyewitness of Genocide,
who like many modern writers was a staunch defender of the idea that
one may not write about things one hasn’t experienced because it is
impossible to understand them in depth. “Well, it is interesting to
note that Armenians never found any fault with Werfel’s work. Partly
because even the details in ‘Musa Dagh’ seem so authentic that even
professionals in the field of history, not to mention laymen, can
hardly find any inaccuracies. In Armenia Werfel’s novel has achieved
iconic status. It is not only testimony about Genocide but a very
reliable, believable, and very powerful testimony. As for the
German-speaking world, Werfel always has been and still remains a
highly respected classic whose work still has its own devoted
readership,” said Paegle-Mkrtčjana.
For readers in Latvia, Paegle-Mkrtčjana offered a point of reference
through the book. “I think that the readers in Latvia who have very
recently started to reflect on the historic trauma of their own
country, nation, or family shouldn’t forget that there are other
countries and other peoples that have had very similar experiences.
There are Armenians and Jews, of course, but also Russians, Ukrainians
as well as people in China, Cambodia and Rwanda… Unfortunately, this
list could go on and on because the 20th century didn’t hesitate in
providing traumatic experience to nations, groups and individuals… And
I firmly believe that we should read, think and speak about these
tragedies regardless of how difficult and emotionally taxing it is. It
could help us understand how similar we are and how similar can be our
behavior in this or that situation,” Paegle-Mkrtčjana.
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4- FDA Approves Afeyan’s Moderna for Phase 2 COVID-19 Vaccine Testing
(Associated Press)—Moderna Therapeutics’ coronavirus vaccine candidate
that started human trials in March received emergency Phase II
approval from the Food and Drug Administration, the biotechnology
company announced Thursday.
Phase II means a company can expand its clinical study and the vaccine
is given to more people, according to the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. Moderna said it will begin the next round of trials
with 600 participants shortly.
The Massachusetts-based company—co-founded by Noubar Afeyan—is one of
about 100 research groups around the world pursuing vaccines against
the coronavirus. The vaccine was developed in partnership with the
U.S. National Institutes of Health in January and began testing on
humans in March, record 42 days later.
In an interview with National Geographic, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the U.S.
government’s top expert, said the vaccine candidate showed
“impressive” results.
The vaccine uses messenger RNA, or snippets of a virus’s genetic
material, rather than a version of the virus itself.
Although no type of mRNA vaccine has been approved for use in humans,
Fauci pointed out that animal trials show that small doses of the
virus’ mRNA have generated a strong immune response. Pfizer, Inovio,
CanSino and several other pharmaceutical companies are trying similar
genetic-code approaches.
However, the hard truth: There’s no way to predict which—if
any—vaccine will work safely, or even to name a front-runner.
As Fauci put it: “You need more shots on goal for a chance at getting
a safe and effective vaccine.”
The first cautious tests in March, when small numbers of volunteers
got injections to check for side effects, have turned into larger
studies in China, the U.S. and Europe to look for hints that different
vaccine candidates really protect.
Next: Finding out for sure if any of the vaccines work in the real
world by testing large groups of people in areas where the virus is
circulating – a tricky prospect when study participants may be in
places where the virus is fading or they are told to stay home – and
finding a way to quickly distribute lots of doses of any successful
candidates.
Fauci has cautioned that even if everything goes perfectly, 12 to 18
months to develop a vaccine would set a speed record.
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5- AAMHA to Host Town Hall Meeting,
Offer Social Support Videos Amid Pandemic
During this unprecedented COVID-19 experience, many feel the need to
connect with colleagues, in order to share personal challenges, and
help address issues of concern in providing mental health services.
Therefore, the Board of The Armenian American Mental health
Association (AAMHA) will start conducting regular Townhall Meetings
over Zoom, to address a variety of issues impacting all of us.
The first Townhall Meeting will be convened on May 17, at 7 p.m. (PST)
via Zoom. The Towh Hall Meeting for Mental Health Professionals can be
found at Zoom Meeting ID: 884 9052 1767, and the Password: 339386
The AAMHA has also developed several videos, which provide emotional
and psychological support for individuals and families. They are in
English and Armenian, and were produced based on limited facilities
with no ability for editing.
Among the English-language video topics are: COVID-19: Psychological
Impact on the Family; Pain and the Older Person; Relieving Social
Isolation Among Older Adults with Dementia During Covid-19; Domestic
Violence and Isolation; and Relaxation Skills.
Among the Armenian-language video topics are: How to Maintain
Psychological Wellness During COVID-19; High Risk Domestic Violence
Cases During Covid-19; Impact of Domestic Violence on Victims; Impact
of Domestic Violence on Children and Parenting; and Psychological
Hygiene and Social Distancing: How to Avoid Monotony, Passivity, and
Ultimate Depression.
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