The wounds of Armenia in the 21st century in the perception of young Russian-speaking prose writers (“Dismantling” by Arena Vanyan, “Where” by Kolya Stepanyan)

The article addresses the pressing issue of the development of modern Russian-language prose in a cross-cultural space and focuses on the works of young Armenian authors dedicated to the dramatic events in the lives of our contemporaries and former compatriots in the new period of history – the post-Soviet era. The two debut texts analyzed in the article are the novel "Dismantling" by Aren Vanyan and the story "Where" by Koli Stepanyan, which reflect the historical upheavals of recent years and the fates of their participants in the forms of family saga with a multilayered narrative and a compact travelogue. The works of young authors provide insight into how our neighbors constructed and experienced their independence and how they are rebuilding their lives now, their worldview and life priorities as young contemporaries, as well as demonstrate the genre and stylistic range of Russian-language Armenian prose. The article employs principles of hermeneutics, historical-comparative methods, and intertextual and intermedial analysis in the examination and comparison of the works. The novelty of the conducted research is associated with the introduction into academic discourse of new Russian-language texts created by authors from a generation born after the collapse of the Soviet Union, who thoughtfully engage with historical experience, their place in the coordinates of a changing world, their personal, national, and civic identity, and, of course, their creative principles. The article analyzes the intense search by young writers for artistic forms and language capable of organically capturing the dramatic collisions of recent history and the internal problems of contemporary individuals; it explores the literary and cultural traditions that have influenced the debut authors in one way or another; it touches upon the intertextual aspects of the works, reflecting on their genre nature. The article includes excerpts from an interview with one of the writers, which he gave to the authors of this research (the interview is being prepared for publication).