Reflections In My Mind

[Anonymouse]

Why do I have to remember the Genocide? What is particularly important about it? What is it that I must remember? What is it that I have to look for? What it is that I must pass on? What do I have to do? Why do I have to do all this? Can I disattach myself from the Genocide? How can I imagine myself without the Genocide? Would I be here where I am today were it not for it? Can I talk of Genocide without the Genocide? What is it about the absurd past that is connected to my concrete present? And what or how does this fuse into the undetermined future?

[violette829]

Why do I have to remember the Genocide? What is particularly important about it? What is it that I must remember? What is it that I have to look for? What it is that I must pass on? What do I have to do? Why do I have to do all this? Can I disattach myself from the Genocide? How can I imagine myself without the Genocide? Would I be here where I am today were it not for it? Can I talk of Genocide without the Genocide? What is it about the absurd past that is connected to my concrete present? And what or how does this fuse into the undetermined future?

Because it's your duty as an Armenian, living in a country of non believers and cynics.

[Anonymouse]

Because it's your duty as an Armenian, living in a country of non believers and cynics.

But why is it my duty as an Armenian? Who made it my duty? Did the Armenian government make it my duty? Did nationalism make it my duty? Or did the plight of my great grandfathers make it my duty? Did someone decide for me? Or did I get to decide it? What is it that I am supposed to remember? What is it that I am supposed to tell? What is it that I am supposed to represent?

[ckBejug]

I think it's more than a sense of duty as an Armenian. While duty sure plays a part in it, it's more than just that. Basically we're spent far too long using the Genocide as an identifying marker. I think that being Armenian entails far more than being a people whose ancestors went through this hell on earth called Genocide. You know what I want to know? What did Armenians tell eachother was their 'duty as an Armenian' to do before the genocide? What gave us a sense of identity before?

[Anonymouse]

That is my point. Armenian history is far more rich and deeper than just the Genocide. Yet whether in newspapers, Armenian youth groups, schools, classes, politics, this is the focus. It has become part of the nationalist myth and the collective consciousness.

[ckBejug]

we've been through a lot.
not only the Genocide. you could basically say that our whole history is full of nations trying to get rid of us. not only turks.
when do you refer to when you say before?
before the ottomans? before the persians? before the seljuks?
I think you bring up an important factor.
the reason we've always stayed a nation is because of all those invasions.
it's because for thousands of years we've said " it's our duty to STAY"

What of our great Kings and Queens and incredible leaders, rich history, beautiful literature, incredible art and poetry. None of these things make us who we are today?? I think that there is much more to the Armenian culture than it's resiliance against invasions and ability to stick together and get through things stonger than we were when we went in. We have beauty that seems all but forgotten in this quest for justice that we may never get. I think it's about time we start to emphasize things other than the genocide that make up the Armenian culture and history.

[Anonymouse]

What of our great Kings and Queens and incredible leaders, rich history, beautiful literature, incredible art and poetry. None of these things make us who we are today?? I think that there is much more to the Armenian culture than it's resiliance against invasions and ability to stick together and get through things stonger than we were when we went in. We have beauty that seems all but forgotten in this quest for justice that we may never get. I think it's about time we start to emphasize things other than the genocide that make up the Armenian culture and history.

Agreed !!!!

[Thai-Samurai]

Very true, the other day I was reading a book about Armenian history. And I was reading the events that led up to the Genocide. What really made me mad was we were actually helping the Turks before the Genocide. We lost a lot of land and people to it. And I think that we should get something back eventually.

[xBaron Dants]

I wouldn't view the genocide as such a tragic event if we did not have all that history and culture.

The genocide is painful for us (or at least for me) because I know what preceeded it and all what could have happened had it not occured. It should not be what indentifies us as Armenians. That's just unhealthy in my opinion.

[Anonymouse]

Turks did no genocide, it was just a deportation from one Ottoman land (Anatolia) to another (Syria), but Kurds killed Armenians in the way to Syria. There was no official command calling for a genocide, the command was for deportation.

Please search this, and you will understand.

Hexing

Of course you will disseminate only what your government has told you is their version of events. Few will veer off into the opposing resources to get a more balanced view. In the era of nation-states and "nationness" ones idea of their nation is often based on the nationalist myths that have created their nation. Nationalism in all its manifestations threatens and is a road block to free thought, because it imposes artificial, and mostly political, hegemony on the minds ability to freely weigh information. In doing so, it permeates into the minds of those who have been bred by that nationalism, thereby acting a force field and creating an intellectual Berlin Wall. Anything contrary to what you have been taught as the founding bedrocks of your nation must be purged. Why would Turkey be so anti-Democratic and anti-intellectual with regard to this one issue? Why is free discussion not permitted in Turkey? Of course, because the nation-state known as Turkey, which was founded by Ataturk, was founded on the blood of others. Modern Turkey's entire existence is based on the expulsion of others and Ataturk is deified like Stalin and Hitler of yore. Nation-States do not come into existence via peaceful means or social contracts. They come into existence by violence and on the blood of others.