The Imagery of Longing and Withdrawal in Short Stories of Armen Daryan

Abstract

The short stories of the Lebanese-Armenian writer and translator Armen Daryan that explore the phenomena of longing and estrangement occupy a distinctive place in his literary legacy. Examining the thematic and structural features of the stories, the article notes that the compositional parts and their interconnections in Daryan’s artistic system are created with a specific intention for character formation. The aim of the study is to identify the methods of depicting images of longing and symbols, as well as the mechanisms of withdrawal. The research addresses the following tasks: (a) to analyze the ethnocultural symbolism of longing; (b) to interpret the anthroponyms and the particularities of their use; (c) to examine the issue of withdrawal in the context of the relationships between elderly characters and their adult children. The methodological basis of the study includes analytical and comparative approaches. The symbolic layer of the stories is examined through ethnocultural and anthropological perspectives; the anthroponymic material is interpreted by means of linguopsychological onomastic analysis; and the formation of the characters’ longing is approached through the socio-psychological model of the “stranger complex.” The scientific novelty of the research lies in its interdisciplinary approach to the concepts of longing and withdrawal in Daryan’s prose, as well as in clarifying their role in shaping the author’s artistic system.