Yeghishe Charents
Yeghishe Charents Եղիշե Չարենց | |
|---|---|
| Born | Yeghishe Soghomonyan March 13, 1897 Kars, Kars Oblast, Russian Empire |
| Died | November 27, 1937 (aged 40) Yerevan, Armenian SSR, USSR |
| Resting place | unknown |
| Occupation | Poet, writer, translator, public activist |
| Language | Armenian |
| Nationality | Armenian |
| Spouse | Izabella Charents |
| Children | Anahit Charents and Arpenik Charents |
Yeghishe Charents (Armenian: Եղիշե Չարենց, romanized: Yeghishe Ch’arents’; 25 March [O.S. 13 March], 1897 – November 27, 1937) was an Armenian poet, writer and public activist. Charents' literary subject matter ranged from his experiences in the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and frequently Armenia and Armenians. He is recognized as "the main poet of the 20th century" in Armenia.
An early proponent of communism and the USSR, the futurist Charents joined the Bolshevik Party and became an active supporter of Soviet Armenia, especially during the period of Lenin's New Economic Policy (NEP). However, he became disillusioned with direction of the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin. He was arrested by the NKVD during the 1930s Great Purge, and died in 1937 due to severe health complications, including Morphinism. However, after Stalin's death, he was exonerated in a 1954 speech by Anastas Mikoyan and was officially rehabilitated by the Soviet state in 1955 during the Khrushchev Thaw.