Vol. 18 (2025): International Conference Emigration and Literary Discourse
The Literary Heritage of Georgian Emigrants of the 1920s-30s

Between Heritage and Ideology: Grigol Peradze's Analysis of soviet Georgian Literature

Eka Chikvaidze
Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University; Shota Rustaveli Institute of Georgian Literature

Published 2026-02-19

Keywords

  • Grigol Peradze,
  • Mass culture,
  • Agit-literature,
  • Spiritual life

Abstract

This article analyzes Grigol Peradze’s critical engagement with Soviet Georgian literature within the broader context of émigré intellectual history and ideological discourse. Based on Peradze’s letters, essays, and interpretive reflections, the study argues that his enforced exile after 1921 produced a dual perspective that combined internal belonging to Georgian literary tradition with analytically productive distance. This position enabled Peradze to assess Soviet cultural policy, ideological mechanisms, and literary production with notable conceptual precision. The article situates his critique within comparative discussions of totalitarian cultural systems, demonstrating how exile shaped both his methodological approach and the ethical foundations of his interpretive stance.