Nick's Review of Forgotten Fire
Forgotten Fire by Adam Bagdasarian depicts the life of Vahan Kenderian during the Armenian Genocide in Turkey. Vahan Kenderian, the protagonist and main character of the novel, is a 12 year old boy who was born into an extremely wealthy and influential Armenian family. Vahan was quite privileged and was catered to quite habitually by both his father and mother who indulged him every opportunity they could and by his siblings who served as playmates that offered companionship and enjoyment. Though everything seems to be going as usual in Vahan’s life, his position within society takes a drastic turn for the worst due to the changing political climate as well as the commencement of World War I. Within a two day span, Vahan’s father disappears, two of his brothers are executed in front of him, his grandmother is murdered, and his sister takes her own life in order to avoid being brutally raped and murdered. He and his older brother fortunately escape what seems to be a cruel and unbelievable nightmare, but are forced to leave their mother and remaining sister in order to survive.
Vahan is forced to adapt to his situation in order to make it to safety and freedom. In doing so, he begs in order to survive, befriends those who are responsible for the massacre of his family members and fellow Armenians, and transitions to a mute and deaf boy in order to avoid suspicion. Despite the odds, Vahan does everything possible to survive and make it to freedom.
The novel has quite a few themes, such as genocide, despair/hope, and loneliness/ seclusion. The novel represents the Armenian Genocide which stems back to the early 19th century. The Armenians refused to assimilate to the new Turkish rule and convert from Christianity to Islam, which in turn caused for turmoil to erupt and drastic measures to be taken. Vahan witnesses many of his family members murdered in front of him which causes for a life of despair and seclusion to ensue. He must keep to himself for long periods of time in order to avoid being caught and executed. During times such as these, the reader can truly see the hardships Vahan is currently undergoing. “The problem with loneliness is that, unlike other forms of human suffering, it teaches us nothing, leads us nowhere, and generally devalues us in our own eyes and the eyes of others.” Due to the following, Vahan catches himself contemplating suicide; however, the voice inside his head which he associates with his father, continues to motivate, give him hope, and drive him to succeed.
For most of the novel, Vahan is alone; however, he does in fact meet a vast amount of characters on his journey to freedom. Prior to embarking on his journey, he was born into the Kenderian family and was raised by his father, Sarkis, and mother, Meera. He was also tended and raised by many of his brothers and sisters. Of the following were, Diran Sisak, Oskina, and Aremenouhi. Upon leaving the estate which he had spent all 12 of his years, he embarked on his journey to freedom, meeting and spending a great deal of time with Selim Bey. Selim, also known as The "Butcher of Armenians," was appointed disposer of the Armenians in the towns around Bitlis, the town in which Vahan is originally from. Due to an unfortunate series of events, Vahan is forced to disguise himself and work for Selim for quite some time in the novel.
The novel depicts a detailed and truthful representation of the Armenian Genocide. The novel is an excellent artifact to use within the classroom seeing as how it is not only an informative topic, but is also grade level appropriate for high school students. Prior to assigning the novel to the curriculum, the instructor should be aware of the detailed and graphic violence portrayed in the novel so as though not to catch any of the students off guard. The instructor should also explain the meaning of genocide and possibly explain the historical context about the significant event in history.