Interdisciplinary and Interinstitutional Approaches – Guarantor of the Effectiveness of Georgian literary Studies and Georgian Studies

Abstract

Georgian studies are evidence of the originality of Georgian national science and, therefore, one of the most important identifiers of Georgian identity. The development of scientific research clearly reflects the dynamics of the process. The history of Georgian literary studies, as well as the history of Georgian studies in other humanitarian areas, invariably confirms it’s goal to serve the interests of the country: on the one hand, to be a measure and indicator of Georgian identity, and on the other hand, to demonstrate the involvement of Georgian culture and national studies in world cultural processes and scholarly dialogue.

The history of literary studies, like the history of humanitarian researches in general, vividly reflects different epochs, standards, compromises and contradictions. Academic research never stands stagnant, but develops in accordance with the development
of the context and time. I’m more that sure, that the standard of modern literary studies is undoubtedly defined by interdisciplinary and inter-institutional researches. The best confirmation of this historical flexibility of literary studies is the first half of the 20th century, when the changes in the field led to an excessive variety, abundance and diversity of literary-theoretical schools. A multi-interpretive space was created, the methodological foundation of which was interdisciplinary studies for the simple reason that each theoretical school had an interdisciplinary character. The necessary conditions and space for multicultural and comparative studies were created; however, the academic circles of the Soviet countries had a limited access to this process. Soviet science and, of course, first of all, literary studies as one of the leading branches of humanitarian thought, were enclosed in a rigid ideological framework by the Soviet regime. Although individual scholars and critics were able to express the innovative opinion, it was not enough to develop interdisciplinary and multicultural studies widely. Today, when the post-Soviet Georgian literary studies has overcome the most difficult stages, and assimilated to the maximum with Western the literary studies, the time has come to develop interdisciplinary and inter-institutional researches. “Pure literary studies”, in an unmixed way, – it is a Yesterday. Today it’s crucial to improve interdisciplinary and inter-sectorial communications and collaboration, which, in itself, implies inter-institutional collaboration. The Institute of Georgian Literature is starting to move to this new platform and calls on other Georgian scholars to join this initiative.