Literary Reflection of Soviet Reality as an Inspiration for Collective Trauma (Otar Chkheidze’s “Gamotskhadebai” (The Revelation)

In Georgian literary discourse, the study of traumatic memory as a manifestation of the Soviet totalitarian regime’s legacy is of great importance. After the dissolution of the Soviet Empire (1991), Georgian literature—naturally, along with representatives of the humanities—was faced with the need to objectively assess a significant sociocultural event: the breakdown of the colonial system and the formation of a postcolonial space, as well as to conceptualize Soviet reality as an inspiration for collective trauma. Considering that until the 1990s Georgia had been one of the Soviet Empire’s/USSR’s union republics, the features of traumatic memory and collective trauma in Georgian literature of this period largely follow a “Russian trace.” This issue is examined in detail in the analysis of Otar Chkheidze’s novel “The Revelation,” which asserts that the author interprets the tragedy of 9 March 1956—the shooting of peaceful demonstrators by the totalitarian regime—as a cultural and collective trauma of the nation. This event, as an expression of collective trauma, fundamentally altered the essential principles of Georgia’s political and social life, undermined interpersonal relations, and weakened social cohesion. The study demonstrates that placing the narratives created during this period within their specific historical and cultural contexts provides a meaningful answer to how external factors influenced perceptions of collective trauma and how these narratives contributed to fostering broader social dialogue within Georgian society.