Meet Yuliia Plokha

Philologist, language and literature teacher, publishing house editor and reading ambassador, Ukrainian culture promoter, literature meetings initiator.

I met Yuliia last year at the Test Gallery in Barcelona, a space showcasing Ukrainian culture and art. I was there to support both national artists and the gallery owner, Kateryna Pidhayna, a friend of mine. Yuliia was conducting a five-segment course on Ukrainian literature.  

I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to ask her more about literature, reading, and its influence on our lives. It turned out, not in vain.

Why do you think literature is still essential?  

Since its inception, literature has served crucial functions in society, fulfilling individual and collective purposes. Undoubtedly, these functions are frequently interconnected and can fluctuate based on cultural and historical contexts. 

At the outset, literature fulfilled educational and preservation needs. As a potent educational instrument, it educates readers about diverse cultures, historical occurrences, social dilemmas, and human encounters, enriching their knowledge and comprehension of the world. Conversely, literature preserves cultural legacy by recording the beliefs, values, traditions, and languages of specific societies or eras, serving as a portal to the past and safeguarding cultural wisdom from fading away. These dual roles persist in literature today.