الفهرس | Only 14 pages are availabe for public view |
Abstract Abstract The paper, at the offset, introduces literary trauma theory, with a deep understanding of psychological trauma, and interrogates some of its central debates and/or controversies, which have to do with trauma representation. This is addressed by conducting a deep analysis for the novel Trauma (2007) by Patrick McGrath, which takes up the characters’ traumatic experiences and their representation, respectively. The thesis turns to the previously mentioned novel that follows a certain pattern in depicting the roots or causal forces of the psychological trauma of its characters, the debilitating belated effects, and how their trauma is presented through narrative. The paper relies on the foundational theoretical framework of Cathy Caruth. The theoretical framework constructed examines the debate whether trauma resides in the actual event or the belated response. It argues that the pathology is associated with the belated response owing to the unassimilated nature of the experience. Moreover, the paper also explores the non-uniformity of responses, and highlights two of them ‘acting out’ and ‘working through’; deciphering between both. Besides, it illustrates their manifestation in the traumatized characters. Furthermore, the paper acknowledges the paradoxical relation between trauma and narrative. It accentuates trauma narrative necessity in bearing witness and working through; however, it investigates its limitations that may result in falsifying versions of testimony. |