The Traumatic Shadow and Memory In Toni Morrison’s Beloved

Abstract

The aim of this research is to investigate trauma and the role of memoryin Toni Morrison’s Beloved. Through her works, Morrison portrayed the African American lives during slavery. Morrison depiction of characters illustrates the traumatic history of the Afro-Americans using their experience. In fact, there is a memory preserved in the conscience of the people, fulfilled with the painful events from their terrifying past.This work adopts Trauma theory as a theoretical approach to prove how the traumatic experience of the characters can affect their lives. This work is divided into three chapters. The first chapter is entitled "The Historical Background of Trauma Theory". This chapter checks the basic tenets of trauma theory, It also includes Freud’s interpretation of trauma theory, This chapter also provides an understanding of contemporary trauma by Cathy Caruth. It also simplifies the use of the theory and permits its comprehension. The second chapter is entitled: "The Traumatic Experience of characters in Beloved" this chapter explores the traumatic experiences of the characters in the novel. The third chapter also deals with the textual study of Beloved including plot summary and setting and common themes.