Road And Humanity:Decoding The Road From The Perspective Of Trauma Theory

Trauma refers to an injury or wound to a living body caused by the application of external force or violence; or a psychological or emotional stress or blow that may produce disordered feelings or behavior, and the state or condition of mental or emotional shock produced by such a stress or by a physical injury. The trauma theory has been applied into literary criticism for many years. Cormac McCarthy’s new work, The Road is showing more and more research values in recent years.This thesis decodes The Road from the perspective of the trauma theory. Through the analysis of the characters’living condition and their physical and psychological trauma, the author shows the trauma of all Americans. Though the victim of the experience of trauma is the individual, the relationship of trauma, individuals and culture can not be neglected. Trauma is common to human experience. The violence causes trauma, and the trauma arouse human being’s desire to look back.This thesis consists of five parts. In the introduction, a brief survey of Cormac McCarthy and The Road are made. The current studies about the writer and his novels are discussed. And then the thesis statement is illustrated.Chapter two is the theoretical basis of the thesis. Basic theories of trauma and the development of trauma are discussed in detail.Chapter three mainly analyzes the trauma in The Road, and the traumatic experience of America especially the slave experience. Through these analyses, the silence of four hundred years emerges and is part of the everyday life. This part of history is submerging and living within current American thought and identity.Chapter four analyzes the dream as manifestation of trauma and desire, subjective transformation, and the narrative structure of The Road as traumatic manifestation. The trauma of the individual can be manifested by dream, while the trauma of American can be manifested by the American dream. The violence and trauma not only threatens to destroy them and their desire for an absent community, but also brings about their terror and anxiety. The title of this novel constructs the metanarrative of violence and trauma that the father and son have suffered. Chapter five is a conclusion in which the purpose and theme of this thesis is restated. Through the overall study, it is hoped that human beings can grasp a new and better understanding about McCarthy’s violence and trauma, postapocalyptic theme and McCarthy’s narrative structure.