A Study On Traumatic Theme In Yiyun Li’s Novels

Yiyun Li, a female writer who belongs to a young generation of ChineseAmerican, insists on writing in a second language and has published two collectionsof short stories and one novel, namely, A Thousand Years of Good Prayers, Gold Boy,Emerald Girl and The Vagrants. In all her twenty works, trauma is the common theme.The paper focuses and elaborates on this theme from three aspects. First part isthe external study of Yiyun Li’s traumatic novels, mainly discusses Li’s own traumaticexperiences and memories, as well as how they were externalized into traumaticnarrative. However, it is found that Li’s writing is not intended to maliciously defaceChina, rather, the objective and concise expressions reflect her reasonablearrangement for trauma. Then we go to the internal research, which elaborates on theleading characters’ endurance and representation of trauma from anxiety, violence,aphasia and death. Lastly, three methods are provided to deal with and recover fromtrauma. Speak out your own traumatic memories, perceive and recognize others’traumatic experiences, forgive perpetrators’ criminal and try to find out the meaningof life and realize self-transcendence.The research of Li’s traumatic novels not only helps people understandconnotations and denotations of trauma, but also, to a certain extent, calls onreflections on trauma. Facing all the difficulties with tolerance and courage,maintaining dignity of life with solidarity and cooperation, irrigating our happyhomeland with love and trust, healing and recovering from trauma, and creating aharmonious society are Li’s humanistic and moral concern behind the novels.