Searching For "Home"

As the first black woman writer who wins the Nobel Prize for literature in the United States,Toni Morrison attracts a great number of readers and occupies an important position in the world literature.Home is Morrison's novella published in2012,which tells the story of Frank's racial discrimination,postwar trauma and his sister Cee's unfortunate experience,as well as their approaches to getting out of the shadow and start a new life.This thesis tries to apply the basic conception of trauma theory from two aspects of individual and collective to interpret the family trauma,gender trauma,racial trauma,war trauma and their symptoms,and the root of the trauma in Home.At the same time,combining with Judith Herman's trauma recovery theory to study the method of the hero's rehabilitation,this thesis points out the importance of healing trauma and its realistic significance.This thesis consists of six chapters.Chapter One is introduction.First,a brief introduction to Toni Morrison and her work Home is made,then the research status of Home at home and abroad is elaborated,and finally the framework structure of this thesis is presented.Chapter Two provides the theory of trauma,focusing on the socio-cultural aspects of trauma and its symptoms as well as Judith Herman's Trauma and Recovery.Chapter Three discusses the individual traumas which Frank and his sister Cee suffered and causes which led to their individual traumas,then it reveals the devastation and destruction caused by individual traumas.Chapter Four elaborates collective traumas Frank suffered after the war,that is,war trauma and racial trauma,as well as Frank's post-traumatic stress disorder.At the same time,it points out the distortion of people's values caused by racial discrimination and the harm brought by war to human beings.Chapter Five mainly analyzes Frank and Cee's self-redemption and their complicated course of starting a new journey: they go back to their homeland,confess the fact of their black identity,face the past with courage and hope,actively integrate into the black community,and realize the reconstruction of identity.With the love and care from the black community,Frank and Cee finally construct a complete self and live a full and meaningful life.Chapter Six is the conclusion of this thesis.Based on the analysis of the symptoms,causes and healing process of the individual and collective traumas,the theme and ideological connotation of the novel aresummarized: simply escaping from trauma will make people spiritual distress,consequently,they are unable to get the freedom of mind.Only by confronting traumas directly,making a farwell to the past,actively integrating into the black community and living in harmony with the local friends,can they get a sense of belonging and their own “home”.Then it claims that trauma not only brings destructive effects to those who have a vulnerable personality or are lacking in subjective spirit,but also delivers hope and motivation to people.Furthermore,it puts forward a variety of ways to get out of the trauma and the practical significance of them.