The Broken Spiritual World: A Study Of Trauma Writing In The Cement Garden

As one of the most influential contemporary British writers,Ian Mc Ewan has attracted wide attention for his sharp point of view,meticulous writing style,and unique themes.Mc Ewan focuses on marginalized people and hot issues,and his works have diversified themes and strong personal characteristics.His prolific creativity has kept him active in the public eye throughout the year.With its Gothic style and the theme of exposing the dark side of human nature,The Cement Garden has made Mc Ewan known as “Ian Macabre”,which refers to Mc Ewan’s horror-filled,socially unethical style of writing.It takes family ethics and adolescent growth as the starting point,and powerfully depicts a picture of the “wasteland of family and humanity” that has lost normal order and norms.Based on the trauma theory of Sigmund Freud,Cathy Caruth,and Judith Herman,this paper tries to interpret the trauma psychology of the characters in The Cement Garden and the trauma elements in the novella.By exploring the theme of trauma in the work,the thesis hopes to offer a more comprehensive perspective of reading The Cement Garden.