Haunting Legacies: Violent Histories and Transgenerational Trauma

This is a book project on violent histories, transgenerational trauma and political conflict. Working at the intersections of literary studies, anthropology and trauma theory, the book approaches violent histories from the perspective of transgenerational trauma and explores the role of literature and writing in witnessing and mourning, conflict resolution and reconciliation. Grounded in the reading of texts --fiction, poetry, memoirs and creative nonfiction -the book includes reflections on Jewish and German holocaust literature, and postcolonial literature from the US, New Zealand, Chile and Guatemala and deals with diverse topics such as traumatic writing, memory, torture, rape and disappearances as well as the cultural politics of emotions (guilt, shame, humiliation, and grief). The theoretical framework draws on trauma theory, narratology and critical theory, including Arendt, Agamben, Derrida, Mbembe, Fanon and Ngugi Wa Thiong'O. It will also include reflections on redress and reconciliation movements as well as human rights interventions in violent political conflicts.