Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” : Disrupting Memory PDF
Preview Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” : Disrupting Memory
“Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror”: Disrupting Memory lucidly and urgently sheds light on multiple processes and forms of marginalisation in the transnational post-9/11 trauma context. Sarah O’Brien’s important book affirms the role of postcolonial literary interventions and imaginative geographies in bringing attention to invisible and less visible experiences of violence. This study enlarges and transforms our understanding of Afghanistan’s haunted and haunting histories in a global context by presenting incisive readings of the ethics and politics of representation of trauma in Khaled Hosseini (The Kite Runner), Nadeem Aslam (The Wasted Vigil, The Blind Man’s Garden), and Kamila Shamsie (Burnt Shadows).” Dr Rita Sakr, Maynooth University, Ireland “This book destabilises our traditional notions of hegemonic post-9/11 narratives by offering new insight into the traumas inflicted by U.S. imperial power on civilians and its increasing pursuit of the “war on terror”. Most importantly, through counter-narratives written by marginalised voices, the author’s provocative arguments situate new and insightful discussions on U.S. imperial rule not encountered since Anne McClintock’s Imperial Leather.” Shane A. McCoy, Lecturer, Department of English at Middle Tennessee State University, USA Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” This book explores the ways in which transnational fiction in the post-9/11 era can intervene in discourse surrounding the “war on terror” to advocate for marginalised perspectives. Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” conceptualises global political discourse about the “war on terror” as incongruous, with transnational memory frames instituted in Western nations centralising 9/11 as uniquely traumatic, excluding the historical and present-day experiences of Afghans under Western—specifically American—hegemonic violence. Recent develop- ments in trauma studies explain how dominant Western trauma theory participates in this exclusion, failing to account for the ongoing suffering common to non-Western, colonial, and postcolonial contexts. O’Brien explores how Khaled Hosseini (The Kite Runner), Nadeem Aslam (The Wasted Vigil, The Blind Man’s Garden), and Kamila Shamsie (Burnt Shadows) represent marginalised perspectives in the context of the “war on terror”. Sarah O’Brien (PhD) completed her doctoral work at Maynooth University, Ireland, in 2019. Her research areas relate to trauma, memory, South Asian fictions of the “war on terror”, and postcolonial and world literatures more broadly. Routledge Research in American Literature and Culture Spectres from the Past Slavery and the Literary Imagination in West African and African-American Literature Portia Owusu Articulations of Resistance Transformative Practices in Contemporary Arab-American Poetry Sirène H. Harb Objects and Intertexts in Toni Morrison’s Beloved The Case for Reparations Maureen E. Ruprecht Fadem Racism and Xenophobia in Early Twentieth-Century American Fiction When a House is not a Home Wisam Abughosh Chaleila Rethinking Fiction after the 2007/8 Financial Crisis Consumption, Economics, and the American Dream Mirosław Aleksander Miernik Interpreting Susan Sontag’s Essays Radical Contemplative Mark K. Fulk Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” Disrupting Memory Sarah O’Brien Global Ambiguity in Nineteenth-Century American Gothic A Study in Form, History, and Culture Wanlin Li For more information about this series, please visit: https://www.routledge.com/ Routledge-Research-in-American-Literature-and-Culture/book-series/RRAL Trauma and Fictions of the “War on Terror” Disrupting Memory Sarah O’Brien First published 2021 by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 and by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2021 Taylor & Francis The right of Sarah O’Brien to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record has been requested for this book ISBN: 978-0-367-44303-0 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-367-77647-3 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-17221-5 (ebk) Typeset in Sabon by MPS Limited, Dehradun For my parents. Contents Acknowledgements xi Introduction 1 Introduction 1 Transnational Memory Discourse 9 Transnationalism and the Post-9/11 Trauma Narrative 14 Media, Memory, and the “War on Terror” 17 Trauma and Post-9/11 Fiction from the Margins 22 1 Translating Trauma in Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner 36 Introduction 36 Bildungsroman 40 Trauma 48 Emigration to America 55 Witnessing and Return to Agency 58 Conclusion 63 2 Shared Graves: Empire and Trauma in Nadeem Aslam’s The Wasted Vigil 67 Introduction 67 Aslam as Transnational Writer 68 Sites of Memory and Trauma: The House 71 Lara, David, and the Cold War in Afghanistan 75 Post-9/11 Afghanistan: Casa, Dunia, and James 81 Conclusion: A Shared Grave 90
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