A Study On The Horse Whisperer From The Perspective Of Trauma Theory

Nicholas Evans is a writer of merits with profound understanding of social problems.Hte is especially talented in employing generational relationships and trauma recovery as the main themes of his literature creation.By in-depth discussion about issues like marital relations,family education,initiation process and trauma recovery,Nicolas Evans explains how the protagonists get cured and finally walk out of darkness and trauma,and how they become confident in that the future of their life will be brighter and brighter.It is thus widely accepted that his works are of strong guiding significance and sympathetic effect,and full of positive energy.While there are many literature reviews conducted around The horse Whisperer from the perspective of generational relationships,few are from the perspective of trauma theory.By far,trauma study has entered into its second phase of development,and relevant studies have also evolved from psychology and psychoanalysis to fields of humanities like history,literature and social sciences,which have greatly broadened the horizon of literature study.It is under this context that this thesis conducts its literature text study.The introduction consists of three parts.The first part briefly introduces the writer and his literary works,and points out the author's writing characteristics and his domain of focus.The second part introduces the developmental process of trauma theory and its present application in literature criticism.Then,it continues to give a brief introduction about Judith Herman's trauma theory,on which this thesis lays its basis.The third part reviews all the literature criticism regarding the novel since its publication,and concludes that this thesis is of some significance in that it studies the novel from the perspective of Judith Herman's trauma theory.The first chapter analyzes the reasons behind the protagonists' psychological traumas,and points out that incidents like the death of beloved ones,family breakups,absence of love,and domestic violence,are the main causes for the character transformation and behavioral distortion.These elements are not only the reasons of the trauma,but also function as the starting point in the recovery of the trauma.In the novel,the causes of Annie's tragedy are the sudden death of her father during the mid of night and the consequent maltreatment from her family members,and fatherly love and sense of security thus become her long-time pursuit.Tom is forced to move away from the ranch on which he grows up,and experiences the absence of love and attention,which become the reasons for his quest for belonging.Chapter two points out that the traumas from adolescent time will continue to cast detrimental effects on the life of the victims when they enter their adulthood.The most detrimental part is that different victims will take different methods to cover up the facts of being traumatized,which will in turn bring more harm to the victims,and will also pose as a great hindrance for their recovery.Annie's strategy of disguise is in the form of active fight,while Tom takes the form of evasive flight,both of which severely sabotage their daily work and life.In the third chapter,by analyzing the subjective and objective factors of the protagonists' recovery,the thesis points out that traumatic recovery requires not only the safe environment from the society,but also active participation of the individuals.It also reveals that only when a person faces up to his trauma and actively seek recovery,will he be able to return to his own self and society,and righteously shoulder up his due familial,moral and social responsibilities.The conclusion summarizes that The Horse Whisperer is a story about how adolescent trauma cast lasting and serious influence on the family,work and love of the victims,and how the victims strive to get recovered through painstaking efforts.By making a comparison between Tom and Annie,and with the help of Judith Herman's trauma theory,the thesis conducts its study on the novel and offers a brand-new explanation on the author's writing purpose from a different angle.It is also concluded that as long as the victims bravely confront their traumas and abandon their strategies of camouflage,they will eventually get rid of the burdens of their traumatic sufferings and regain their own identities and normal family life.Even though trauma recovery is a mission without end,active pursuit of recovery will not only relieve the victims of their predicaments,but also help them get a better understanding of the true meaning of life,and instill in them the confidence and courage to carry on with their life.