Intergenerational Trauma And Self-Redemption In Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You

The debut novel by Celeste Ng,a contemporary Chinese-American female author,titled Everything I Never Told You,has garnered widespread attention since its release.The novel narrates the struggles faced by a cross-ethnic family composed of James Lee,a Chinese-American university professor,and his white wife Marilyn Lee,in 1970 s Ohio,USA.The story revolves around their daughter,Lydia’s death,which sheds light on the intergenerational trauma caused by family and societal conflicts on members of the cross-ethnic family.The novel also portrays how family members restore their trust,and reconciliation and heal their psychological trauma after the occurrence of a tragic event.For the purpose of exploring intergenerational trauma formation and recovery in multi-ethnic families,the thesis takes a psychological trauma research perspective to explore the underlying reasons behind the issues of racial and gender discrimination faced by family members.The first part of the dissertation employs Judith Herman’s three-stage trauma recovery theory to explore James’ experience of marginalization and exclusion,using the disillusionment of the cowboy spirit as an example,and analyzes how psychological trauma is transmitted intergenerationally.The second part of the dissertation combines the social background of the second wave of feminism and crossethnic families,using Herman’s Complex PTSD theory,and taking the intergenerational transmission of a cookbook as a clue to analyze the causes and manifestations of Marilyn’s trauma.Finally,based on Murray Bowen’s Family Systems Theory and his views on trauma recovery,the third part of the dissertation explores the positive attempts of family members toward self-redemption,intergenerational relationship reconciliation,and the construction of a family trauma repair system,which echoes the first two parts.Through the aforementioned analysis,this thesis concludes that individual growth experiences and family environment are the main factors attributing to the intergenerational transmission of trauma among family members.Therefore,healing intergenerational trauma and achieving self-redemption rely on the strength of the family system,rebuilding healthy intergenerational relationships,and jointly combating external pressures.This thesis aims to demonstrate the textual characteristics of tragic interracial marriages and cultural conflicts between different ethnic groups within a specific historical and cultural context,showcasing the qualities of minority ethnic and female groups who struggle for power under oppressive forces,as well as the efforts of intergenerational trauma self-redemption through the family.The hope is to provide a reference and inspiration for the analysis and interpretation of the development of crossethnic and gender relationships in modern society,as well as the formation and recovery of trauma.