Trauma, Memory, Bodies

How is trauma felt, remembered, and narrated? What are the dynamics of gender, race, sexuality, class, and citizenship in relation to cultural politics of memory and trauma. What are the corporeal manifestations of trauma and memory? Whose memories are valued, believed and commemorated and whose memories have been repressed? What challenges do traumatic events present for those who want to represent and heal them? This subject approaches concepts of trauma and memory as historically and culturally contingent, asking what counts as trauma, for whom and under what circumstances. The subject will open by tracing history of the concept of trauma in psychoanalysis and medicine, followed by critical perspectives from feminist, queer, transgender, critical race, and body studies perspectives. In the second part of the subject we will look at different sites, forms and representations of trauma in literature, films, art, oral narratives, memoirs, photographs, and social movements.

• 1Discuss how the concepts of 'trauma', 'memory' and embodiment are used in Gender Studies
• 2Describe the key features of a range of analytical frameworks used in psychoanalytic, feminist, queer, transgender, critical race contexts
• 3Critically engage with specific current issues connected with trauma and memory in contemporary societies from feminist, queer, and transgender perspectives
• 4Apply critical skills and methods to analyse the representation of trauma and memory across a wide range of cultural contexts and genres.