Posthuman interventions in submerged histories: reconstructing history through memory in Rivers Solomon's The Deep
View abstract on PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.This study examines how Rivers Solomon
Area Of Science
- Literary Criticism
- Postcolonial Studies
- Trauma Studies
Background
- Collective memory is often shaped by dominant power structures, silencing ancestral and tribal histories, particularly in post-colonial contexts.
- Postmemory, the transmission of memories across generations, serves to reclaim silenced histories and challenge canonical narratives.
- The transatlantic slave trade's legacy continues to impact successive generations, necessitating methods for processing historical trauma.
Purpose Of The Study
- To analyze how Rivers Solomon's novel 'The Deep' (2019) explores postmemory and counter-memory in the context of the transatlantic slave trade.
- To investigate the role of posthuman characters in embodying and transforming intergenerational trauma into resistance.
- To examine how creative reworkings of history through posthumanism offer new understandings of collective resilience against systemic erasure.
Main Methods
- Literary analysis of Rivers Solomon's 'The Deep' (2019).
- Application of postmemory and counter-memory theories.
- Exploration of posthumanism as a framework for understanding trauma and resilience.
Main Results
- Solomon's narrative utilizes posthuman characters to embody postmemories, transforming suffering into resistance through counter-memory.
- The novel engages with mourning and collective catharsis by highlighting erased histories.
- Posthuman figurations challenge normative subject positions, offering new perspectives on trauma and resilience.
Conclusions
- Rivers Solomon's 'The Deep' effectively uses postmemory and posthumanism to confront the silenced histories of the transatlantic slave trade.
- The articulation of counter-memories by posthuman characters provides a means of resistance and collective healing.
- The study demonstrates how literary exploration of posthumanism can illuminate collective experiences of trauma and resilience in the face of historical erasure.