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A STUDY ON SURVIVAL, MEMORY AND POST-WAR TRAUMATIC
SUFFERINGS IN ANUK ARUDPRAGASAM’S ‘
THE STORY OF
A BRIEF MARRIAGE’
D . J. Sak hi Kumaa
Assis an P o esso o English
Go e nmen A s and Science College, Ha u , Dha mapu i
h ps://doi.o g/10.5281/zenodo.17283281
Abs ac
In he e a o ci il wa all o e he wo ld, he a e e ec s o wa a e auma ic and i s su e ings a e
unimaginable. Wo ld li e a u e is eple e wi h na a i es and su e ings o wa . Unlike p o essional
his o ians who in es iga e, heo ize, and in e p e , no elis s a emp o econs uc , pe sonalize, and
humanize he inhumani y o global wa . The ision is elie ed by hope ul hough s o su i al, which ends
he some imes o e whelming empa hy. Though he likelihood o ou pa hs ouching again is slim, ha
ecollec ion eminds us ha ou hough s will always be in e wined. The chosen ex highligh s he powe ul
ic ional memoi s o ic ims o su i o s in wa ic ion, based on he pa allels and shi s in pos - auma ic
my hology. The p esen pape highligh s an analy ical model o such wa auma ic ion and i applies such
a amewo k o unde s and he exis ence o auma ic lashes in he selec ed ex and obse e su e ing in
bo h physical and emo ional s a es. The agmen ed dis up ion o iden i y and eali y o an indi idual’s
psychological, pe sonal, and empo al e lec s he ac u es o he wa . This s udy u he explo es he
p o agonis s’ loss o sel -iden i y, he memo y o displacemen , sepa a ion, physical auma, and sepa a ion
om a amily which in-dep h a ec s his sel o he ac o su i al.
Keywo ds: T auma, agmen ed memo y, pos -wa su e ings, su i al, iden i y and displacemen .
In oduc ion
T auma becomes an inescapable eali y and i shaping he physical bu also he
psychological landscape o hose who endu e i in he con ex o wa . Anuk A udp agasam’s The
S o y o a B ie Ma iage depic s on he cha ac e s li ed expe iences o auma besides he
backg ound o S i Lanka’s ci il wa . The na a i e o Dinesh and Ganga as wo young e ugees
b ough oge he in a b ie and agile union o he no el in which del es deep in o he emo ional
and physical consequences o wa . The explo a ion is limi ed o he immedia e ho o s o
iolence and ex ends o he endu ing psychological sca s ha dis up he cha ac e s iden i y,
memo y and ime as po ayed in he no el.
The schola s like Ca hy Ca u h, Judi h He man and Do i Laub p o ides a lens o examine he
agmen ed and also he inexp essible na u e o auma ic expe ience as highligh ed in T auma
heo y. A udp agasam’s no el highligh s wi h key elemen s o his heo y which includes he
dissocia ion, bodily auma and he ina iculabili y o su e ing in a elabo a ed con ex . Dinesh
and Ganga’s ma iage is bo h a adi ional bond o in imacy and becomes a momen a y ep ie e
in he ace o pe asi e iolence in which a agile a emp o eclaim agency and humani y amid
chaos in e e yday li e.
This pape analyzes The S o y o a B ie Ma iage h ough he con ex o auma heo y,
ocusing on how A udp agasam cap u es he agmen ed, disloca ed expe iences o his
cha ac e s in he no el. The s uc u e and language o he no el e lec s he inne u moil o
indi idual caugh in he a e ma h o iolence and hei memo ies sha e ed and hei sense o
sel agmen ed. The examining o he elemen s in he pape aims o demons a e how
A udp agasam po ays auma and also e iews he b oade human cos s o wa whe e he
su i al i sel becomes an ongoing nego ia ion wi h pain, loss, and memo y.
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F agmen ed Memo y and Emo ional Numbness
Ca u h (1996) de ines, his is a di e en kind o memo y; i is he memo y o he auma
i sel . This memo y can only be accessed h ough he symp oms he ic im expe iences a e
auma. Ca hy Ca u h claims ha “ auma is no simply an e ec o des uc ion bu also,
undamen ally, an enigma o su i al” (1996, p. 85). In o de o un a el he enigma o auma,
one needs o know wha exis s a e he auma. She claims ha wha emains a e he auma
is i s memo y. Acco ding o auma heo y, he agmen a ion o memo y is a hallma k o
auma, whe e su i o s a e unable o o ganize hei expe iences in o a cohe en na a i e.
Dinesh’s a emp o ecall li e be o e he wa is ma ked by gaps and disconnec ion:
“The memo ies came o him in pieces, disjoin ed and incomple e, like sha ds o glass ha
could no be pu back oge he . He ied o make sense o hem, bu hey e used o o m a
cohe en whole.”(42)
T auma which o en dis up s linea memo y by lea ing he su i o s wi h disjoin ed
ecollec ions and agmen ed expe iences o e all. Dinesh's memo y o his li e be o e he wa is
ac u ed and i whe e in he e lec ing way, auma al e s one’s abili y o ecall e en s
cohe en ly:
“He could no longe emembe wha i el like o be a home, o walk h ough amilia
s ee s, o eel sa e in his own bed. Those memo ies we e like dis an d eams now, washed away
by he endless days o ea .” (51)
T auma is a wound ha is “in lic ed by an emo ional shock so powe ul ha i b eaches he
mind’s expe ience o ime, sel and he wo ld” (Eye man, 2013, p. 42).
Bo h Dinesh and Ganga exhibi signs o dissocia ion, a common esponse o auma whe e
indi iduals disconnec om hei emo ions o physical sensa ions in o de o su i e
o e whelming e en s. Dinesh o en eels de ached om his body and emo ions:
“He el like he was no longe a pe son, jus a body mo ing h ough space, eac ing o he
hings ha happened a ound him. His hough s, his memo ies, his desi es had been s ipped
away, lea ing only his shell.”(72)
Ganga expe iences dissocia ion in pa icula ly wi hin he in e ac ions wi h Dinesh and he
silence wi h de achmen e lec he emo ional numbness auma and coping wi h mechanism o
p o ec onesel om u he pain:
“She s ood beside him, s ill and unmo ing, he eyes lowe ed o he g ound. The e was no
sign o happiness in he ace, no sign o hope. She seemed esigned o he a e, as hough she had
accep ed ha he li e would be de ined by loss.”(77)
T auma heo y highligh s dissocia ion as a de ense mechanism when he mind is
o e whelmed by expe iences ha a oo pain ul and o p ocess ully in he con ex . In he con ex
o no el, his de achmen is e iden in bo h cha ac e s in which hei esponses o auma
include shu ing down emo ionally in li e.
Hype awa eness and Inexp essibili y o T auma
A key elemen in auma heo y is he idea ha auma is o en beyond language—i is
some hing ha esis s a icula ion. Th oughou he no el he silence is used o con ey he
inexp essibili y o auma and pa icula ly wi h Ganga and whose silence is mo e e ealing han
wo ds could be:
“She said no hing in esponse, he ace blank, as hough he wo ds did no each he . I was
as hough he wa had d ained he li e om he , lea ing he wi h no hing o say.”(129)
T auma p e en s ic ims om eeling hei emo ions and physical pains in some
ci cums ances. This case also makes ic ims emain silen and isola ed om he wo ld a ound
hem. Gibbs (2004) claims:
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Pe sons wi h PTSD may eel numb; ha e less in e es in e en s a ound hem; ha e less
abili y o eel emo ions, especially hose ela ed o in ima e in ol emen wi h o he s, and may
end up de ached om o he people and wi h a sense ha hey ha e no u u e (p. 153).
The cha ac e s' di icul y o exp ess i s auma e lec s he "unspeakable" na u e o
auma ic expe iences desc ibed by auma heo is s like Ca hy Ca u h. Thei silence poin s o
he limi s o language when i comes o con eying he ull impac o hei su e ing:
“Wo ds el inadequa e, as i hey could no con ain he as ness o wha he was eeling. The
hings he wan ed o say seemed o slip h ough his g asp, dissol ing in o silence be o e hey
could be spoken.”(43)
T auma o en mani es s in a heigh ened sense o awa eness o one's body, especially when
ha body has been exposed o iolence. Dinesh cons an ly e lec s on he ulne abili y o his
body, an icipa ing pain and dea h, which is a key sign o auma:
“He imagined he pieces o his body sca e ed ac oss he ield, bones and skin and o gans
s ewn abou , un ecognizable, no longe pa o a whole.”(57)
T auma is a wound in which i is “in lic ed by an emo ional shock so powe ul ha i
b eaches he mind’s expe ience o ime, sel and he wo ld” (Eye man, 2013, p. 42) The body
becomes a si e o auma whe e he no el emphasizes he cha ac e s' hype awa eness o hei
physical agili y, e lec ing he soma ic symp oms o en associa ed wi h auma. This
heigh ened awa eness o bodily ulne abili y is a su i al mechanism:
“His body was always ense, always eady o eac , as hough i had lea ned o expec dange
a e e y momen . E en when no hing was happening, he could no elax, he memo y o ea
lodged deep in his bones.”(136)
T auma o Su i al and Sea ch o Meaning
Roge Luckhu s sugges s ha soldie s o he Wo ld Wa s “no only su e ed memo y gaps
bu also epea edly e-expe ienced ex eme e en s in lashbacks, nigh ma es and hallucina ions
mon hs o e en yea s a e wa ds”.(2007, p. 500). I discusses on how he auma su i o s
epea edly e u n o he auma ic e en , ei he h ough lashbacks o ecu ing hough s.
Dinesh's con inual e lec ion on he possibili y o dea h and he inju ies he has wi nessed
e lec s his epe i ion:
“He emembe ed he bodies he had seen, o n apa by sh apnel, hei aces wis ed wi h he
shock o dea h. He knew ha his own body could end he same way, educed o pieces,
obli e a ed in an ins an .”(93)
The epe i ion o auma is no jus abou eli ing pas e en s bu also abou he auma o
su i al i sel —o ha ing o cons an ly con on dea h and des uc ion. Dinesh’s epe i i e
hough s abou his body and he iolence a ound him e lec his:
“The memo y o pain was always wi h him, like a ghos ha ollowed him whe e e he wen .
E en when he was no in immedia e dange , he hough o wha could happen, o he pain ha
could come, was always he e.” (61)
The e-expe iencing and epe i ion o he auma ic expe ience a e impo an ways ha a e
used o cope wi h PTSD: “ he auma ic e u n ep esen s he mind’s a emp o mas e wha
was ne e ully g asped in he i s place” (Ca u h, 2013, p. 4). The mos challenging aspec s o
auma is he di icul y su i o s ace in inding meaning in hei su e ing. Dinesh and Ganga’s
expe iences e lec his s uggle, as hey a e unable o ind pu pose o hope in he ace o
o e whelming loss and iolence:
“The e was no meaning o be ound in he wa , no eason o he des uc ion ha
su ounded hem. I had simply happened, and now hey we e le o make sense o li es ha
had been o n apa .”(128)
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Ca los A. Sanz Mingo (2019) s a es ha “ auma b ings he bes and wo s o human na u e;
[…] Some people wan o e-enac auma ic expe iences o pas si ua ions. In hese e-
enac men s, hey could be he ic imize o he ic im” (p. 56). The no el depic s he exis en ial
c isis in which he auma su i o s o en ace he pu pose o a con inuing o li e when so much
has been aken om hem:
“I was clea ha she expec ed no hing om he u u e, ha she had gi en up any hope o
hings being di e en . The wa had augh he no o hope, no o d eam, because i would only
lead o mo e pain.”(85)
Conclusion
Anuk A udp agasam’s The S o y o a B ie Ma iage deals wi h a poignan and isce al
explo a ion o auma which e eals he p o ound psychological and physical oll du ing he wa
in lic s on indi iduals and communi ies. The cha ac e s Dinesh and Ganga’s expe ience in he
no el illus a e on how he auma agmen s one’s memo y, dis o s ime and dis up s he
capaci y o emo ional connec ion and communica ion in daily li e. The cha ac e s' agmen ed
ecollec ions and hei inabili y o exp ess hei su e ing which would help he key aspec s o
auma heo y and pa icula ly he inexp essibili y o auma wi h he sense o disloca ion i
c ea ed in he no els. A udp agasam’s ep esen a ion o wa does mo e on po ayal o physical
des uc ion and i highligh s he long-las ing wi h in isible wounds ha auma lea es behind
in he li e o he cha ac e s in he no el. The no el and i s cha ac e s bodily ulne abili y,
emo ional numbness and hei s uggle o ind meaning in hei su i al emphasizes he idea
ha auma anscends he immedia e momen o iolence. The shaping o hei iden i ies and
ela ionships long a e he physical dange has passed. E en ually, The S o y o a B ie Ma iage
se es as a powe ul commen a y on he human cos o con lic which eminds us ha he e ec s
o auma which is con ined o he ba le ield o endu e in he minds and bodies o he su i o s.
The po ayal in si ua ing he eade wi hin he agmen ed inne wo lds o his cha ac e s he
au ho p o ides a p o ound insigh in o he na u e o auma which deeply illus a ing he
complexi y o healing and he p eca iousness o su i al in a wo ld sha e ed by iolence in
a ound o he cha ac e s in he no el. The no el ques ions he audience wi h a en ion o he
u gen need o add ess he psychological sca s o wa and hey con inue o haun he li es o
hose le in i s wake.
Bibliog aphy
P ima y Sou ce
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Seconda y Sou ces
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