From Psychosocial Dissociation to Social Connectivity: A psychotraumatic Analysis of Oskar’s Character in Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Abstract

Literature reflects the society of all times. The present study attempts to explore the effects of 9/11 when two plane crashes occurred in the US world clock tallest buildings that give physical, emotional, economic and social blow to the America and its people. It creates traumatic impacts on the people who are directly or indirectly related to it. The current study describes the acting out of a traumatized character "Oskar" in post-9/11 fiction Extremely Loud &
Incredibly Close (2005) by Jonathan Saffran Foer, which is a succinct
representation of the young and old persons affecting from trauma of 9/11. The textual data is analyzed through Unclaimed Experience; Trauma, Narrative, and History (1996) of Cathy Caruth and Writing Trauma, Writing History (2001) of Lacapra. The analysis describes the way Oskar dissociates from his family due to his 9/11 traumatic impacts or acting out in his personality and then later on he connects with his family by healing of his trauma through several challenging turmoil. The research helps us to cope up with different traumatic experiences of our daily lives and to trace the various traumas affecting particular people in the society. Oskar is stereotype of all those young children who are suffering from the trauma of different historical events. The current study can be implicated to deal with different traumas caused by unexpected events in the society that can be healed by melancholy and mourning of Freud as parallel to “acting out” and “working through” of Lacapra.