Exploring Objects in The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O’Farrell : The Didactical Benefit of Drawing on Michel Foucault and Cathy Caruth to Teach About Objects in the Literary Classroom

Abstract: This paper investigates garments as containers of stories in Maggie O’Farrell’s The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (2007). Michel Foucault’s ideas about penal practice are used to study how items of clothing are used to discipline the female body and sexuality. O’Farrell’s novel is also analyzed from the perspective of trauma theory as presented by Cathy Caruth. In this context, we study how trauma is portrayed through the novel's presence and absence of garments. Further, a didactic perspective is added to our discussion of trauma theory, garments, and Foucault’s theories in the classroom. An issue to be investigated is how a safe space can be created in the classroom so that the teacher may introduce sensitive topics such as rape.   Keywords: garments, Foucault, trauma theory