Remembering Hiroshima : Hadashi no Gen from a Trauma Theory Perspective

Abstract: In this thesis, a semi-autobiographical manga, Hadashi no Gen, written by Nakazawa Keiji, is analyzed through the lens of trauma theory. By using trauma theory, I hope to shed light on in what way trauma might affect narrative techniques and in what way the narrative techniques convey trauma and emotion to the reader. For the analysis “Trauma Fiction” by Anne Whitehead was chosen and categories based on her findings were made. The categories are: Intertextuality, repetition, dispersed and fragmented narrative voice, memory place, choiceless choice and fantastic. I discovered that all these themes, observed in other trauma fiction as well, are more or less used as a narrative tool in Hadashi no Gen. Further I observed that by conveying traumatic events and emotions through a combination of images and language is a powerful tool and might even be more effective than standard prose text