A Traumatic Reading of Robert Barclay's If Wishes Were Horses

Trauma theory is therefore a ¿literary theory¿ in a much-altered sense of the term. Not ¿about¿ literature, nor limited to the academic sphere, it rather uses literary tools to give responsible witness to that which is, literally, unspeakable. Theorists, from Freud through contemporary scholars in English, History, Comparative Literature, and other humanistic disciplines, often cite literary texts as clear and well-known examples of traumatic experience. However more importantly, trauma theory answers the unspeakability of trauma with the necessity of reading. Among trauma critics Jeffery Alexander believes that traumas are not purely psychological but collective experiences, and that trauma work plays a key role in defining the origins and outcomes of critical social conflicts and Dominick LaCapra believes that there are two fundamental forms of remembering traumatic events: acting out and working through. In this study three main character of Robert Barclay¿s If Wishes Were Horses ¿ Wyatt Blaine, Gabby Powers and Trevor Powers ¿ are examined in Jeffery Alexander and Diminick LaCapräs insights.