To Try To Live - Personal trauma in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and its pedagogical implications in the Swedish EFL classroom ...

Master’s thesis, 15 credits

To M̶o̶u̶r̶n̶ Try To Live
Personal trauma in Extremely Loud and Incredibly
Close, and its pedagogical implications in the
Swedish EFL classroom.

                              Author: Frank Smit
                              Supervisor: Anna Thyberg
                              Examiner: Anne Holm
                              Date: Spring 2019
                              Subject: English
                              Level: Advanced
                              Course code: 2ENÄ2E

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Abstract
This essay examines Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close through

an application of a theoretical framework of trauma studies, aiming to showcase the

elements of personal trauma displayed in the novel. Moreover, it wishes to discern the

mental and physical sufferings and working through of the trauma through a thematic

analysis aimed at the concepts of loss, vicarious trauma and isolation. The study’s results

indicate that trauma is inexplicably linked to the individual, demonstrating that prior

trauma has a substantial impact on how one deals with more recent trauma. They also

suggest that it is impossible to distinguish between first-hand trauma and second-hand

trauma, instead focusing on the term vicarious trauma to describe the elements of personal

trauma in a better way. Although Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a work of fiction,

this essay argues that it is valid in its portraying of trauma as it showcases the complex

nature of trauma and its different aspects. In terms of the pedagogical implications of

trauma, the essay suggests ways in which one can utilize and address fictional works in the

Swedish EFL classroom supported by suggestions articulated by the Swedish National

Agency for Education. It is done by raising students’ awareness for the elements of

personal trauma, while at the same time improving their all-round communicative skills

enabling them to discuss these issues at length.

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Keywords
Concept of Loss, Mourning, Vicarious Trauma, Personal Trauma, Foer, Extremely Loud &

Incredibly Close, The EFL Classroom, Freud.

Thanks
I am indebted to my supervisor Anna Thyberg, for her perseverance, her patience, advice

and inexplicable attention to detail, without whom this essay would not have been made

possible.

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Table of Contents

1. Introduction                                                                  5

2 Trauma studies and its framework                                               9

2.1 Trauma studies                                                               10

2.2 Collective Trauma and Personal Trauma                                        14

2.3 First-Hand trauma and Second-Hand trauma - is there such a thing?            15

2.4 Translating Trauma - Making Meaning Out of Catastrophes                      17

2.5 Trauma studies in Education, its use and implications                        17

3 Trauma studies applied to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close                  22

3.1 Vicarious trauma as displayed by Oskar                                       22

3.2 Thomas, Oskar’s grandfather                                                  32

3.3 Oskar’s grandmother                                                          38

3.4 The Pedagogical Implications of Trauma studies                               43

4. Conclusion                                                                    45

Works Cited                                                                      46

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1. Introduction

              Message one. Tuesday, 8.52 A.M. Is anybody there? Hello? It’s Dad. If

              you’re there, pick up. I just tried the office, but no one was picking up.

              Listen, something’s happened. I’m OK. They’re telling us to stay where

              we are and wait for the firemen. I’m sure it’s fine. I’ll give you another

              call when I have a better idea of what’s going on. Just wanted to let you

              know that I’m OK, and not to worry. I’ll call again soon (Foer 14-15).

The aforementioned extract from Jonathan Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

(2005) sees Oskar Schell listen to his father’s recorded messages on the day of his passing,

following the collapse of the Twin Towers in which his dad was situated. A year after his

passing, Oskar finds a key in an old vase his dad bought, and Oskar initiates a quest to find

what it opens. Through it, Oskar gives voice to people’s feelings in the wake of the attacks.

His arduous search brings him to all five boroughs of New York and sees him meet the

most interesting plethora of people as he unknowingly edges closer to finding out about a

forgotten part of his own family history. Through the perspective of 9-year-old Oskar

Schell, Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close addresses elements of Post-Traumatic

Stress Disorder symptoms and experiences. These traumatic symptoms will be investigated

in this essay, with the view to describing their components and ascriptive characteristics.

       These traumatic events are investigated in Magali Michael’s article “Narrative

Innovation in 9/11 Fiction,” who offers more insight into such traumatic events. It deals

with narratives which operate as a means of representing the events of 9/11 and their after-

effects on individuals and cultural groups at large (Michael 1). Moreover, the article also

argues that Foer’s novel describes in vivid detail “the horror of incinerated bodies but

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through a kind of transference in depictions of scenes from the earlier historical bombings

of Dresden and Hiroshima” (Michael 6).

       Particular emphasis is placed on studying bodily suffering, rather than focusing on

the motivation of the terrorist, and unquestioned acknowledgement of the truth value of the

dominant official narratives (Michael 5). Oskar loses his father and the primary focus

becomes the search for the lock, one that fills a particular void. Suffering inexplicably links

the characters in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. The mental suffering as a result of

a multitude of personal traumas is an intricate aspect in the novel, one which must not be

overlooked. The willingness and eagerness to fill a particular void is a common and

pervading theme in the novel and which can be subjected to analysis. With the recent

upswing in trauma studies, one must look at this novel with renewed eyes, as trauma

studies opens up to new possibilities. This fresh take on the elements of personal trauma

has found its way into pedagogy as well, which enables students to converse on the topic of

trauma in endless ways. This essay’s aim therefore, can be said to be twofold:

       Its primary aim is to conduct, via a literary analysis and application of a traumatic

theoretical framework, a thematic study of the concept of trauma and loss and its ascriptive

aspects as portrayed in Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in relation to several different

fictional characters.

       The essay’s secondary aim is to show ways how traumatic events can be introduced

by teachers in EFL classrooms, in part basing the argumentation on suggestions articulated

by the Swedish National Agency for Education (SNAE). This essay will moreover reason

why the concept of loss needs to be addressed and brought up in classrooms, thereby

raising students’ awareness of trauma as well as focus on pedagogical needs and

shortcomings.

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       In both of these sections, the focus on the concept of loss in the wake of traumatic

events is a central aim. The essay’s scope is defined by its focus on first- and second-hand

trauma and its different aspects. While its sole focus is on the World Trade Center and the

city of New York, I argue that few traumatic events are likely to have similar impactful

consequences by the outsized scale of 9/11 in a global sense.

    In regards to the pedagogical implications, SNAE suggests that when teaching the

English language, teachers ought to:

    Take as the starting point each individual student’s needs, circumstances, experiences

    and thinking, organise and carry out work so that students develop in accordance with

    their own preconditions and at the same time are stimulated to use and develop all

    their ability, (and) experience that knowledge is meaningful and that their own

    learning is progressing (9).

    The novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close has been picked on a twofold basis.

Firstly, it has been picked in part because of its articulate focus and voicing of personal

trauma, combined with the showing of several intricate stories portraying traumatic

experiences. Secondly, the novel’s educational benefits and subject-matter can make it an

excellent tool to utilize in the multi-cultural EFL classroom, addressing several important

subjects that must not to be overlooked.

    While this novel does detail three personal traumas and the subsequent overcoming of

each character’s respective trauma, it does deal with a very specific event, namely the

September 11 attacks. It must be mentioned that the event has had a major impact in the

US context, but less so in Swedish classrooms where it carries less meaning, especially for

the younger generations. On the one hand, this creates a distance between students and the

event, because the attacks are mostly culturally dependent as well as context-specific. I

argue, on the other hand, that this distance can create a viable starting point, that instead of

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taking away from the students, can provide students with the possibility to converse in

trauma without having shared in the traumatic experiences. At the same time, it gives

teachers the possibility to bring in other subjects/events that carry more meaning and are

more applicable in the Swedish EFL classroom should the need arise.

    Moreover, one must keep in mind that there is an inherent difference between strictly

autobiographical texts and fictional stories and it is important to raise awareness for this.

While in both cases, each story’s authenticity and trustworthiness could be questioned, it is

worth noting that in terms of voicing one’s trauma, as will be discussed below, Extremely

Loud and Incredibly Close, being the fictional text that it is, contains three stories and

reactions to one series of events, showcasing its complexity. An autobiographical story,

albeit ‘closer to the truth’, would have a harder time legitimizing its edge over fictional

stories in this instance, as autobiographical stories oftentimes contain a single

reaction/story to an event.

    Subsequently, I would like to address the notion that students in the EFL classroom

can take away little from the novel as well as their lack of resonation. Previously, I

mentioned the inherent focus on multiple characters as one of the strengths of the novel.

The novel’s intricate description and showcasing of personal trauma opens up possibilities

for teachers who may wish to focus on a variety of aspects having to do with personal

trauma. These can be made relevant as the teacher feels necessary and be made applicable

whenever needed. Victoria Marie Bryan, for example, in “What about a Teakettle?’:

Anxiety, Mourning, and Burial in Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly

Close”, points not to only to works of fiction and their importance in providing students

with the opportunity to work through and order traumatic events, they can furthermore be

important artifacts of healing (Bryan 274-75). Bryan sees Oskar as the “representation of

the post-9/11 condition who finds himself stuck in a melancholic state, but who ultimately

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moves in productive mourning” (275). Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close provides the

students with Oskar, who may function as a role model. Ilka Saal, in “Regarding the Pain

of Self and Other: Trauma Transfer and Narrative Framing in Jonathan Safran Foer’s

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” also discusses mourning as well as the reconstruction

of shattered narrative structures, something that will be delved deeper into later on.

Ultimately, these articles further describe the novel’s place in the EFL classroom.

    Thus, this essay argues that Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close incorporates several

themes suitable for educational purposes. Moreover, by studying the novel, with the

purpose of studying trauma’s ascriptives, students will be provided with the opportunity to

improve their all-round communicative skills. Scrutinizing the novel through a framework

of trauma studies will bring forth and highlight the novel’s focus on mental suffering as

well as a working through the trauma that seems to link human beings.

    Pertaining to the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, section two will present

the theoretical framework as a lense through which the novel will be analysed. Its

articulated focus on contemporary theorists in the field of trauma enables the subsequent

section to take place. This section depicts vicarious trauma as a focal point which

facilitates the ensuing pedagogical implications through trauma studies. The conclusion is

a discussion on vicarious trauma, and more importantly, will suggest ways to fuel the

ongoing discussion on trauma, in its literary and pedagogical sense.

2. Trauma studies and its framework
This study wishes to use Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close which will be analysed on

the basis of a theoretical trauma framework, discerning the depicted traumatic experiences

that sprung from the September 11 attacks. In what follows, I will discuss the definitions

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and characteristics of this theoretical trauma framework in the wake of a terrorist attack

that affected an entire nation.

2.1 Trauma studies
At its foundation concerning trauma theory lays Josef Breuer’s and Sigmund Freud’s

psychoanalysis of female hysteria in Studies on Hysteria, in which they lay bare the

instigating cause of female hysteria, i.e., the event that provoked the first occurrence.

Subsequent investigations by Freud focused attention on public catastrophes and trauma

related to war, such as paralysis suffered primarily by soldiers, as well as other hysterical

symptoms preventing them from fighting (Ferenczi et al. 15). In Moses and Monotheism,

Freud described the difference in how soldiers react to similar war traumas, and how they

may depend on how far the war situation triggered prior psychic conflicts. In relation to

this, Freud developed the notion of motivated unconsciousness, which aimed to illustrate

how one traumatic event may trigger early traumatic happenings, perhaps already mingled

with fantasy, and shape how the current even is experienced. These discoveries prompted

and paved the way for contemporary theorists which broadened the horizon of what

constitutes as trauma.

          During the late 20th-century, interest in trauma once more spiked, following

traumatic events akin to the Holocaust and genocides such as Bosnia-Herzegovina,

Cambodia and Rwanda, and specific attacks of late, most notably the September 11 attacks.

Hinton, on the topic of genocides, brings about a discussion as he poses the question why

one group of human beings sets out to eradicate another group from the face of the earth.

This marks a clear point in the history of trauma, as he poses the question about what the

origins and processes involved in mass murder are. Moreover, Hinton was one of the first

to raise awareness for “the bodily, material and psychological devastation” that these

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events cause (1). Lieberman, in After Genocide: How Ordinary Jews Face the Holocaust,

expands on Hinton’s ideas, introducing and investigating the concept of collective trauma

in relation to a variety of Jews’ personal experiences. While collective trauma revolves

around the cultural trauma, Lieberman claims that traumatic memory links the individual

with the collective (3). In order to describe these events, their theoretical approach was one

heavily influenced by Freud. In the 1980’s, psychologists became increasingly worried

about female patients presenting symptoms of child sexual abuse, as well “as from treating

more battered women who were now willing to come forward” (Kaplan 33).

          Cathy Caruth, in Unclaimed Experience, delves deeper into the concepts of

personal trauma and delayed trauma in relation to the self, whereby she states that trauma

is “a response, sometimes delayed, to an overwhelming event or set of events, which takes

the form of repeated, intrusive hallucinations, dreams, thoughts or behaviors stemming

from the event” (Trauma 4-5). Caruth also goes on to mention the concept of unclaimed

experience, as she argues that the event is not assimilated or experienced fully at the time,

but “only belatedly in its repeated possession of the one who experiences it” (4-5).

          Van der Kolk argues, in “The Intrusive Part: The Flexibility of Memory and the

Engraving of Trauma”, that trauma is a special form of memory. They claim that “new

experiences can only be understood in the light of prior schemas. The particular internal

and external conditions prevailing at the time an event takes place will affect what prior

meaning schemes are activated” (Trauma 169). This view is supported by Ann Kaplan,

who in The Politics of Terror, reasons that at the time the event takes place, it has “affect

only, not meaning. It produces emotions - terror, fear, shock . . . only the sensation section

of the brain . . . is active during the trauma”. “The meaning-making one, remains shut

down” (Kaplan 34). Caruth argues that just because the traumatic experience has not been

given meaning, the subject is continually haunted by it in dreams, flashbacks, and

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hallucinations (Unclaimed Experience 116). Caruth argues for the emergence of the

meaning of trauma from its bodily referent extended to its psychic extension (116). She

reasons that:

           The impact of trauma . . . is transmitted in psychoanalytic theory not only

           because traumatic experience has there been explained or fully understood but

           also because the encounter with trauma has transformed and estranged the very

           language of psychoanalytic writing (Caruth 116).

           Caruth concludes by stating that the treatment of trauma requires the

incorporation of trauma into a meaningful and sensible story (117). The process of

meaning-making is a complex and interesting one, and one which needs to be looked at

further with regards to the present study that deals with the overcoming of the trauma.

Moreover, Dominick LaCapra, in Writing History, Writing Trauma, argues that the violent

nature, or in a sense the most problematic aspects of the trauma, pursue its victims long

after the initial instance.

           As far as the inner link between trauma theory’s findings and the experiences of

trauma perceived by the individual, one can see a discrepancy in that the language of

survivors and the language of theoretical description, need not necessarily imply a lack of

objectivity or truth, but the “very possibility of speaking from within a crisis that cannot

simply be known or assimilated” (Caruth 117). This creates possibilities in terms of what

can be investigated in literature, which can be said to be a medium in which individuals

can express their feelings. In terms of investigating, it provides the reader to link trauma

theory and the individual stories together, which will be showcased below.

           Kaplan expands on the concept of meaning-making as she argues for the human

need to share and translate traumatic experiences and impact (1). Her view is

complemented by Thomas Laqueur who takes a more nation-wide stance as he argues that

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“nations, like individuals, . . . survive by making sense of what has befallen them, by

constructing a narrative of loss and redemption” (25). The Politics of Terror covers a

variety of problematic aspects of the concept of trauma as a whole as it is preoccupied with

the impact of trauma both on individuals and on entire cultures and nations, and the need to

share and translate these traumatic events (1-2). Kaplan recognizes different degrees and

kinds of trauma, where one suffers terror in a variety of ways. Important to note however,

is that Kaplan’s view includes the impact of a major public event on relatives indirectly

affected by terror attacks (1). For purposes closely linked to this essay, focus will be on the

personal self and the trauma associated with it, as advocated by Kaplan (2). Kaplan is

aware of the intricate nature of the relation between the self and the broader societal

context, and that it is difficult to distinguish between trauma and its impact. I will be

returning to this in the section covering trauma theory as well as the sequential analysis of

the novels.

          Ulrich Baer, in 110 Stories: New York Writes after September 11, paints the

picture of a group of people taking to the pen to digest their (shared) traumatic experiences:

“the stories address the need for narrative in the wake of a disaster . . . [and] their stories

explore the possibilities of language in the face of gaping loss, and register that words

might be all that’s left for the task of finding meaning in – and beyond – the silent, howling

void” (Baer 1). Much of her stance centers around the need of “acting out” traumatic

residues. Baer ultimately goes on to mention that literature resists the call for closure, as

words will continue to linger and live on even after the person has passed away (5).

Finally, it is worth noting that the book works under the premise that there is no single

story to contain the event, and that this recorded collection of literary poetry, dramatic

prose and fiction is one way of dealing with trauma (1). The literary analysis aims to shine

more light on this issue.

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          Wigren, in Narrative Completion in the Treatment of Trauma, brings about a

discussion on incomplete narrative processing of traumatic experiences, which in the long

run “causes symptoms of posttraumatic distress” (417). While this essay does not deal

directly with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, what foregoes the term PTSD is important for

the purpose of this essay. Wigren details two cases in which the narratives are incomplete

as she suggests ways and approaches for clinical practise. More important for the purposes

of this essay is how a lack of closure can trigger PTSD.

          Another interesting concept, problematized by Kaplan, is the possible

differentiation between collective and personal trauma. Throughout this essay, I will argue

for the need to look at a trauma from a personal viewpoint. What follows next is first a

categorical debate on collective and personal trauma, after which I will argue for the need

to use personal trauma as a means for the analysis of this essay.

2.2 Collective Trauma and Personal Trauma

Building upon Caruth’s edited collection on trauma that has been discussed previously,

scholarly focus began to center around the broader definition of the concept of the

suffering of others. For Kaplan, trauma theory bridged the gap between the

political/national structures and its impact on the shaping of ideological and other

discourses of a society in general (36-37). Caruth speaks of both the unspeakability and the

unrepresentability of trauma, connecting it to the broader discourse of whether a traumatic

experience can be collective, personal or both (Trauma). Kaplan, argues that telling stories

about trauma, “even though the story can never actually repeat or represent what happened,

may partly achieve a certain ‘working through’ for the victim” (37). It could also lead to

and permit a kind of empathic “sharing,” which can move people forward after a traumatic

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event (Kaplan 37). This discussions seems to suggest that one must look at trauma in the

novel through the lense of personal trauma, or vicarious trauma, as advocated by Kaplan

(36).

            David Becker, in “Dealing with the Consequences of Organized Violence in

Trauma Work,” breaks down the concept of empathic sharing further. He claims that

“trauma can only be understood with reference to the specific contexts in which it occurs,”

such as cultural norms, political contexts, the exact nature of the event, as well as the

memorialization and organization of the community (1). This claim further supports what

Kaplan states when she mentions that there is no clear-cut distinction between personal and

collective trauma (Kaplan 34). It is further suggested by Becker that people should create

their own definition of trauma within a, for the person, functioning framework, “where the

focus is placed on sequential development of the traumatic situation” (7). This is in line

with what has previously been described above with regards to the working through of a

traumatic event. The consecutive discussion on Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close and

its fictional characters will center around this view, that is, a focus on personal trauma with

the aim to detail the consecutive working through of the traumatic experience.

2.3 First-Hand trauma and Second-Hand trauma - is there such a thing?

The previous section argued for the need to look at trauma through the eyes of the victim,

to better understand one’s specific personal trauma. The debates circled around national

and personal trauma and aimed at describing its overlapping aspects. As a consequence of

the intricate relations between the nation and the state in the American context following

the September 11 attacks, Kaplan identifies a gap, introducing the concept of vicarious

trauma, one which Kaplan claims has been rather overlooked previously. I will argue, as

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does Kaplan, that focus should be put on distinguishing the different positions trauma

survivors have vis-à-vis an event.

            It is therefore necessary and important to dissect the different positions and

contexts of encounters with trauma. This positioning can have an impact on how one reacts

to a trauma as complex as the September 11 attacks proved to be, as supported by Kaplan

(3). At the one end, one can see the direct trauma victim that has been involved in the

traumatic experience. At the other end of the spectrum, there is the person with little to no

personal connection to the victim. The gray zone in-between relates to the different

positions one can have to the event. Kaplan distinguishes between the relatives of the

trauma victims, the position of workers coming in after a catastrophe, those who encounter

trauma through accounts they hear, or clinicians “who may be vicariously traumatized” as

a result of the increasing counseling that is offered to people who survive catastrophes.

            Furthermore, the concept of vicarious trauma is introduced and discussed at

length by Laurie Pearlman and Karen Saakvitne, in Trauma and the Therapist, coming to

the conclusion that vicarious trauma is “the normal and understandable by-product of

personal engagement with clients’ trauma memories and narrative descriptions” (Pearlman,

qtd. in Kaplan 40). While its focus is on therapists and their interaction with clients

subjected for trauma, they argue that the therapists can also become vicariously

traumatized. When applying this theoretical stance, it will be in relation to the so-called

term ‘mediatized trauma,’ which resolves around the encountering of trauma through the

media, being in effect a bystander. As Kaplan further denotes, the September 11 attacks

were responded to in a myriad of ways, depending on people’s national and local contexts,

dissecting the complexity of any given catastrophe (40). It is therefore difficult to fully

distinguish trauma from vicarious trauma.

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2.4 Translating Trauma - Making Meaning Out of Catastrophes

A central theme that is brought up is the psychic identity in relation to traumatic events,

which will be the point of departure concerning the dissection of the novels. Kaplan

reasons that the shattering of the psychic identity can have an intensity “no less violent

than war itself,” but is one which is hard to perceive (4-5). Important to note for the

purpose of this essay, is that Julia Kristeva talks about personal trauma in her

psychoanalytically oriented volume Black Sun, as she mentions that both the violence

stemming from the political and military cataclysms and the personal trauma do damage

“to our systems of perception and representation” (222). In essence, this validates the call

for the concept of trauma not only to be applied to large public events, akin to the

Holocaust, but also to in comparison to other similarly impactful experiences, such as 9/11,

also concerning less impactful events (Kaplan 5).

2.5 Trauma studies in Education, its use and implications

The previous section accounted for a historical background of trauma studies, dealt with

contemporary theorists and suggested ways in which trauma has been and will be studied

with regards to this study. It also showed how (personal) trauma and the self are closely

interwoven in theory, something that the analysis of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

will expand on. The subsequent section details the theory that brings trauma studies to the

foreground in pedagogy, enabling students and teachers to converse on the topic of trauma.

Its aims can be said to be twofold. First, by opening up about trauma studies, teachers can

foster the possibility for students to have an arena in which they can voice their concerns

and discuss these. Secondly, it can aid in helping others to work through the trauma, an

important aspect in trauma studies that must not be overlooked.

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          As far as the curriculum for the Swedish upper secondary school goes, no

official guidelines are provided with regards to how teachers might seek to incorporate

sensitive issues akin to traumatic experiences or other traumas into the classroom. The

syllabus does however allow for personal leeway, under the premise that the teacher elects

the adequate methods that are beneficial for the students. A number of theorists describe

the nature of trauma and its difficulties implementing it adequately for teachers in the

classroom. This can in part be acclaimed to pupils’ responses, as they may not have

worked through it adequately before it is being addressed again and therefore may surface

once more.

          Rachel Spear, in the article “Let Me Tell You a Story”, is an avid advocator of

voicing one’s trauma even with the difficulties that might surround this. Later on in this

essay, this notion is applied to a number of fictional characters. While the precise elements

of how these characters voiced their traumas differ, all seem to have the ability to

overcome the trauma once they had voiced it. I argue that voicing one’s trauma, fuelled by

the previously mentioned statement by Spear, can be one way of overcoming a trauma. As

such, these ideas may be useful for students in the EFL classroom as well. Spear goes on to

argue that teachers should have the opportunity to “simultaneously [teach] trauma

narratives through a lens that embraces purposes and processes in addition to textual

products” (65). In essence, she argues for the need to converse on the subject in the

classroom as well as reading about it in private. This notion is in line with what has been

described previously, that students may need a platform, which enables them to work

through the trauma. Louise DeSalvo also outlines the need for a healing narrative, which

should encompass both positive and negative emotions and acknowledge insight into the

story (57-62). While opinions differ whether or not this narrative needs to be complete,

complex or coherent, it should be mentioned that both authors advocate for the need to

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address and discuss these issues in the classroom. Spear asserts that any trauma “can

become a healing narrative when taught, read, witnessed through healing contexts” (66).

          Moreover, Suzette Henke, in Shattered Subjects: Trauma and Testimony in

Women’s Life-Writing, engages with the idea that one needs to write down one’s trauma

narrative in order to restore the “shattered subject.” It is also much about “reinventing the

shattered self as a coherent subject capable of meaningful resistance to received

ideologies” (xix, emphasis added). The stories of the overcoming of the personal traumas

by the fictional characters, which will be detailed below, may also be useful to students in

the EFL classroom. Another theorist that highlights the writing process in order for the

subject to restore itself is Sonia Apgar, who contends that the healing process to a

“coherent self” should begin with life-writing (15). A problematic aspect, however, that

needs to addressed is the notion that linking trauma and healing should not necessarily

equate healing with a complete, “coherent, healed self” (Spear 65). Rather, as Spear

argues:

          It is necessary to accept and to teach that individuals are somewhat already and

          always shattered and will also be forever changed and will also be forever

          changed because of the trauma - unable to return to the self who once was.

          Instead, they must re-create the self, integrating the trauma through never-ending

          processes of healing (65).

          It is therefore vital, in order to re-create the self, to balance writing and healing,

which enables the subject to re-establish itself into a new identity and a transformed self.

Judith Herman also confirms that storytelling is needed in the creation of a new self, but

notes that this must be done in a sustainable and valid way, and must not be rushed. In

order for the survivor to create a new future, she must develop a new self (196). It aligns

with what Spear advocates for when she mentions that teaching sensitive issues with the

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aforementioned trauma narratives enables pupils to reflect about social constructs and

societal issues (53). This view is accounted for in the syllabus for the upper secondary

school in the English subject. The syllabus states that teaching must cover “living

conditions, attitudes, values, traditions, social issues as well as cultural, historical, political

and cultural conditions in different contexts . . .” (Nat. Ag. f. Ed. “Syllabus En 6”). This

view is in line with what has been discussed previously, as this could include social

consciousness and self-actualization that has been discussed above.

           The reconstruction of the shattered narrative structures is also discussed in

“Regarding the Pain of Self and Other: Trauma Transfer and Narrative Framing in

Jonathan Safran Foer’s Extremely Loud, written by Ilka Saal. Moreover, Victoria Marie

Bryan, in “What about a Teakettle?’: Anxiety, Mourning, and Burial in Jonathan Safran

Foer’s Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”, points to the novel’s strengths as it can

provide students with the opportunity to work through and order traumatic events. Bryan

concludes by stating that these narratives can become important artifacts of healing,

ultimately arguing for the need to include these novels in the EFL classroom (Bryan 274-

75).

           Teaching about trauma is a twofold challenge. On the one hand there is the

benefit of teaching about trauma, despite its negative connotations, as discussed by Mark

Jackett (102). On the other hand, teaching trauma could present its challenges, as discussed

by Julie Rak in “A Woman’s Word and Trauma as Pedagogy”, who takes into account

students’ emotional well-being as she argues that certain pedagogical decisions could

worsen students’ emotional scars and work counter-productive.

            As has been described above, and will be delved deeper into in the analysis, the

voicing of one’s trauma in order to go beyond the trauma can be said to be a central theme.

This voicing can be problematic in the sense that it is a delicate subject and a highly

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personal matter for individuals and students, where one could easily overstep certain pre-

set boundaries. It could also, however, serve as a platform through which teachers can

create inclusive environments and create a sense of collective identity beneficial to all

involved, tending to the students’ personal traumas and the students’ inherent need to voice

or share their traumas. As well as creating inclusive environments, this voicing could also

develop students’ all-round communicative skills. Should teachers choose against working

with students’ personal traumas for reasons previously mentioned, one could also turn to

works of fiction, for examples autobiographies or letters, something that the Swedish

National Agency for Education suggests, seeing that autobiographies fall under ‘living

conditions, and cultural conditions in different parts of the world where English is spoken

(“Syllabus En 6”).

            In conclusion, drawing upon the aforementioned ethical and educational

limitations and possibilities, it is upon teachers to decide if it is relevant and doable to

include in the classroom. It should be stated, however, that lectures on trauma could rub

the established relations in a classroom and create a you vs them mindset, as discussed by

Sarah Philpott. She views teaching about trauma and other controversial issues as a

daunting mission, as she mentions the possibility of a dangerous environment in the

classroom should it be done incorrectly. Philpott argues that “dealing with these issues in

the classroom can disturb the peace and stability of the scholastic environment”, which

could set students against each other (32). Subsequent discussion on this topic should be

read with this notion in mind, and teachers themselves should decide whether or not this

should be included in teaching. The stance I take is that one must not shy away from this

topic and take on these challenges as it poses several possibilities, as it could serve as the

basis in teachers’ attempts to create inclusive environments and create a sense of collective

identity beneficial to all involved.

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3. Trauma studies applied to ‘Extremely Loud and
Incredibly Close’
The previous sections lay bare a framework on trauma studies. The focus on collective and

personal trauma, which the theory section dealt heavily with, can be said to be the starting

point of this discussion. It is supplemented by the meaning-making aspect of trauma, in which

I focus particularly on instances where vicarious trauma is shown.

            What follows next is a thematic analysis of instances where trauma is displaced in

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, in a bid to come to a closer understanding of the many

different interpretations of the word trauma and its effect on people (in)directly involved in it.

It is done through the perspective of a variety of characters, and will showcase how each

character handles the trauma, linking it to the broader framework in which trauma functions

with reference to the theory discussed above.

3.1 Vicarious trauma as displayed by Oskar
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close tells the story of Oskar Schell and how he handles the

loss of his father after the September 11 attacks. Initially, the story captures the family driving

to his dad’s funeral, which happens to showcase that Oskar is indeed fully aware of the

situation, as he remarks that they were not actually “burying him anyway” (Foer 4). What is

apparent however, when one gains insight into Oskar’s thoughts in the first chapter, is that

there seems to be no rhyme or reason to his thoughts. He starts ‘inventing,’ a pastime activity

that keeps him occupied, one can presume to fill the void his dad has left. In many ways, it is

a coping strategy which enables him to start working through the trauma that he has

experienced. For example, Oskar mentions that that night, in bed:

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         I invented a special drain that would be underneath every pillow in New York, and

         would connect to the reservoir. Whenever people cried themselves to sleep, the tears

         would all go to the same place, and in the morning the weatherman could report if

         the water level of the Reservoir of Tears had gone up or down (Foer 38).

         Moreover, he starts to question his existence and the love of his mother, when he

worries about whether his mother still loves him: “Don’t be mad at me’, I said, and I reached

over Grandma and opened and closed the door’s lock a couple of times. ‘I’m not mad at you,’

she said. ‘Not even a little?’ ‘No.’ ‘Do you still love me?” (Foer 7). While reflecting on the

weeks immediately following September 11, Oskar mentions that “a few weeks after the

worst day, [he] started writing lots of letters”, as it was the only thing that made his boots

lighter (Foer 5). As displayed by Caruth previously, for whom trauma was a delayed response

to an overwhelming event, Oskar, by taking to the pen, tries to assimilate the event fully in his

conscious mind (169). His does this, moreover, also when he writes his letter to Stephen

Hawking, whom he wishes to be assistant for (Foer 11-12). The term ‘heavy boots’, which

Oskar introduces early on in the novel, is a term used to describe the moments he feels down

the most, such as when Oskar pays a visit to his neighbor, Mr. Black. Mr. Black owns a

collection of personalized cards, names of people who are biographically significant to him.

The following passage signals Oskar’s use of the term ‘heavy boots’:

         [Mr. Black] asked what was wrong. ‘It’s just that why would you have one for

         [Mohammed Atta] and not one for my dad?’ ‘What do you mean!’ ‘It isn’t fair.’

         ‘What isn’t fair!’ ‘My dad was good. Mohammed Atta was evil.’ ‘So!’ ‘So my dad

         deserves to be in there.’ ‘What mesk you think it’s good to be in here!’ ‘Because it

         means you’re biographically significant.’ ‘And why is that good!’ ‘I want to be

         significant.’ ‘Nine out of ten significant people have to do with money and war!’ But

         still, it gave me heavy, heavy boots (Foer 159).

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         The quote is an exemplification of unclaimed experience, as he still has vivid

associations with his dad, seeking his name wherever and whenever he goes. It is clear that

the event and the subsequent mental healing has not taken place, or at least not yet fully at the

time of this passage. Caruth mentions that as soon as a person comes to terms with the

unclaimed experience, it opens up for the subsequent mental healing that needs to take place

(4-5). It would seem that Oskar is headed in the same direction as well.

         The concept of loss is another element of personal trauma that is displayed in the

novel, something that Oskar elaborates on. This concept takes from elements from several

broader concepts, for example as part of the personal trauma advocated by both Caruth and

Kaplan; and vicarious trauma as defined by Kaplan and Pearlman. In the limousine who takes

the family to Oskar’s father’s funeral, Oskar’s mother wears a bracelet Oskar made her. Oskar

explains to the reader that he converted his father’s last voice message into Morse code, using

sky-blue beads for silence, maroon beads for breaks between letters, violet beads for breaks

between words and long and short pieces of string between the beads for long and short beads

(Foer 35). This notion is in line with what Kaplan discussed in Trauma Culture, when she

stated that actions such as these are part of a working through for the victim (37).

       Being the reflective type, Oskar makes further comments with regards to this working

through the trauma, as he comments on what things still make him have an “extremely

difficult time” while doing certain things: “getting into elevators, obviously” (Foer 36). The

following statement, made by Oskar, aligns with the term ‘heavy boots’, which describes his

struggle with his life. On this ‘extremely difficult time’, Oskar remarks that

       There was a lot of stuff that made me panicky, like suspension bridges,

       germs, airplanes, fireworks, Arab people on the subway, . . . Arab people in

       restaurants and coffee shops and other public spaces, scaffolding, sewers and

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       subway grates, bags without owners, shoes, people with mustaches, smoke,

       knots, tall buildings, turbans (36).

       This paragraph displays Oskar’s apparent struggles to make meaning of the traumatic

experience as he projects his memory of the attack and its subsequent associations onto new

subjects. Caruth and Kaplan, respectively, see meaning-making as a cognitive process in

which the event is registered cognitively in the brain (Caruth 117). Caruth argues that just

because the traumatic experience has not been given meaning, the subject is continually

haunted by it in dreams, flashbacks and hallucinations (118). Oskar experiences associations

as he projects his fear of the attacks on to the people that surround him. When Oskar goes out

to travel to the first person with the name Black on the list, he decides to walk to the house,

which takes him three hours and forty-one minutes, instead of using the subway to get to his

destination quicker, for the simple reason that public transportation makes him panicky (Foer

87). The travels Oskar undertakes are part of a search for the lock to a key he has found in his

father’s closet, hidden inside a vase. With the key, Oskar finds a note with the name Black.

Oskar interprets, from this note, that he has to look for the lock and he starts by looking up all

the ‘Blacks’ in New York City, travelling to them to question them about the lock. He finds

this lock around one year after has passed away in the September 11 attacks.

       One year after the September 11 attacks, Oskar pays a visit to Dr. Fein, a psychiatrist,

as he states that “[he’s there] because it upsets my mom that I’m having an impossible time

with my life” (Foer 201). Dr. Fein then initiates a conversation:

          When you say that you’re having an impossible time what do you mean?’

          ‘I’m constantly emotional.’ ‘Are you emotional right now?’ ‘I’m

          extremely emotional right now.’ ‘What emotions are you feeling?’ ‘All of

          them.’ . . . ‘Right now I’m feeling sadness, happiness, anger, love, guilt,

          joy, shame, and a little bit of humor . . . (201).

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          At the end of the conversation, Dr. Fein suggests that it might be puberty that is at

the core of Oskar’s dramatic emotional changes in his life. Oskar counters this claim by

stating that it is because “[his] dad died the most horrible death that anyone could ever invent”

(201). This line can be accredited to Caruth’s and Kaplan’s insistence on the unspeakability

and unrepresentability of trauma. As Kaplan denotes, “telling stories about trauma, even

though the story can never actually repeat or represent what happened, may partly achieve a

certain working through for the victim” (Kaplan 37).

          Even when Oskar is not immediately thinking of his father, associations and

inventions that can be linked to trauma are noticeable nonetheless. When paying a visit to his

grandmother, after finding out she is not there to meet him at the door, he starts making up

and inventing situations: “either she was hit by a cab, she’d fallen from a ladder at the library

and cracked her skull or she was unconscious at the bottom of the swimming pool”. Oskar is

aware of the negativity of his thoughts, but claims that the pessimistic inventions were

“extremely loud” (Foer 235).

          What he finds instead of his grandmother is a chest of drawers, each drawer filled

to the rim with envelopes tied together in bundles. When he finds out the envelopes are

organized chronologically, starting from May 13, 1963, mailed from Dresden, Germany, he

notices one envelope has been mailed every day, all the way to what he calls the worst day,

that is, the day of the attacks (Foer 235). Curiosity getting the best of him, he decides to open

one, but finds that it is empty. The chapter revolves around his encounter with his grandfather,

whom at first he does not recognize. After initially meeting his grandfather, Oskar goes on to

ask what his grandfather’s story is. As his grandfather seems reluctant to share, in part

because he is mute and unable to express himself via speech, Oskar asks him if it would be

okay if he shared his. This can be seen as a coping mechanism, in a bid to go over the

traumatic experience, and the slow rebuilding of his shattered psychic identity (Kaplan 5).

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After this lengthy conversation, Oskar himself comes to the conclusion that the search for the

lock was a simple preoccupation of his mind. It can be interpreted that this revelation,

pertaining to the previous discussion on trauma studies, is a way for Oskar to cope with the

traumatic experience of his father’s passing.

          Oskar then recalls his traumatic experience with the Staten Island Ferry, who Mr.

Black had to convince him to get on (240). He relates the potential catastrophic nature of the

experience to the attacks, when he states that it was a potential target. In his book Stuff That

Happened to Me, Oskar puts pictures of people “who had lost their arms and legs” (Foer 240).

In a similar fashion to LaCapra, who argues for the different ways in which social violence

pursues its victims long after the traumatic experience ends (5), so is the book a direct

consequence of his first-hand experiences. Oskar later goes on to mention that “so what about

while I’m on the ferry? What if it sinks? . . . What if it’s hit with a shoulder-fired missile?”

(Foer 240) This further shows how Oskar projects his trauma and fears of the attack on other

experiences.

          Even the chapter’s title “Alive and Alone” can be seen as a symbolic description of

the traumatic experience, also showcasing Oskar’s apparent struggles (Foer 234). It

symbolizes a void which can not be filled.

          As a direct consequence of the attacks, Oskar experiences emotional outbursts at

several instances in the book, which can be linked the term psychic trauma shaped by Caruth

(116). After hearing from Mr. Black who decides not to tag along anymore in their mutual

quest for the lock, Oskar voices his need for emotional outbursts (Foer 254). Reflecting on his

search for the lock, Oskar states that he misses his dad more now than when [he] started,

“even though the whole point was to stop missing him” (Foer 255). These emotional outbursts

can further be exemplified with the conversation Oskar has with a psychiatrist. Here, Oskar,

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in a non-excusable manner starts screaming at the man shortly before the session ends (202-

203). When Oskar gets home that day, he utters the following words:

           All I wanted was to fall asleep that night, but all I could do was invent.

           What about frozen planes, which could be safe from heat-seeking missiles?

           What about subway turnstiles that were also radiation detection? What

           about incredibly long ambulances that connected every building to a

           hospital? What about parachutes in fanny packs? What about guns with

           sensors in the handles that could detect if you were angry, and if you were,

           they wouldn’t fire, even if you were a police officer? (Foer 258-59).

          As a result of the breaking down of Oskar’s psychic identity, his identity seeks a

way to come closer to his dad, but inconveniences such as Mr. Black’s absence, or for that

matter, that he has been looking for so long without finding anything, make him no longer

believe in the lock (Foer 287). When the plot reaches its climax, Oskar finds out why his mom

let him out in the first place. It seems as if Oskar has found a way to move on beyond the

traumatic experience and in essence slowly build up his shattered psychic identity again,

which his mother recognizes and can be said to be the main reason Oskar is allowed to travel

on his own. During this moment, Oskar utters: “I went up to my laboratory, but I didn’t feel

like performing any experiments. I didn’t feel like playing tambourine . . . or looking through

Stuff That Happened to Me” (Foer 287-288). This showcases that Oskar feels reluctant to look

in his book since it is what is causing him to experience relapses. His more progressive

mindset is also visible when Oskar looks at the telephone, a newer one than they had had

when Oskar’s father phoned him: [the new phone] “looked back at me. Whenever it would

ring, I’d scream, ‘The phone’s ringing!’ because I didn’t want to touch it. I didn’t even want

to be in the same room with it” (Foer 288). Shortly after, Oskar presses the Message Play

button, as he remarks that it is something which he has not done since the worst day (Foer

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288). What follows next in the book comes as a revelation for Oskar, as he realizes that he

message had been cut short, because his mother had answered the phone. Being in the

reflective state Oskar is in, in part because of the permanent mark the September 11 attacks,

he comes to a revelating conclusion:

          They knew I was coming. Mom had talked to all of them before I had. Even Mr.

          Black was part of it. He must have known I was going to knock on his door that day

          . . . She probably told him to go around with me, and keep me company, and keep

          me safe. Probably Grandma knew. Probably even the renter. . . . My search was a

          play that Mom had written, and she knew the ending when I was at the beginning

          (Foer 291-292).

          What he does not yet realize is that his mom had been supportive of him coming

closer to his dad, as she thought Oskar needed a mission that would detract from his mourning

and which may even have been good for Oskar to undergo. Finally, this progressive mindset

is part of the creation of a self-owned definition of trauma as dealt with by Becker (14).

          Even though one can clearly see Oskar’s more progressive mindset, as it shows

signs of healing, Oskar still makes references to his dad throughout the latter stages of his

search. When visiting another Black on the list, Oskar reflects: “there were incredibly

beautiful views out of the windows, which Dad would have loved” (Foer 292). The

progressive mindset can be seen in his next utterance, as Oskar states that he did not look at

any of it, and that he did not take any pictures. In fact, Oskar claims he has never been so

concentrated in his life, “because I’d never been closer to the lock” (Foer 292). While in the

next stanza, Oskar mentions that William Black, a Black whose name was on the list, was

about the same age that his Dad would have been (Foer 292). In the conversation that follows,

Oskar makes more references to his dad, because anything that could possibly bring Oskar

closer to his dad is worth knowing about, even if it might hurt Oskar (Foer 293-295).

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In the conversation that follows, William Black reveals he had been looking for the key, as he

states that the key opens a safe-deposit box (Foer 295). As William Black reveals details

about his father’s life, Oskar himself parallels many of the characteristics of William’s father

to his own character. William’s father had, shortly after having been diagnosed with cancer,

started writing letters obsessively. It was as if he was trying to say his goodbyes: “He wrote to

people he barely knew. If he hadn’t already been sick, his letters would have been his

sickness” (Foer 296). Much like Caruth reasons, the traumatic experience of the passing of

Oskar’s father has become a sickness, a wound that still hurts months after the actual attacks

(37).

         William Black’s own experiences with death and his father can be paralleled to

Oskar’s own experiences. While the exact parameters are subsequently different (William and

his father were never close while Thomas and Oskar were), it seems both William and Oskar

seem to want to get closer to their respective fathers. In an attempt to deal with his father’s

death, William states that he wishes his father wrote him a letter in which he stated he was

sorry, but instead, his father wrote about the “business-like things that feel so inappropriate to

think about when someone has died” (Foer 297). At the end of the letter, William reveals, his

father wrote about a safe-deposit box in which he had left something which he would hope

William would understand why he wanted him to have it (Foer 298). The key, housed in the

blue vase, was sold to Thomas. Oskar, in an attempt to finally put it to rest, asks about details

concerning the conversation Thomas and Williams had at the estate sale:

         I wished he could remember even more details, like if Dad had unbuttoned his shirt’s

         top button, or if he smelled like shaving, or if he whistled ‘I Am the Walrus.’ Was he

         holding a New York Times under his arm? Were his lips chapped? Was there a red

         pen in his pocket? (Foer 298).

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        Williams needed to find Oskar’s dad to come closer to understanding his own father.

In the same way, Oskar undergoes a search for the lock which the key opens in order to say

his final goodbyes to his father, and the search can be seen as a way for Oskar to handle and

process the trauma. William is aware of this, as he remarks that he knows Oskar is looking for

something too, but that this might not be it (Foer 300). Following a confessional statement in

which he details the substance of the voicemails, he meets up with the renter, whom asks him

where he was:

          I told him, I found the lock’ ‘You found it?’ I nodded. ‘And?’ ‘I didn’t know what

          to say. I found it and now I can stop looking? I found it and it had nothing to do

          with Dad? I found it and now I’ll wear heavy boots for the rest of my life? ‘I wish I

          hadn’t found it’ . . . ‘Looking for it let me stay close to him for a little while

          longer.’ But won’t you always be close to him?’ I knew the truth. ‘No. (Foer 303-

          304).

          The story reaches its ending when Oskar and the renter decide to open up Thomas’

grave, following a revelating thought Oskar has. It is a simple solution to an impossible

problem according to him (Foer 321). In that exact moment, Oskar says: “Why would you

want to do that? I told him, ‘Because it’s the truth, and Dad loved the truth.’ ‘What truth?’

‘That he’s dead” (Foer 321). Asked about what Oskar plans on doing once they dig open the

grave, his initial reaction is to fill it. This instance can be paralleled to what Baer (1) and

Michael (5) discuss about the filling of an unfillable void caused by a traumatic experience.

The renter asks the obvious question: what they would fill it with. Oskar argues that:

          At first I suggested filling the coffin with things from Dad’s life, like his

          red pens or his jeweler’s magnifying glass . . . or even his tuxedo. . . . But

          the more we discussed it, the less sense it made, because what good would

          that do, anyway? Dad wouldn’t be able to use them, because he was dead,