Family and Intergenerational Trauma: A Comparative Analysis of Shafaq’s Honour and Lahiri’s The Namesake

Abstract

The current study is a comparative exploration of intergenerational trauma within families and its effects on the various characters of the selected fiction namely, Shafak’s Honour (2012) and Lahiri’s The Namesake (2009). This qualitative inquiry is based on the close-text analysis of the selected passages. The theoretical framework employed in this paper borrows concepts from Familial Trauma theory. This research explores the following aspects: Firstly, it examines the intergenerational trauma within families. Secondly, it focuses on the ways the characters are left vulnerable and react to their corresponding trauma. Lastly, the research also explores the possible gender differences as a response to trauma. The research is significant in its understanding of the multi- faceted display of trauma within the generation of families and its role in shaping the life trajectories of the various characters, collectively as well as individually.