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Narrating Trauma: Youth, Masculinity, and Storytelling in the Midst of War Eastern Illinois University The Keep Masters Theses Student Theses & Publications 2019 Narrating Trauma: Youth, Masculinity, and Storytelling in the Midst of War Rebekah Smith Eastern Illinois University Follow this and additional works at: https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Smith, Rebekah, "Narrating Trauma: Youth, Masculinity, and Storytelling in the Midst of War" (2019). Masters Theses. 4675. https://thekeep.eiu.edu/theses/4675 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Theses & Publications at The Keep. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of The Keep. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Graduate School� U'\"11'1\,'ili.LN�S UN!VER.51"1-Y- Thesis Maintenance and Reproduction Certificate FOR: Graduate Candidates Completing Theses in Partial Fulfillment of the Degree Graduate Faculty Advisors Directing the Theses RE: Preservation, Reproduction, and Distribution of Thesis Research Preserving, reproducing, and distributing thesis research is an important part of Booth Library's responsibility to provide access to scholarship. In order to further this goal, Booth library makes all graduate theses completed as part of a degree program at Eastern Illinois University available for personal study, research, and other not-for­ profit educational purposes. Under 17 U.S.C. § 108, the library may reproduce and distribute a copy without infringing on copyright; however, professional courtesy dictates that permission be requested from the author before doing so. Your signatures affirm the following: •The graduate candidate is the author of this thesis. •The graduate candidate retains the copyright and intellectual property rights associated with the original research, creative activity, and intellectual or artistic content of the thesis. •The graduate candidate certifies her/his compliance with federal copyright law (Title 17 of the U. S. Code) and her/his right to authorize reproduction and distribution of all copyrighted materials included in this thesis. •The graduate candidate in consultation with the faculty advisor grants Booth Library the nonexclusive, perpetual right to make copies of the thesis freely and publicly available without restriction, by means of any current or successive technology, including but not limited to pl:iotocopying, microfilm, digitization, or internet. •The graduate candidate acknowledges that by depositing her/his thesis with Booth library, her/his work is available for viewing by the public and may be borrowed through the library's circulation and interlibrary loan departments, or accessed electronically. The graduate candidate acknowledges this policy by indicating in the following manner: /Yes, I wish to make accessible this thesis for viewing by the public ___No, I wish to quarantine the thesis temporarily and have included the Thesis Withholding Request Form •The graduate candidate waives the confidentiality provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U. S. C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) with respect to the contents of the thesis and with respect to information concerning authorship of the thesis, including name and status as a student at Eastern Illinois University. I have conferred with my graduate faculty advisor. My signature below indicates that I have read and agree with the above statements, and hereby give my permission to allow Booth Library to reproduce and d�tri.bute IT}Ythe�is. M¥-adviser's �ftature indicates concurrence to reproduce and distribute the thesis. Narrating Trauma: Youth, Masculinity, and Storytelling in the Midst of War (TITLE) BY Rebekah Smith THESIS SUBMITIED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF Master of Arts in English IN THE GRADUATE SCHOOL, EASTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY CHARLESTON, ILLINOIS 2019 YEAR I HEREBY RECOMMEND THAT THIS THESIS BE ACCEPTED AS FULFILLING THIS PART OF THE GRADUATE DEGREE CITED ABOVE Acknowledgements First, thank you to my thesis adviser, Dr. Melissa Caldwell, forher guidance and encouragement throughout this process. Thank you to my readers, Dr. Dagni Bredesen and Dr. Daiva Markelis, fortheir support and feedback. Thank you to my fam ily fortheir support through my undergraduate and graduate studies and the start of my teaching career. Thank you to my fiance, Cody, forhis love and support every step of the way, for helping with historical research, and talking through sections with me. I could not have done this without all of you. Table of Contents Chapter 1: The Invisible Wounds of War: The Navigation of Narration of Trauma .......1 Chapter 2: PTSD and Storytelling in the Iraq War: A Misguided Archaeology ........ ....27 Chapter 3: Innocence in the Face of Combat: The Epidemic of the Child Soldier. ...... ..60 Chapter 4: Hegemonic Masculinity: A Barrier to Psychological Treatment........ ......... 88 Works Cited ........................................................................................109 Chapter 1 The Invisible Wounds of War: The Navigation and Narration of Trauma The changes in war and combat have made an impact during the late 20th century and early 21st century, both on soldiers and civilians. This thesis project focuses on the young males fighting by the U.S. armed forces during the Iraq War and child soldiers fighting with rebel and militant forces during civil wars. It will discuss the nature of trauma, the specific experiences and narratives of each group, and finish with a discussion of masculinity following combat trauma. The Iraq War was fought by an all volunteer military, while countless African children have been kidnapped into rebel forces during civil wars. Whether experiencing war as an active participant in combat or as an innocent bystander, the trauma resulting from witnessing and causing death can be life altering and long lasting. For those returning home from war, physical wounds are far more noticeable than mental wounds, and thus are more identifiable and treatable. After experiencing combat and trauma, veterans and former child soldiers often feel undeniably different, as if they no longer fit in with the "normal" world around them. They have been shaped by their experiences, and they have psychological scars that are not always visibly evident. As a result, the recovery process can be incredibly difficult, especially when the survivors are uninformed or underinformed about psychological trauma or when they resist treatment due to stigmas surrounding mental illness. Through the process of storytelling, however, these invisible wounds can become more evident, and the stigmas can begin to fade in a way that will lead to understanding and recovery. In war narratives, veteran American soldiers and African former child soldiers use their stories as a means of healing and better understanding their trauma. 1 In his co-written fictional narrative about his experiences rehabilitating former child soldiers, Ricky Richard Anywar uses the metaphor of a tree to explain psychological trauma to a child. He takes the boy to a tree that was struck by lightning. He explains, "The wounds on the outside [of the tree], if treated, eventually scab over and heal, but they're always visible ...Decades after a strike a person may come across the tree and know by its scars the violence it has suffered.But often those are not the wounds that kill" (Hutton Soldier Boy 64-65). Ricky Anywar is referring to the cuts in the bark of the tree and the dead limbs, but metaphorically he is talking about physical wounds that soldiers have. If someone sees physical scars or missing body parts, it is immediately known that the person has experienced trauma.He then explains that "It is the invisible wounds that are fatal.The wounds that run so deep they paralyze the heartwood and deaden the roots" (Hutton 65). He is talking about the wounds hidden beneath the bark of the tree, which are representative of the mental wounds that plague survivors of war and combat veterans but are not outwardly visible. Ricky Anywar finally explains that most trees survive long after the lightning strike and do not die until years later. He says, "From the outside they look almost normal, but inside the damage done by the lightning eats away at the tree, leaving it rotted ...empty .. .lifeless" (Hutton 65). Left untreated, these mental wounds could lead to the death of the former child soldier or veteran of combat. In a recent Th e Ne w Yo rk Times article, Jennifer Steinhauer reported that there are "approximately 20 suicide deaths every day among veterans, about one and a half times more often than those who have not served in the military" (Steinhauer). This higher suicide rate seems to correlate with the trauma that combat veterans have experienced. The trauma can also compound with potentially negative 2 reception when they return home or a lack of available job opportunities for the veterans. Rehabilitation centers and resources are available both during their transition home and after their return.Nevertheless, not all of those returning with mental wounds are open about their challenges or even knowledgeable about them, which leads to a lack of treatment for those that desperately need it. For some, shame and embarrassment prevents them from seeking treatment, but for others, they simply do not have an understanding of their condition. Many people, not just those returning fromcombat, are undereducated about PTSD and its signs and symptoms, and a greater understanding would lead to more productive conversations and support during treatment of PTSD. These mental wounds can have immense impacts on future development, especially when incurred at a young age. For children and adolescents who have experienced trauma,which includes child soldiers and young men in the U.S. armed services, the adolescent stage of brain . development greatly affects their reaction to their experiences. Since the age at which the brain is fully developed is twenty-five, and fora child or adolescent, the impact of trauma prior to the brain's complete development changes the way in which they think, cope, and make decisions.
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