جۆری توێژینه‌وه‌ : Original Article

نوسه‌ر

• Suhair Fuaad AL- Duhoki

Department of English Language, College of Languages and Human Sciences, University of Garmian

پوخته‌

African American went through centuries of repeated cruelties, disgrace, and segregation, along with psychological domination leaving its influences and imprints on their personalities. Distorted personality, seemingly, has become an identical feature of the African American males; it stuck to their characters even after gaining literal freedom from slavery. The purpose of this study is to explore the traumatic experience of the African American male protagonist in an African American novel; Toni Morrison’s, Home (2012). The study examines the impact of repeated form of trauma on male personality. Morrison typifies African American male's role and behavior in society and family –in the mid- 20th century. The main aim here is to expose the traumatic experience impacts on the protagonist, Frank, showing how it consequently affects the social constructed aspect of his personality. The analysis employs the concept of the complex post-traumatic stress disorder which is introduced fully in Judith Herman’s book, Trauma and Recovery. Herman gives insights into the theory from psychological thinking relying on the studies of her own and of other previous researches in the field of psychological trauma. This study traces the origin of the existing misunderstanding caused by some African Americans’ behaviours. Studying the novel and probing the impacts of chronic trauma on the character's personality clarifies and even justifies many social performances like violence and passivity. Moreover, African Americans trauma is not a single traumatic experience, but a chronic one. In effect, it is the male characters complex traumatic syndrome which defines their masculinity.