Witnessing Trauma: Psychoanalysis, Memory, and the Ethics of Representation in Pat Barker's Fiction

Abstract

This paper examines the representation of trauma, war, and memory in Pat Barker’s fiction through psychoanalytic and intertextual frameworks. Focusing on key texts such as Regeneration, The Ghost Road, and Double Vision, the study explores how Barker draws on historical documents, case studies, and memoirs to construct narratives that blur the boundary between fact and fiction. Intertextual allusions deepen the engagement with collective memory, while psychoanalytic theory elucidates how trauma resurfaces through language, dreams, and silences. Barker's use of visual ethics, gender and class consciousness, and the ethics of witnessing is highlighted, demonstrating how her work personalizes trauma and situates it within broader cultural and societal contexts. This layered, ethically charged narrative landscape challenges accepted histories and amplifies marginalized voices.