Importance of the Past: The Cathartic Effect of Reliving Memories in Female Irish Short Stories

Abstract

This thesis is concerned with the treatment of the themes of memory and trauma in Irish short stories written by female authors. The authors in the text use memory as a way to explore both personal and cultural trauma; the contemporary works show a shift in this treatment, a movement towards catharsis through narrative psychotherapy. Additionally, not only do these characters undergo the process of confronting traumas, but the authors themselves also use their texts as a way to confront their own Anglo-Irish identity and the associated turmoil.