Epic, Trauma, and Affective Practice in Carpentaria

Abstract

This article draws on my concept of “cyclical haunting,” which describes the autonomous force of structural trauma in which traumatic transmissions feed into and out of individual and collective experience. I propose a new, related concept of “epic trauma” as the mode through which Carpentaria witnesses and testifies to historical trauma and its intergenerational transmissions. I argue that the spooked relationship between familial, community, and cultural-historical contexts in Wright’s masterpiece explicates pre-invasion relations circulating over time and across generations complicated by ingrained injustices, racist attitudes, and unethical Western practices and that Wright’s employment of the literary device of the (anti-colonial) epic is central to that project.I also consider Carpentaria through a traumatic-affective practice lens, focussing on the role of humour in sustaining an essentially tragic epic narrative. describes affective practice as “the emotional as it appears in social life”. Viewing the text in terms of affective practice and considering humour enables a more nuanced understanding of how Wright crafts her blend of trauma testimony, affective agency, spirited resistance, and sophisticated homage to Aboriginal cultural life, both traditional and contemporary.