“Through sheer numbers, women writers have dominated the contemporary literary scene in the South – that is, since World War II” (Bennett 987). Among them is the talented Pulitzer Prize winner Shirley Ann Grau, who sheds a fresh, new light to common southern themes incorporating them into narratives touched not only by her personal perspective, but also the collective southern heritage and consciousness. The subject matter of my paper will be one of Grau’s short stories entitled “Homecoming”. In this short, yet meaningful account of everyday life in the American South during the Vietnam War Grau unearths a string of relations between life and death, the present and the past, remembering and forgetting, pride and honor as well as patriotism and egoism. She focuses mainly on what remains, but never forgets to neglect what has gone. The strongly southern theme of nostalgia for the lost past is questioned in “Homecoming” as the protagonist struggles to detach herself from the memory of all those who failed to come home. In this paper I would like to primarily focus on the importance of memory as a factor shaping the southern identity.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Biography of Shirley Ann Grau
3. Socio-cultural Background
4. Textual Analysis
4.1. Plot
4.1.1. Overview
4.1.2. Structure
4.2. Setting
4.2.1. Time
4.2.2. Location
4.2.3. Circumstances
4.3. Analysis of Characters
4.3.1. Main Characters
4.3.1.1. Susan
4.3.1.2. Susan’s Mother
4.3.2. Minor Characters
4.3.2.1. Harold Carter
4.3.2.2. Susan’s Father
4.3.2.3. The Bensons and the Watkins
4.4. Themes and Motifs
4.4.1. War/The Vietnam War and Trauma
4.4.2. Memory
4.4.3. The Porch as a Place of Storytelling and Stability
4.5. Narrative Technique
5. Conclusion
Research Objectives and Themes
The primary objective of this paper is to examine Shirley Ann Grau's short story "Homecoming" to analyze how memory functions as a critical factor in shaping southern identity during the Vietnam War era. The study focuses on the protagonist's internal struggle to differentiate between authentic personal experience and the imposed, often hollow, narratives of heroism and loss perpetuated by the older generation.
- The intersection of personal trauma and the collective southern historical consciousness.
- The dichotomy between the "honorable warrior" myth and the reality of war-related psychological damage.
- The role of the southern domestic space—specifically the porch—in maintaining social stability and transmitting folklore.
- The psychological development of the protagonist as she seeks autonomy from inherited grief.
- Narrative techniques, including figural third-person narration and interior monologue, used to convey subjective experience.
Excerpt from the Book
4.1.1. Overview
The story begins rather innocently when a telegram is placed in the middle of the table in the dining room. This is immediately noticed by the main character of the story, Susan, who briefly inquires why her mother did so.
“It’s something to be proud of,” (159) is her mother’s answer. The reader is then informed that Susan’s mother is expecting a rather large amount of guests. Further on in the story Grau gives the reader clues concerning the reason of this gathering e.g. “black dress”, “The army told Harold’s parents”, “…pain in my heart…”, etc. (159-161). It is important to note that Grau simultaneously confuses the reader by giving signals of joy and pride such as “white shirts”, “ice bucket and a bottle of sherry and two bottles of bourbon”, “flowered dresses”, “faint flower scent”, “wedding band”, “piqué dress” (159-162). Thereby, at the beginning of the narrative the reader does not really know what to expect. He/she does not know whether the guests have come to celebrate or grieve. Even when inspecting the telegram later on in the story Susan comes to the conclusion that it is “like a wedding invitation […] Only just the opposite” (167).
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Presents the author Shirley Ann Grau and establishes the analytical focus on memory and identity in her short story "Homecoming".
2. Biography of Shirley Ann Grau: Outlines the life of the author, focusing on her literary career, education, and the influence of the American South on her writing.
3. Socio-cultural Background: Describes the setting of the Vietnam War and its unique reception and perceived overtones within the American South.
4. Textual Analysis: Provides a comprehensive breakdown of the story's plot, setting, character dynamics, themes, and narrative style.
4.1. Plot: Examines the narrative structure and the central events surrounding the arrival of a telegram.
4.1.1. Overview: Offers an initial summary of the opening scene and the atmospheric confusion established by the author.
4.1.2. Structure: Proposes a chronological breakdown of the narrative flow and the internal psychological progression of the protagonist.
4.2. Setting: Details the temporal and physical environment of the narrative.
4.2.1. Time: Establishes the early 1970s and the specific timing of the war events referenced in the story.
4.2.2. Location: Identifies the southern household as a central trope and analyzes the cultural significance of the porch.
4.2.3. Circumstances: Discusses the social pressures of the Vietnam War on southern families and the "honorable warrior" myth.
4.3. Analysis of Characters: Evaluates the psychological depth and motivations of the characters in the story.
4.3.1. Main Characters: Focuses on the development of the protagonist and the mother figure.
4.3.1.1. Susan: Analyzes the protagonist’s skepticism toward traditional mourning and her journey toward psychological independence.
4.3.1.2. Susan’s Mother: Explores the mother’s reliance on hypocrisy and past tragedy to cope with her current reality.
4.3.2. Minor Characters: Examines figures that serve as catalysts or foils for the main characters.
4.3.2.1. Harold Carter: Discusses the soldier whose death serves as the story's focal point.
4.3.2.2. Susan’s Father: Analyzes the role of the father as a background figure used to mirror the mother’s denial.
4.3.2.3. The Bensons and the Watkins: Highlights the role of veterans and family friends in perpetuating war narratives.
4.4. Themes and Motifs: Investigates the core conceptual pillars of the narrative.
4.4.1. War/The Vietnam War and Trauma: Addresses the clinical and societal manifestations of trauma linked to the Vietnam conflict.
4.4.2. Memory: Discusses the duty of memory vs. the necessity of forgetting for personal psychological survival.
4.4.3. The Porch as a Place of Storytelling and Stability: Explains the cultural significance of the porch in the southern literary tradition.
4.5. Narrative Technique: Describes the author’s use of figural narration and interior monologue to access the protagonist’s inner world.
5. Conclusion: Summarizes the findings regarding female psychic development and the portrayal of war victims in "Homecoming".
Keywords
Homecoming, Shirley Ann Grau, Vietnam War, Southern Literature, Memory, Trauma, Identity, Female Perspective, Mourning, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Narrative Technique, Cultural History, American South, Psychological Portrait, Storytelling
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental subject of this academic paper?
The paper analyzes Shirley Ann Grau’s short story "Homecoming," exploring the complex relationship between memory, trauma, and identity within a southern American context during the Vietnam War.
What are the central themes explored in the text?
The primary themes include the societal pressure to mourn according to established norms, the psychological impact of war on those left behind, and the role of memory in shaping or hindering personal autonomy.
What is the primary research goal of this work?
The author aims to investigate how Susan, the protagonist, struggles to define her identity while caught between the duty to remember the dead and the need to distance herself from the inherited, false myths of heroism.
Which scientific methodology is utilized here?
The paper employs literary and narratological analysis, utilizing textual evidence and secondary scholarly research to evaluate character development, narrative structure, and cultural symbolism.
What does the main body of the paper cover?
The main body systematically analyzes the plot structure, the socio-cultural context of the Vietnam War, character psychological profiles, and the symbolic importance of the southern home environment.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Homecoming, Southern Literature, Trauma, Memory, Vietnam War, Identity, and Narrative Technique.
How does the author interpret the significance of the "porch" in the story?
The paper identifies the porch as a traditional southern space of stability and social storytelling, serving as the setting where both the folklore of the past and the traumatic accounts of veterans are transmitted.
How is Susan's mother characterized in the context of the story?
Susan's mother is described as a character suffering from post-traumatic stress, using the gathering of guests to mask her own pain and to perpetuate a glorified, hypocritical view of military loss.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Bachelor Katharina Eder (Autor:in), 2010, „It Ain’t Easy to Forget" - Trauma and Memory in Shirley Ann Grau’s "Homecoming", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/171960
