Posttraumatic reflection in the american post – 9/11 novel

It is noteworthy that the author describes in great detail the game of poker. The rules, invented by the players, resemble a real ritual, which later will still be destroyed. There is a parallel with the rituals of terrorists and their strict rules of conduct. Most likely the author wanted to show that it is more convenient for people to create rules around themselves to be sure of the reality surrounding them, and when these rules collapse or it turns out that they do not work and are not needed at all, there is disappointment, shock, and the subsequent rethinking.

3.2 Trauma that Changed Everyone

The central image of the novel is the performance artist David Janiak, nicknamed the Falling Man, who is constantly shocking the audience, jumping from skyscrapers only with a primitive safety rope. This man serves as a living reminder, a symbol 9/11; he does not allow people to forget about those tragic events, demonstrating the fear and uncertainty that engulfed America.

`A man was dangling there, above the street, upside down. He wore a business suit, one leg bent up, arms at his sides. A safety harness was barely visible...' Ibid, p. 33.

The performance artist makes a vivid impression on the characters of the novel as well. Lianne, watching him during the next performance, begins to panic. He awakens memories of the tragedy in people, provokes flashbacks and post-traumatic images. He depicts an unknown man plunging from one of the towers, a photo that quickly spread to the media after 9/11.

One of the important methods of conveying the motif of reflection in this novel is the religious theme. It can be traced both in the story of Keith and his family and in the story of a terrorist preparing to attack. However if the story of Keith is a story of an inability to endure trauma, then the story of Lianne is a story of how trauma can be comprehended. Probably, in the ideological field of the novel Liana's salvation becomes possible through the acquisition of religion and faith. At the beginning of the novel Lianne appears consciously unbeliever:

`There was religion, then there was God. Lianne wanted to disbelieve. Disbelief was the line of travel that led to clarity of thought and purpose… God would crowd her, make her weaker. God would be a presence that remained unimaginable. She wanted this only, to snuff out the pulse of the shaky faith she'd held for much of her life.' Ibid, p. 65.

Lianne is constantly thinking about the causes and consequences of the attack, looking for answers in the news and newspaper articles, however, and does not find solace. However, throughout the novel, this pulse becomes more powerful, and closer to the end of the text a reader finds Lianne in the church. Her inner monologues have changed:

`What does it mean to say that word? Are you born with God? If you never hear the word or observe the ritual, do you feel the breath alive inside you, in brain waves or pounding heart?' Ibid, p. 234.

`God would consume her. God would de-create her and she was too small and tame to resist. That's why she was resisting now. Because think about it. Because once you believe such a thing, God is, then how can you escape, how survive the power of it, is and was and ever shall be.' Ibid, p. 235.

She works as a curator for a group of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease, and helps them develop their memory by writing essays and then discussing them. The view of these people on the events of September, 11 is especially interesting. Constantly confused in thoughts, missing whole words and making a number of grammatical mistakes, they, nevertheless, capture their fears and doubts on paper, trying to find the perpetrators of terrorist attacks and questioning the role of God:

`How could God let this happen? Where was God when this happened?.. This is the devil. This is hell. All that fire and pain. Never mind God…' Ibid, p. 66.

After experiencing the traumatic shock, the return of her husband, then his departure, and the death of her mother, Lianne is ready to move on and live, as she thinks, just as `before the planes appeared that day, silver crossing blue' Ibid, p. 237.

Justin, son of Lianne and Keith, also does not stay out of the events. He tries to interpret what is happening with his immediacy of childhood, replacing the unusual name `bin Laden' with more euphonious, in his opinion, `Bill Lawton'. The boy and his friends are constantly looking through binoculars at skyscrapers, looking forward to the appearance of aircraft. Lianne is horrified by the child's attitude to the tragedy, as he perceives everything that happens as an exciting game. In the child's psyche, the terrorist attack is not something out of the ordinary; it is perceived by Justin as an integral element of modern life. Having heard some scraps of news and adult conversations, he himself creates a portrait of bin Laden:

`Bill Lawton has a long beard. He wears a long robe… He flies jet planes and speaks thirteen languages but not English except to his wives.' Ibid, p. 74.

The consequences of the disaster also affected the relationship of Lianne's mother Nina with her partner, Martin Ridnour. Being a European, Martin sees the root cause of the aggression of radical Islamists, first of all, in America itself. In his opinion, a jaded and vicious America, which has always sought to take a leading position in the world, simply could not fail to become the object of a terrorist attack. The Twin Towers, symbols of wealth and arrogance of the West, have become hated by millions of disadvantaged people on the planet. He considers the cause of terrorism to be not in religious extremism, but first and foremost, in economic and political issues, poverty of the vast majority of Islamic countries. In a dispute with Nina, he says:

`They [terrorists] strike a blow to this country's dominance. They achieve this, to show how a great power can be vulnerable. A power that interferes, that occupies.' Ibid, p. 46.

Nina, being an ordinary American, cannot agree with her opponent, she fiercely defends America, placing all responsibility for the bloodshed solely on terrorists:

`It's not the history of Western interference that pulls down these societies. It's their own history, their mentality. They live in a closed world, of choice, of necessity. They haven't advanced because they haven't wanted to or tried to.' Ibid, p. 47.

Such a strong opposition of views leads the couple to a breaking up. Nina gradually accepts her old age and soon dies, getting as close to her daughter as possible before her death.

3.3 The Shift of Focalization in the Novel: the Attack from a Terrorist's Point of View

One of the author's methods in the novel is the change of focalization. The word `focalization' comes from the French language and literally means `focusing'. Fundamentals of focalization as the approach to the problem of visual perspective in literary works were founded by Jean Pouillon. The term was first used by Gerard Genette, French literary critic, representative of structuralism movement and one of the founders of modern narratology. According to Genette, focalization is the organization of the point of view in storytelling and the ways to convey it to a reader or a viewer. (Jahn, 1996)

In the novel `Falling Man' the role of the narrator is played, inter alia, by suicide terrorist Hammad. As the result of this, there arises a unique opportunity to penetrate into the thoughts and intentions of the person who became a direct participant and performer of the September, 11 attacks. The author demonstrates that the young man is not alien to doubts about the need to achieve the goal through bloodshed, however, under the influence of his spiritual leader Mohamed Atta, Hammad gradually turns into a bloodthirsty religious fanatic. At the beginning he even is thinking about the world, in particular, the woman he liked, in the following way:

`The woman's name was Leyla. Pretty eyes and knowing touch. He told her that he was going away for a time, absolutely to return.' Ibid, p. 83.

He questions the philosophy of his leader:

`But does a man have to kill himself in order to accomplish something in the world?' Ibid, p. 174.

However by methodical zombification Atta puts in the heads of his wards the idea that they are chosen by Allah, that they are destined from birth to the role of executioners, who administer a fair trial. Hammad begins to believe him and in the end his mind is completely possessed by an obsession:

`These people, what they hold so precious we see as empty space. He didn't think about the purpose of their mission. All he saw was shock and death… We are willing to die, they are not. This is our strength, to love death, to feel the claim of armed martyrdom.' Ibid, p. 175.

The cyclical nature of the narrative, characteristic of the novel, allows the author to focus our attention on the root causes and consequences of the artistic conflict, and break the fog over the key events of the story. The description of the terrorist attack is placed by the writer in the last chapter of the novel. Preparation of terrorists for the attack is reflected in the chapters `On Marienstrasse', `In Nokomis', `In the Hudson Corridor', which alternate with the chapters of the book, telling about the consequences of the terrorist attack.

Taking everything into consideration, it is worth saying that the novel is full of rich descriptions, dialogues and protagonists' reflections. Through unusual composition, the change of focalization, and complicated behaviors of the characters Delillo gives us a chance to look at the problem from different perspectives, including the killer's one. Each character of the novel goes through the traumatic experience in different ways. Everyone wants to live a past life and never feel such destructive emotions, however, the event happened and people should remember it, remember their own mistakes and try not to repeat them.

4. E.L. Doctorow: Talking to a Therapist

At the beginning of the novel we get acquainted with the main character, who is talking with a therapist and talks about his friend Andrew. Pretty soon it becomes clear that he talks about himself in fact, and there are doubts whether there is a psychologist next to him, or it is a conversation with himself. Andrew, who is introduced as a cognitive scientist, analyzes the past, reflecting on the meaning of his actions and life in General. He leafs through his memory like a fascinating, never-read book, and is convinced that the most unknown creature for man is himself.

He is not a star in the world of science, rather mediocre, at least, not every school is ready to invite him as a teacher. Scientific work is also alien to him. As a result, he is engaged in teaching the science of cognition and work of the brain at a provincial college and is thinking about writing a special course on cognitive science. He was once married to a woman named Martha, but then, after he had inadvertently killed their child, they separated. Now Martha lives with an Opera singer. Andrew's murder was indeed an accident. The pharmacist sold him the wrong medicine, and Andrew, busy thinking about his thesis, did not read the label and gave it to the child. As a result, the child died. After the divorce, Andrew went to another city and there met a young girl Briony. She was his student. They had an affair and ended up living together. They also had a child, but Briony apparently dies during the events of September, 11, 2001. Andrew in despair leaves the baby on the Martha's porch and disappears again. Andrew's story begins right with this rather clichйd scene.

`One evening he appeared with an infant in his arms at the door of his ex-wife, Martha. Because Briony, his lovely young wife after Martha, had died…I can't do this alone, Andrew said, as Martha stared at him from the open doorway. It happened to have been snowing that night, and Martha was transfixed by the soft creature-like snowflakes alighting on Andrew's NY Yankees hat brim… Meanwhile the heat from her home drifted through the open door and fogged up Andrew's eyeglasses. He stood there behind his foggy lenses like a blind man in the snowfall...' Doctorow, E. L. (2014). Andrew's Brain (First Edition). New York: Random House, p. 1.

After the Briony's death Andrew is thrown into the White House, where he is affected by the fact that the future President of the United States (most likely, George W. Bush) and Andrew lived in the same room in student years. Andrew in the White House is in charge of the cognitive science Commission for a short time, but in fact, he only entertains the President and other powerful people around him. After the stunt he pulled in the White House, he was fired and put in an unidentified place, where he allegedly occurs at a session with a therapist.

The novel is a confession of a man who has experienced many tragedies in his life and eventually finds himself broken by them. As a scientist, he constantly analyzes the work of the human brain, as if trying to find an excuse, or explanation, to shift the responsibility for what happened.

`I asked this question: How can I think about my brain when it's my brain doing the thinking? So is this brain pretending to be me thinking about it? I can't trust anyone these days, least of all myself. I am a mysteriously generated consciousness, and no comfort to me that it's one of billions.' Ibid, p. 45.

The further the poorly streamlined narrative about his life goes, the more obvious becomes the fact that he experiences serious disorder on the basis of the trauma. Andrew assured that he is not capable of feeling guilty, but he is capable of running away from the problems, what he has been doing all his life. Meanwhile, he is accused by everyone around him - Martha, her new husband, the professor from his student times. He admits his guilt but does not feel it; his brain feels only the irreversibility of the actions.

`As kind as I am, as well-meaning and helpful as I try to be, I have no feelings finally, for good or ill. In the depths of my being, no matter what happens, I am left cold, impenetrable to remorse, to grief, to happiness, though I can pretend well enough even to the point of fooling myself. I am trying to say I am finally, terribly, unfeeling.' Ibid, p. 15.

Martha's new husband does not mind to give him the idea of suicide, but it is foreign to Andrew. In fact, he is very fond of life, just cannot reach a state of calm satisfaction with it. On the basis of the experienced shocks, he often catches flashbacks from the past. Sometimes he cannot distinguish a dream from reality. However, Andrew is capable of deep reflection. He tries to understand and analyze the work of the brain and mind, tries to find meaning in all the tragedies and deaths around him. Martha's husband calls Andrew The Pretender, and Andrew quite agree with him, perhaps, again trying to find the causes of his tragedies from the outside.

`That I only pretended to be a nice human being generously disposed to my fellow man when in fact I was a dangerously fake person, congenitally insincere and a killer - that's how he characterized me. Andrew the Pretender. And, as I told you, he was not far from the truth.' Ibid, p. 120.

Doctorow raises important philosophical questions concerning human consciousness. No wonder the novel is called `Andrew's Brain'. It shows what can happen to an ordinary person who has experienced many shocks and cannot find an explanation for them. Naturally, he will look for the root of the problem in circumstances beyond his control, even if it is his own brain. He feels as if he is trapped in his own consciousness:

`It's a kind of jail, the brain's mind. We've got these mysterious three-pound brains and they jail us.' Ibid, p. 135.

It is crucial that Andrew talks about his life in the third person, which suggests that Andrew is a fictional character. This fact gives the story a light schizophrenic tone, which is quite in line with the tone of the novel. It vividly highlights how the character reacts to what is happening, how he is afraid of the reality, or simply not able to understand it, but still trying to reflect it.

The composition of the narrative jumps from one image to another, which makes it similar to the movement of human thought and memory. For example, during the story about working in the White House, the story unexpectedly turns to the image of the house where Andrew happened to stay. There lived an old woman and her granddaughter. Andrew remembers the girl drawing the pictures of acrobats in circus, which reminds him of his young wife and their child.

`She draws well, far better than you'd think someone of that age could draw. She's really good. It's all circus stuff. Acrobats, trapeze artists, tumblers, human pyramids. Girls in tutus standing on horses going around the ring. Little tiny figures all, perfectly formed. Ibid, p. 178.

4.2 The Political in the Novel

As well as the authors of the previous novels, Doctorow creates a story of a person to reflect the history of the people, in this case, the story of pain and sorrow. Doctorow's Andrew is doomed to suffer and still loves life. He remembers with genuine love and tenderness about his young beautiful wife, about the time spent together, mentioning the smallest details of her body and behavior. He describes his feelings at the beginning of their relationships this way:

`Briony was out there in the sun. I began as a horny lecher, instantly evolved into a worshipful adorer, and then, as it turned really bad, I felt that I couldn't live without her.' Ibid, p. 39.

The name of the protagonist is also chosen not by chance. From the Ancient Greek name Andrew means `man', `warrior'. It is associated with the biblical hero Apostle Andrew, who brought people the truth and the word of God, but then was crucified. Here can be drawn a parallel with the hero of the novel. Andrew tries to comprehend the truth of human consciousness. Facing the pain and injustice to himself and to the people around him, he is looking for answers, but in the end he managed only to accuse the government of neglecting the lives and shift the responsibility for his life to his own brain.

`We have to be wary of our brains. They make our decisions before we make them. They lead us to still waters. They renounceth free will. And it gets weirder: If you slice a brain down the middle, the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere will operate self-sufficiently and not know what the other is doing.' Ibid, p. 203.

The set of the novel is the events of the real world - the presidency of Bush Junior, the events of September 11, 2011, the war in Iraq. Doctorow does not mind if a reader will guess the real ruling President in his character, it does not matter to him by all accounts. He once says, that if his book is read in 50 years, no one will remember the politicians of the past. It was much more important for him to convey the ethical and moral failure of the Supreme power. Indeed, for the President of `Andrew's Brain' and his inner circle, power is no longer associated with responsibility, but with a risky game where the stakes only inflame the imagination.

After the serious psychic trauma, the mind of the hero is shrouded in ghosts of the past, constant reflection, and doubts about whether he is real person or a computer. This state is no longer compatible with life in reality.

`My mind is shot through with visions, dreams, and the actions and words of people I don't know. I hear soundless vo ices, phantoms loom up out of my sleep and onto the wall, lingering there, cringing in anguish, curling up in visible contortions of pain and crying out wordlessly for my help.' Ibid, p. 230.

Andrew ends his journey in limbo, but it is not death and especially not death for the sake of atonement. Andrew will definitely live on, will probably recognize many more tricks of his brain and learn to play this game better. He is broken by life's difficulties, but not so much that he has forgotten how to love and appreciate life. At the end of the novel, all Andrew thinks about is his beloved wife and daughter. He turns his wife's death into a heroic one. He wants to see his daughter again. And, finally, he wants to read them a bedtime story and protect from any troubles, which he could never do in the lives of his loved ones.

All in all, the author is concerned with the work of the human mind and its influence on the actions of people. Doctorow wonders `how this three-pound "knitting ball", as Andrew calls it, produces our subjective life. If we do ever figure it out, that could be a glorious intellectual achievement. At the same time, it carries grave dangers'(Wolf, 2014). Besides, Doctorow highlights the historical significance of 9/11 in the novel, warning that it might be only the beginning of things. The novel can be interpreted as a kind of warning against future mistakes. On the other hand, it can only be an attempt to find an explanation for what happened. Through his characters he delivers the idea that people are responsible for what happen around them, first of all. If everyone is looking for the causes in the outside and in others, like Andrew or the President, things will be out of the control and nothing will be changed for better. With his usual virtuosity, Doctorow unites fact and fiction and develops a concern for the relationships between personal and national narratives that give shape to historical fiction.

Conclusion