Exploring veracity of trauma through individual memory in Life and Times of Michael K by J.M. Coetzee

The novel, Life and Times of Michael K, depicts the individual memory that is socially produced based on collective thoughts and the individuals’ problematic situation in Africa. The protagonist in the novel brings out the unconscious traumatic memories that can be replayed as horrifying simulations while he is detached from the repressed traumatic experience. However, memories of suffering are shaped by violence; trauma symptoms occur while the collective memory of the character’s response to his traumatic past and present. This paper tries to explore the veracity of trauma throughout the individual’s life which represents the never-ending struggles of individuals and subjugated societies to confront unconscious trauma. It depicts the process of natives returning to their innocence or pre-colonial condition to face the trauma. Eventually, it elaborates on how, disagreements go unresolved, and difficulties become inescapable.  The exploration of the novel through Trauma and Individual memory highlights numerous areas of societal conflict