The Psychological Impact of Sexual Harassment in Laurie Anderson’s Speak

Document Type : Original Article

Abstract

The statistics of sexual assault in the U.S are alarming. Fiction 
writers in The U.S have represented victims and have highlighted the 
psychological repercussions of such assault; one of these authors is the 
American author Laurie Halse Anderson(1961--).The aim of this research 
paper is to depict the psychological impact of sexual harassment on 
young adult girls with reference to Speak (1999) written by Laurie Halse 
Anderson. The research paper focuses on the aftermath of sexual 
harassment on young adult girls, who are usually traumatized. The 
traumatized suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which is 
manifested through different symptoms such as: silence, disconnection, 
losing trust. Besides PTSD, methods of recovery represented in the novel 
are analyzed. The analysis draws on trauma theory with reference to 
Judith Herman’s book Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of 
Violence—from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror.
 

Keywords

References

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