Adams 1 While reading Beyond Katrina, I noticed several symptoms of trauma.

This observation inspired me to analyze Tretheways Meditation as a therapeutic device. Beyond Katrina: Tretheways Therapeutic Device August 29, 2005, during the peak o hurricane season, !urricane Katrina, the category our stor", desecrated the #u$ %oast &'a((eno )*+ ,vidence o the trau"a caused -y Katrina and the .ourney o its recovery can -e viewed through news reports, socia$ "edia, persona$ narratives, and $iterature+ /o$$owing !urricane Katrina, the "a.ority o the #u$ %oasts residents were disp$aced+ 0osing their ho"es, inti"ate "e"entos, and, in the worst1case scenario, a"i$y "e"-ers, this natura$ disaster was c$ear$y a "a.or trau"atic event+ 2atasha Tretheways "e"oir Beyond Katrina ! Meditation on the Mississippi "ulf #oast is a pri"e e3a"p$e o the recovery process or such a trau"atic event+ A ter reading her e"otiona$$y descriptive narrative, it is evident that a "etanarrative has e"erged in the "edia coverage o$$owing the stor"+ 2ot on$y has the area su ered physica$ da"age it a$so appears that those a ected -y the stor" have su ered a "enta$ trau"a+ Trau"a, as de ined -y the A"erican 4sycho$ogica$ Association 5is an e"otiona$ response to a terri-$e event $ike an accident, rape or natura$ disaster6 &)*+ The co"p$ete disregard and $ack o acknow$edge"ent, -y the A"erican govern"ent and the A"erican peop$e, or the need o e"otiona$ and psycho$ogica$ support in Katrinas wake is evident through -oth 2atasha Tretheways narrative as we$$ as the p$ethora o research o$$owing trau"atic events+ ,ven though Tretheway was $iving in At$anta when Katrina destroyed the #u$ , the trau"a she e3perienced ro" the stor" was e3tensive+ This trau"a can -e viewed through her ina-i$ity to "ention !urricane Katrina throughout her "e"oir+ Tretheway

Adams 2 wrote $ess than one paragraph, -ased on acts, a-out the stor", which is shown in the chapter 5Be ore Katrina6: 5Katrina "ade $and a$$ August 29, 2005+ 7ut in the #u$ , 8hip 9s$and was co"p$ete$y su-"erged1the stor" surge up to twenty1seven eet+ 'ississippi o icia$s recorded 2:; deaths< tens o thousands o peop$e were disp$aced6 &Tretheway =9*+ >hen a person has e3perienced a "a.or trau"a, they can e3hi-it an ina-i$ity to speak or, in e3tre"e circu"stances, think a-out the event &Andrews )2?< Kostova =;*+ %onsidering the )== pages that 2atasha dedicates to ta$king a-out events surrounding the -ook, it is surprising that she on$y writes a paragraph -ased on acts a-out a stor" that has a$tered her $i e+ This ina-i$ity to write anything e"otiona$$y descriptive a-out the events that happened during the stor" is a c$ear sign o Tretheways trau"a+ !er atte"pts to use the nove$ as a therapeutic device is si"i$ar to how she atte"pts to dea$ with !urricane %a"i$$e as a young wo"an through her .ourna$ing: 59n )99) 9 had written those words1 $atural %isaster@ reca$$ing a story 9 had heard as a chi$d a-out !urricane %a"i$$e+6 &Tretheway )*+ >hi$e atte"pting to write poe"s a-out her e3periences as a chi$d, Tretheways choice o the word natura$ disaster to descri-e her "e"ories is evident o the trau"a she has ai$ed to cope with+ 2atasha Tretheways use o the nove$ as a therapeutic device o$$owing !urricane Katrina is irst evident ro" the epigraph taken ro" /$annery 7%onner: 5>here you ca"e ro" is gone+ >here you thought you were going to never was there+ And where you are is no good un$ess you can get away ro" it6 &i*+ This Auotation can -e viewed as a su""ation o ee$ings o$$owing a trau"atic event+ /ai$ure to cope with her trau"a in a hea$thy way wou$d have put Tretheway at risk or an ina-i$ity to dea$ with other o-stac$es $ater in $i e &5Becovering /ro" Disaster6 )*+ 2atasha Tretheways use o this cyc$ic Auote can -e interpreted to represent her strugg$e dea$ing

Adams 3 with the trau"a ro" a natura$ disaster+ 9t is not hard to i"agine Tretheways ina-i$ity to "ove past the hurricanes due to its cyc$ic nature+ !urricanes visit the #u$ annua$$y+ The author, a$ong with her a"i$y, is never given ti"e to "enta$$y "ove on ro" the stor"+ They cannot start over -ecause the stor" took any chance o that away< any p$ans that Tretheway or her a"i$y "ay have had or the uture are taken away due to the grave devastation o the stor"+ !aving to dea$ with the stressor o possi-$y enduring another stor" $ike Katrina or %a"i$$e is evidence o cyc$ic trau"a+ Despite the act that 5Theories o Ti"e and 8pace6 was written igurative$y, or $ative "uard, it is synony"ous with the events that have o$$owed Katrina &!a$$ C=*+ Tretheways trau"a caused -y !urricane Katrina e3e"p$i ies a co$$ective trau"a due to her $oved ones e3periences versus her own+ 8he uses herse$ and her a"i$y as a "ode$ or the e"otiona$ da"age caused -y the stor"+ Taking in the narratives o Aesha, Doe, and those who worked in 'ississippi i""ediate$y o$$owing the hurricane, Tretheway $ives !urricane Katrina+ 5@one1 -y1one "i$e "arkers ticking o

another "inute o your $i e+ /o$$ow this to its natura$ conc$usion1dead end

at the coast, the pier at #u$ port@ @-uried terrain o the past6 &Tretheway 5*+ Due to the devastation caused -y the stor", the gu$ , as its residents once knew it, is

Adams 4 gone+ The dark i"agery ro" this Auote gives the reader a descriptive picture o the #u$ in the days o$$owing Katrina+ The peak o hurricane season, in the gu$ region, occurs annua$$y during Dune )st to 2ove"-er :0th &5Tropica$ %yc$one %$i"ato$ogy6 2*+ The adapta-i$ity o the poe" is proo o how the trau"a ro" the hurricanes is cyc$ic and co$$ective+ The poe" is cyc$ic -ecause it descri-es how the narrator e$t during %a"i$$e as we$$ as !urricane Katrina+ 9t is a$so an indicator o co$$ective trau"a due to its a-i$ity to represent the e"otions o her a"i$y and the evacuees ro" the stor"+ During her "u$titude o interviews o$$owing the stor" Tretheway ound "any evacuees who were e3periencing si"i$ar senti"ents towards the disaster+ 7ne o the initia$ interviews discussed set the p$at or" or the trau"a e3perienced during and a ter the hurricane: 59t was $ike a -o"- had went o + And now everywhere is s$a-s, .ust s$a-s+ And the water is sti$$ u$$ o de-ris1houses, cars+ >e need to dredge the #u$ to get it a$$ -ack, inc$uding the -odies,6 she says+ 59nc$uding the -odies6 &Tretheway )C*+ The devastation o 'ississippi caused -y Katrina "akes it i"possi-$e or the evacuees to ever return ho"e+ 2o a"ount o recovery can -ring the #u$ -ack< a new gu$ has to -e "ade+ The 5new6 #u$ introduced a new e$e"ent, disp$ace"ent, to the devastation caused -y Katrina+ /o$$owing Katrina, "any residents throughout the #u$ %oast had ee$ings o disp$ace"ent+ A pri"e e3a"p$e o this can viewed through A"ericas "isuse o the ter" re ugees to descri-e the evacuees ro" the #u$ region+ 5Aesha c$enches her teeth when she reca$$s -eing re erred to as a Ere ugee+@E9 a" an A"erican1not a re ugee in "y own country6 &Tretheway 2)*+ This $oss o nationa$ity ro" their country, the $ack o acknow$edg"ent o the devastation ro" the "edia gives the i"pression that the Fnited 8tates orgot a-out those ro" the 'ississippi+

Adams 5 7ne o the ways co$$ective trau"a is disp$ayed in Beyond Katrina is through #wendo$yn, Tretheways grand"other, con $ating "u$tip$e events+ 9n the section tit$ed 54i$gri"6 we are shown a direct e3a"p$e o this con $ation when #wendo$yn keeps re erring to %a"i$$e: 58he has $ayered on the o$d story o %a"i$$e the new story o Katrina@ the way she -oth re"e"-ers and orgets, the erasures, and how intricate$y intertwined "e"ory and orgetting a$ways are6 &Tretheway ))*+ The con usion -rought on -y her "e$ding the accounts o the two stor"s -rings in the oundation o the "e"oir, a "etanarrative+ A$though the nove$ is suppose to -e a-out the a ter"ath o Katrina, its true narrative enco"passes the $i"itation on "e"ory due to trau"a in con.unction to the i"possi-i$ity o a true narrative or Tretheways e3perience with the stor"+ The use o this sty$e o writing is a therapeutic device or Tretheway to dea$ with the wreckage ro" the stor"s+ The death o the grand"other -rought up repressed ee$ings ro" unreso$ved trau"atic events+ The ee$ings caused Tretheway to si t through issues ro" her "others death as we$$ as !urricane Katrinas greatest devastation, her -rother Does incarceration or drug distri-ution+ Doe is a pri"e e3a"p$e or the econo"ic devastation Katrina caused on the #u$ citi(ens+ Due to the $oss o inco"e, the rise in rent, and the grave destruction o his properties Doe represented a te"p$ate or ai$ure during the recovery o the stor"+ Do- a ter .o-, Doe tried to ind $ega$ ways to inancia$$y support his a"i$y &Tretheway 50*+ !aving e3hausted a$$ other via-$e $ega$ options, Doe turned to the distri-ution o drugs as a "eans o inancia$ support+ Does incarceration resu$ted in a co$$ective trau"a due to its e ect on his a"i$y+ Throughout the "e"oir it is apparent that Tretheway ee$s as i she and those

Adams 6 around her are orever changed due to their uniAue e3periences+ 8he ta$ks a-out this pheno"enon in the 4ro$ogue whi$st ana$y(ing 5Theories o Ti"e and 8pace6: 5Gou can get there ro" hereHtheres no going ho"e6 &Tretheway 5*+ This cyc$ic trau"a a-out her .ourney ho"e causes Tretheway to discover that it is not -ecause o the disaster that her ho"e roots have changed it is -ecause she has changed+ 8he re-ui$t and recovered in the wake o the stor"+ /ina$$y reaching so"e or" o acceptance resu$ting ro" her trau"a, Tretheway uses the chapter cyc$e to discuss $i e o$$owing the recovery o Katrina+ This hea$ing can -e viewed when Tretheway disp$aces her recovery ro" the trau"a onto to her niece< reca$$ing the events that have happen since !urricane Katrina, the a ter"ath &Tretheway )0)*+ As Does incarceration continues, the tone o the nove$ changes+ 8he is hope u$ or the uture and evo$ving si"i$ar$y to Doe in prison+ Tretheway no $onger uses the dark i"agery portrayed ear$ier on the "e"oir+ Katrina and %a"i$$e, -oth category our stor"s, were the worst hurricanes to devastate the #u$ region+ Atte"pts to wait out the stor" had dire e ects on the citi(ens one "ain$y -eing irre uta-$e "enta$ trau"a+ This psycho$ogica$ trau"a, present in the #u$ evacuees, transcended to their $oved ones invo$ved in their reha-i$itation process+ %onsidering the nu"-er o a"i$y "e"-ers orced to evacuate -y the stor", there is no wonder as to why Tretheway e3hi-its or"s o co$$ective and cyc$ic trau"a+ >riting as a or" o therapy is conducive or the author due to her .ourna$ing previous trau"atic events+ !aving e3perienced %a"i$$e at a younger age, Tretheway atte"pts to cope with her cyc$ic trau"a ro" the hurricanes, in con.unction to other trau"atic events, through writing a-out her e3periences o$$owing the a ter"ath o the stor"+ 9t is not unti$ the $ast chapter that Tretheway see"s to co"e to ter"s with havoc Katrina caused+ The "e"oir,

Adams 7 which e3a"ines a$$ aspects, not .ust the physica$, o the tragedy ca$$s or greater attention to -e given to the "enta$ repercussions o$$owing natura$ disasters+

Adams 8

>ork %ited !merican &sychological !ssociation+ A"erican 4sycho$ogica$ Association, n+d+ >e-+ )= Apr+ 20)=+ Andrews, 0eanne, et a$+ IThe 8tructure 7 Avoidance /o$$owing Trau"a: Deve$op"ent And Ja$idation 7 The 4osttrau"atic Avoidance 8ca$e &4A8*+I Traumatology )9+2 &20):*: )2?1):5+ &sycI$'(+ >e-+ ): Apr+ 20)=+ !a$$, Doan >y$ie+ #onversations With $atasha Trethewey+ Dackson: Fniversity 4ress o 'ississippi, 20):+ eBoo) #ollection *+B,#(host-+ >e-+ ; Apr+ 20)=+ Kostova, Bi$yana Janyova+ I%o$$ective 8u ering, Fncertainty And Trau"a 9n De rey ,ugenidesKs The Jirgin 8uicides: 7 Bystanders, 4erpetrators And Jicti"s+I !tlantis *./0.120/3- :5+2 &20):*: =C1?:+ 'uente !cad4mica+ >e-+ )= Apr+ 20)=+ 'a((eno, 0aurence >+ I!urricane Katrina+I ,alem &ress +ncyclopedia &20):*: 5esearch ,tarters+ >e-+ )= Apr+ 20)=+ 5Becovering ,"otiona$$y /ro" Disaster+6 !merican &sychological !ssociation+ A"erican 4sycho$ogica$ Association, Aug+ 20):+ >e-+ )= Apr+ 20)=+ 5Tropica$ %yc$one %$i"ato$ogy+6 $ational 6urricane #enter+ 2ationa$ 7ceanic And At"ospheric Ad"inistration+ )9 'ar+ 20)=+ >e-+ )= Apr+20)= Tretheway, 2atasha+ Beyond Katrina ! Meditation on the Mississippi "ulf #oast+ Athens: Fniversity o #eorgia 4ress, 20)2+ 4rint+