Cited by 0Memory, Trauma, and TestimonyDiscourse Analysis in Language StudiesMemory, Trauma, and Commemoration

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LINGUISTIC CONSTRUCTION OF VICTIM IDENTITY IN EDITH EVA EGER'S HOLOCAUST MEMOIR: FROM POWERLESSNESS TO AGENCY

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Shylo, Anastasiia, Honsalies-Munis, Svitlana·2026·Вісник науки та освіти

Abstract

This article investigates the linguistic mechanisms underlying the construction and transformation of victim identity in Edith Eva Eger's Holocaust memoir "The Choice: Embrace the Possible" (2017).Through systematic analysis of grammatical, lexical, and discursive features, the study examines how language reflects the psychological evolution from victimhood to agency, revealing language not merely as a descriptive medium for trauma but as a constitutive instrument of psychological recovery and identity reconstruction following catastrophic experience.The research identifies specific linguistic patterns characterizing traumatic narrative: systematic use of passive constructions, restricted modality, fragmented narrative structure, and lexical fields of fear and helplessness dominate Holocaust sections.At the cognitive level, victim identity is structured through deictic distancing, depersonalization, and temporal disorientation.Comparative analysis of Holocaust narrative and post-liberation sections demonstrates systematic linguistic shift: increased active voice usage, expanded modality, emergence of evaluative language, and metaphors of transformation.In Holocaust testimony, victim identity is constructed through grammatical erasure of agency ("I was taken," "we were stripped"), reflecting total powerlessness and lack of control over one's fate.Postliberation narrative exhibits a shift toward agentive self-positioning ("I choose," "I decide"), marking psychological recovery and restoration of subjectivity.Particular attention is devoted to the symbolic transformation of the ballerina motif: from passive objectification ("I was forced to dance for Mengele") to active self-determination ("Through dance, I found myself").The study applies Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) to analyze transitivity, modality, and appraisal systems, integrating Paul Ricoeur's narrative identity theory, Cathy Caruth's trauma linguistics, and Deborah Cameron's feminist linguistics.The article emphasizes language's role in constituting psychological reality, demonstrating that grammatical choices function as mechanisms of identity reconstruction following catastrophic experience rather than mere stylistic preferences.Research findings have implications for trauma-informed therapeutic practice, Holocaust memory studies, and interdisciplinary studies at the intersection of linguistics, psychology, and Holocaust studies.The article offers a replicable methodology for analyzing other autobiographical trauma narratives, contributing to understanding of how survivors linguistically reconstitute subjectivity after genocidal violence.The research identifies specific linguistic patterns characterizing traumatic narrative: passive constructions, restricted modality, fragmented structure, and lexical fields of fear and helplessness dominate Holocaust sections.At the cognitive level, victim identity is structured through deictic distancing, depersonalization, and temporal disorientation.Comparative analysis of Holocaust narrative and post-liberation sections demonstrates systematic linguistic shift: increased active voice usage, expanded modality, emergence of evaluative language, and metaphors of transformation.The study applies Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) to analyze transitivity, modality, and appraisal systems, integrating narrative identity theory (Paul Ricoeur), trauma linguistics (Cathy Caruth), and feminist linguistics (Deborah Cameron).The article emphasizes language's role in constituting psychological reality, demonstrating that grammatical choices function as mechanisms of identity reconstruction following catastrophic experience rather than mere stylistic preferences.Research findings have implications for trauma-informed therapeutic practice, Holocaust memory studies, and interdisciplinary studies at the intersection of linguistics, psychology, and Holocaust studies.The article offers a replicable methodology for analyzing other autobiographical trauma narratives, contributing to understanding of how survivors linguistically reconstitute selfhood after genocidal violence.

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Crossref · 10.52058/2786-6165-2026-2(44)-229-241

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    Systematic grammatical analysis of the mechanisms through which language constructs and deconstructs victim identity in Holocaust memoirs remains fragmentary, leaving a gap the study addresses.

    “Most Holocaust memoir studies focus on historical, literary, or psychological aspects, while systematic grammatical analysis of mechanisms through which language constructs and deconstructs victim identity remains fragmentary.”
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Research works printed but not linked: 15

  1. [1]1. Ricoeur P. Oneself as another. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992. 363 p.
  2. [2]2. Eger, E. (2017). The Choice: Embrace the Possible. New York: Penguin Random House.
  3. [3]3. Halliday, M. A. K., & Matthiessen, C. M. I. M. (2013). Halliday's Introduction to Functional Grammar (4th ed.). London: Routledge.
  4. [4]4. Caruth, C. (1996). Unclaimed Experience: Trauma, Narrative, and History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
  5. [6]6. Martin, J. R., & White, P. R. R. (2005). The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
  6. [8]8. Linde, C. (2009). Working the Past: Narrative and Institutional Memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  7. [9]9. Somers, M. R. (1994). The narrative constitution of identity: A relational and network approach. Theory and Society, 23(5), 605-649. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/BF0 0992905 · DOI
  8. [10]10. Van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. New York: Penguin Books. Література: 1. Ricoeur P. Oneself as another. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1992. 363 p.
  9. [11]11. Eger, E. (2017). The Choice: Embrace the Possible. New York: Penguin Random House.
  10. [12]12. Halliday, M. A. K., & Matthiessen, C. M. I. M. (2013). Halliday's Introduction to Functional Grammar (4th ed.). London: Routledge.
  11. [13]13. Caruth, C. (1996). Unclaimed Experience: Trauma, Narrative, and History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
  12. [15]15. Martin, J. R., & White, P. R. R. (2005). The Language of Evaluation: Appraisal in English. London: Palgrave Macmillan.
  13. [17]17. Linde, C. (2009). Working the Past: Narrative and Institutional Memory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  14. [18]18. Somers, M. R. (1994). The narrative constitution of identity: A relational and network approach. Theory and Society, 23(5), 605-649. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/BF 00992905 · DOI
  15. [19]19. Van der Kolk, B. (2014). The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma. New York: Penguin Books. Дата першого надходження статті до видання: 14.02.2026 Дата прийняття статті до друку після рецензування: 28.02.2026

Metadata

Authors
Shylo, A., & Honsalies-Munis, S.
Venue
Вісник науки та освіти
Published
2026-03-29
Issue
2(44)
ISSN
2786-6165 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W7142755673
Cited by
0
References
0
FWCI
0.00
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
Вісник науки та освіти (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Literature and Literary Theory › Memory, Trauma, and Testimony
  • Social Sciences › Linguistics and Language › Discourse Analysis in Language Studies
  • Social Sciences › Cultural Studies › Memory, Trauma, and Commemoration
Keywords
Holocaust memoirs, victim identity, agency, Holocaust testimony, transitivity, modality, appraisal, depersonalization, temporal disorientation, identity reconstruction, trauma-informed therapy, Holocaust memory, systemic functional linguistics

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