“Trauma Studies”: prospettive e problemi

Abstract

The trauma paradigm pervades contemporary life. In newspapers, on television, on the web, even in ordinary conversation, experiences of every kind (both figurative and positive ones) are described as “traumatic”. Thus the very meaning of the term is often overturned. This article seeks to reshape the limits of the concept of trauma by tracing its evolution from the psychological debate of the early nineteenth century to the recent setting up of the specific discipline of Trauma Studies.