Facing the Colonizer That Remains: Jonah as a Symbolic Trauma Narrative

Abstract:Scholars have widely recognized the colonial setting of the Book of Jonah, which includes the ambiguity of speaking of an Assyrian Empire that is long gone. The imperial setting of this book, moreover, has led interpreters to speak from their own place. For instance, in his postcolonial reading of Jonah, Chesung Justin Ryu reads Jonah in terms of his South Korean context, which continues to harbor deep wounds from being colonized by Japan. The harm done by colonizers long gone can thus be said to extend over many generations, as future generations inevitably have to deal with the effects of colonialism. In conversation with contemporary literary trauma theory, I consider this intersection of trauma and colonialism associated with the Book of Jonah and, furthermore, explore the way in which literature, and specifically narratives, may offer a safe space for working through trauma—one could say to face the colonizer, both real and imagined. Read in this way, the Book of Jonah may be viewed as a symbolic trauma narrative that is shaped by its imperial context but also in distinctive ways seeks to come to terms with the trauma wrought by a succession of empires.