Résumé:
This study aims at exploring the representation of the process of Black identity construction
through memory and relationality in Toni Morrison’s Beloved. In light of postcolonial trauma
theory framework, this dissertation analyzes how legacies of slavery such as; violence,
dehumanization, displacement, exploitation, and cultural erasure shape fragmented individual
and communal identities, relationality, memories, and collective trauma. Moreover, the analysis
focuses on the intersection between memory and relationality, and their role in shaping the
former slaves’ sense of self. This research investigates how Black characters, more specifically,
former slaves, navigate the tension between remembering and forgetting to confront past
traumatic experiences. Also, it examines the relational dynamics among characters to highlight
that identity is not merely an individual construct. Ultimately, I argue that Morrison depicts
trauma and healing in ways that align with postcolonial trauma theory, portraying how Black
characters in Beloved work through suffering using traditional healing practices, storytelling,
spirituality, and communal rituals. The novel thus is a narrative that depicts memory and
relationality as vital mechanisms through which Black identities are built and understood in the
aftermath of slavery. In the end, this study contends that Morrison illustrates identity not as a
solitary endeavor but as one that is deeply rooted in communal and familial relationships,
underscoring the necessity of relational healing in postcolonial contexts
