11 Comments
Apr 1, 2023Liked by Kate Jones

I like the link you’ve observed about trauma caused by the pandemic. It’s interesting to see the ways that war affected people who didn’t go out to fight- but who were still greatly affected by everything that happened. Thank you for sharing :)

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What a fascinating look at war trauma from a literary perspective. There are so many truths to be discovered here - thank you. I was really touched in looking at trauma by the Oprah book -- mainly through the words and research of psychologist Bruce D. Perry -- What Happened to You? -- and thought of some examples he discusses while reading your piece. He looks also at trauma we are not even aware of ourselves as well as the way that trauma is usually about perception rather than the actual 'thing.'

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Mar 26, 2023Liked by Kate Jones

Great piece again. It is only in the last few years that I have started to realise that I’ve grown up with a very male male narrative on war. This really shows how we need to look at all aspects.

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Thankyou Kate for opening this door for me. I want to write (next year ?) about how PTSD coupled with autism affects relationships. How it becomes a lifelong cycle. I have been attempting to make sense of this for nearly 30 years. Then along came covid, - just as I was escaping Brexit, for Nederland. Five truckloads of stuff to be ferried during nearly six months of total lockdown isolation. My pandemic experience actually gave me the time to clear my head. Peace at last. .... Strange........

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Ah, thanks! Yes, luckily some of these works are now being re-discovered, so we can get a wider perspective from other voices. Thanks for reading : )

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What a fascinating and wonderful history behind the work of HD. She was a focus for my master’s dissertation back in the 1990s, and I did not even remember all of this - likely because as you say women’s experiences and documentation of war have not been taken seriously. Thank you for this fascinating essay. I must revisit HD!

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