Race-Based Trauma in Alice Walker’s the Third Life of Grange Copeland*

Abstract

Racial and ethnic minorities face distressing experiences due to their race. The literary researchers began to coin to investigate ‘race-based trauma’ to fathom out how the race affects the social, emotional, and psychological well-be-ing of racial groups. These researchers were pointing out race as a leading factor for experiencing trauma among racial and ethnic groups. Black Americans, as ra-cial minorities, are exposed to race-related problems; therefore, they are likely to suffer from race-based trauma. Alice Walker’s The Third Life of Grange Copelandis an embodiment of how race brings about emotional stress, fear, and trauma in the Black society. Walker, through the portrayal of the Copeland family, depicts circles of repression, degradation, and poverty. In the story, Grange and his fam-ily, as the microcosm of the black society, are depicted as powerless, oppressed, and traumatized. Walker exposes that the life of the Copeland family is devoid of any rights and values, as they do not belong to the white hegemonic society. Nonetheless, Walker reveals the healing process and metamorphosis journey of the characters. This article aims to explore the role of race in relation to trauma in Alice Walker’s The Third Life of Grange Copeland. Moreover, the article unearths the characters’ healing process from the trauma.