Abstract:
The current research is a psycholinguistic analysis conducted on Updike‘s novel,
―Terrorist” (2006). This study has explored the element of trauma, its depiction and its
effects on the language of its victim Ahmad, the protagonist of the selected novel. For
this purpose, the researcher has applied Cathy Caruth‘s trauma theory as given in her
book ―Unclaimed Experience: Trauma, Narrative, and History” (1996) as a theoretical
framework for this study. Unspeakability, latency and repetition are the basic tropes of
Caruthian stance of trauma. The study has followed the qualitative research paradigm by
employing Catherine Belsey‘s (2005) research method of ―textual analysis‖ for the
interpretation and analysis of the text with the help of extra textual knowledge. The
researcher has used the close reading technique to collect textual excerpts spoken by
Ahmad during his different psychological states referred as pre-trauma phase, trauma
phase and post-trauma phase in order to measure the effects of trauma on Ahmad‘s
linguistic pattern. The findings of this research attest that Updike‘s ―Terrorist‖ is a
trauma novel and that trauma leaves chaotic effects on the linguistic standard of its
victim, Ahmad. The researcher has found that Updike has used figurative language and
trauma lexis to deal with trauma. This research work is significant as an interdisciplinary
venture has linked fields of literature, linguistics and psychology
