Published Paper Details:

The collective memory of a community that experienced horrendous, traumatic events can be preserved and transmitted through variegated retrospective media for the knowledge of posterity. Such traumatic incidents are crystallized in historical artefacts, images, stories and monuments. The post- Holocaust era has witnessed the boom of collective tales recited by victims and survivors which constituted the understanding of history for generations who were not part of these traumatic events. This paper aims to trace the idea of postmemory encapsulating the repercussions of significant experiences beyond the first generation. The study observes a 'belatedness' in the narratives that evoke a parental past. This paper articulated analytically Cynthia Ozick's Holocaust memory narrative 'The Shawl' as a source of postmemory of trauma to posterity. It studied the transformative potential of the narrative to constitute a historical repertoire for a generation that is not part of the victimhood. In addition, the paper also commented on the construction of cultural trauma and hence, the identity of descendants through such fictional mnemonic tales. The analysis proved that an account of a direful incident or experience of the past performs the role of an agent of postmemory. It crystallized a traumatic memory, shared among a community, for future generations to feel a sense of belonging and identity. The study highlights the scope of binding posterity to a common past through literary media. Thus, it transcends to be an archive or historical document worthy of future reference.