Abstract

The study investigates the genre of post-colonial literature through the lens of trauma and memory focusing on Agamben’s illustration of Homo Sacer concerning the text Island of a Thousand Mirrors by Nayomi Munaweera. The selected literary piece offers an authentic perspective of an immigrant Sri Lankan author, Nayomi Munaweera. The study applies trauma theory, and it explores the extent to which resilience is possible under the adverse effects of trauma and memory, drawing on the philosophical frameworkof Georgio Agamben. The study was primarily conducted through a desk review and content analysis supported by the theoretical foundation of Georgio Agamben. The major findings of the study were supported by a questionnaire survey targeting the English-reading community. The study highligh findings of the current study underlie the harsh reality and the battle of unerasable stains of memory in traumatised psyche through the perspective of Sinhalese and Tamil individuals (Bios and Zoe), which envisage the sufferings of both ethnicities equally through shifting perspectives. Furthermore, the study underscores the importance of adopting a non-dismissive approach when studying trauma and memory.

Keywords: Bios and Zoe, History, Immigrants, Memory, Post-colonial Sri Lanka, Trauma