I Will Not Be Afraid : Teaching about trauma and female agency through Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Sammanfattning

This study analyzes trauma and female agency primarily through the main character Celaena Sardothien in the novel Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas and discusses how the novel could be used in a Swedish upper secondary EFL classroom. This is done through trauma theory, literary trauma theory, feminist literary criticism and trauma informed teaching. This thesis finds that the novel depicts trauma and female agency as being complex, and as affecting everyday life. Throne of Glass also shows how trauma can affect anybody, regardless of status or life circumstances. The novel also depicts how female characters, who have little agency, through strategies such as bargaining and/or using their knowledge of the system for their own benefit, gain agency. This study argues that Throne of Glass could be used in the EFL upper-secondary classroom when discussing mental health, trauma, and/or female agency.