"You just have to belong. Long to be" : Narrativ, identitet och trauma i Melina Marchettas On the Jellicoe Road

Sammanfattning

This essay examines how narrative structures such as: alternating narratives, unreliable narrators, and literary devices affect the predominant storyline in fiction targeted at young adults. Because On the Jellicoe Road depicts an orphan character’s coming of age, attention is additionally brought to the novel’s portrayal of how identity and identities are displayed in relation to the overall mystery that finding one’s family creates. Drawing on theoretical approaches from Perry Nodelman, Maria Nikolajeva, Laurel Bollinger and Melanie A. Kimball amongst others, the analytical work further considers how a novel’s chosen subject matter or major theme might influence the narratives approach in conveying said theme.