Retrograde Amnesia: A Critical Exploration of Memory, Identity and Trauma in Ruthinte Lokam

Author(s): Dr. Thushara Mohan

Abstract:

Literature often serves as a rich field for comprehending human condition through the study of memory, trauma, and identity. The issue of memory loss in all its manifestations-from forgetfulness to the progressive deterioration of identity linked to diseases like Alzheimers disease, retrograde amnesia thereby memory loss can be a potent instrument for investigating identity, reality, and the past. A complex view of how memory loss impacts social interactions and identity formation is clearly portrayed in Lajo Jose’s Ruthinte Lokam (2019) which assumed to be formed the base for the movie Bougainvillea. The story explores the main character Ruth’s battle with retrograde amnesia. Ruth Ronald has short-term memory loss and retrograde amnesia. She is unable to discriminate between reality and illusion. Voice recordings, notes, and a few fictional situations abound in her world. To get by in her daily life, she depends on her husband, Ronald Thomas, and her assistant, Ashwini. Another narrator is Ronald Thomas. The story begins when Ruth is confident she has spotted one of the neighborhood missing women of a certain age. The main focus of this novel is this inquiry and the disclosure of Ruth's and the missing girls' fates. This article critically examines the movie’s use of retrograde amnesia as a means of examining trauma, memory, and identity.

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Pages: 89-90     |    3 View     |    0 Download