Description
This thesis is designed as an autoethnographic exploration of the process of my family's negotiation through traumatic and ambiguous past events of sexual abuse. Through participant observations, and applied reflexivity, I focus on both the effects of family secrecy and the communicative practices used in reconnecting the family surrounding such events. Using Giddens' (1991) concept of fateful moments and Ellingson's (2009) concept of crystallization, I provide a juxtaposition of family members' various positionalities within the family unit through creative nonfiction representations. By employing the use of creative nonfiction and a multilayered account, a number of theoretical and methodological implications are drawn in regards to writing and representing and trauma. By beginning and documenting a dialogue within my own family about our shared past, it is my hope to shed light on my family abuse and serve as a catalyst in the process of our collective healing.
