This essay discusses the role of photographs in Sebald’s Austerlitz. The author argues that photographs constitute a crucial paratext to the entire narrative, making possible the representation of traumatic memories through “the bricolage of words and images.” Engaging with Freudian psychoanalysis and Roland Barthes’s theory on photography, the author demonstrates how the process of retrieving memories and recovering from trauma can be achieved through “bricolage.” In doing so, this essay sheds light on the unique narratology conveyed through Sebald’s quasi-realistic lens.
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.© 2020 Duke University Press
2020
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