EXPLORING POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER AND ITS THEATRICAL REPRESENTATION IN AMERICAN DRAMA: A STUDY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL CONFLICT AND SOCIAL ALIENATION IN EUGENE O’NEILL’S THE HAIRY APE, THE EMPEROR JONES, AND ANNA CHRISTIE

Abstract

This research paper explores the representation of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and psychological trauma in three major plays by Eugene O’Neill—The Hairy Ape, The Emperor Jones, and Anna Christie. Using the theory of trauma, criticism of psychoanalysis, and theory of performance, the study examines how O’Neill dramatizes internal psychological conflicts caused by industrial alienation, racial oppression, and gender-based exploitation. The characters Yank, Brutus Jones, and Anna Christopherson exhibit symptoms akin to PTSD, including flashbacks, identity dislocation, and emotional numbness. O’Neill utilizes both expressionist and realist theatrical forms to externalize the internal turmoil of his characters, thus offering a powerful critique of the sociopolitical structures that induce trauma. The comparative analysis reveals that while Yank and Jones succumb to their unresolved trauma, Anna’s trajectory moves toward narrative recovery and emotional reintegration. By portraying trauma not only as personal suffering but as a product of social, racial, and gendered hierarchies, O’Neill’s works prefigure contemporary understandings of complex PTSD and cultural trauma. This study positions O’Neill as a pioneering dramatist in the field of trauma aesthetics, whose plays remain relevant to modern psychological and socio-cultural discourses.