“We Are More Often Driven Than Driving”: Trauma, Eco-Anxiety and Existential Void in Hanif’s Red Birds

This article examines Mohammad’s Hanif’s novel Red Bird (2018) using a multidimensional theoretical framework that synthesises eco-anxiety, trauma and existential void. It contends that the main characters of the novel experience eco-anxiety and psychological trauma at the same time. These simultaneous but distinct psychological issues are caused and intensified by the war, which badly affects the human as well as non-human life in the narrative. Terror and ecological disaster are so overwhelming that the characters are left in a void. This void is an existential crisis that mars their actions and choices, and they are unable to regain their agency and freedom. This is how eco-anxiety and trauma further intersect with existential philosophy. This synthesis of three different theoretical domains is significant at various levels. First, it contributes to the field of literary research and analyses by showing that the combination of diverse lenses helps identify and explore deeper and more enriched meanings of the texts. Secondly, the interconnection of eco-anxiety, psychological trauma and existential philosophy equally contributes to all of these combined perspectives at their individual level.