12/19/2022
Herman (Trauma and Recovery ), a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, delivers an incisive report on the links between patriarchy and gendered violence, and offers a plan for helping victims to heal and bringing perpetrators to justice. Drawing on testimony from survivors of childhood abuse, domestic violence, and other forms of trauma, Herman describes how abusers “break the will” of victims and deprive them of “agency” by isolating them from their friends and families and making them feel “repulsive.” Elsewhere, she describes patriarchy as the “most widespread and enduring form of tyranny,” detailing how it oppresses women in the domains of “production, reproduction, sex, and child rearing.” For Herman, justice and repair can only happen when survivors recognize “they are not alone, they have nothing to be ashamed of, and theirs is not a private misfortune.” She draws on Greek myth and social contract theory to suggest that “when a community rallies to the victim’s support, vengeful feelings are transformed into shared righteous indignation, which can be a powerful source of energy for repair,” and calls for society to dismantle “our most deeply embedded structures of oppression and to create new structures where everyone is respected, everyone is included, and everyone has a voice.” The result is a scrupulous and ardent call for change. (Mar.)
02/01/2023
In a companion piece to her 1992 book Trauma and Recovery , Herman (psychiatry, Harvard Medical Sch.) imagines an equitable model for justice for trauma survivors. She focuses her discussion on the victims of violence against women and children. First, she explores trauma through the lenses of tyranny, equity and patriarchy. Next, she imagines a more equitable justice system that centers victims and their desires; there are examples to illustrate. Through conversations with victims, Herman discovers that they most often want an acknowledgement of their experience from the community, an apology from the perpetrator, and for the perpetrator to be held accountable. Herman's analysis finds that the current criminal justice system in the United States is inadequate for the victims she interviewed and leaves many of them feeling as though they do not have a voice. Additionally, she briefly looks at the effect of systemic racism in justice systems. She advocates for alternate models of justice, most prominently a restorative justice one, and assesses the pros and cons of these approaches. The book ends with a call for change and centering of survivors. VERDICT An intriguing exploration of alternative methods of justice for trauma survivors.—Rebekah Kati
2023-01-24 Imagining healing for survivors of violence.
In this follow-up to Trauma and Recovery , Herman, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School with decades of experience treating traumatized patients, presents a set of strategies for recovery, with a particular focus on the experiences of women and children. As she explains, survivors must navigate several stages as they work toward therapeutic outcomes, beginning with securing a sense of present safety and then moving on to making sense of trauma through grieving, strengthening ties to a supportive network of others, and finally seeking justice through some form of public recognition. As Herman makes clear, healing requires seizing the moral attention of community members, who must play the crucial role of confirming that wrongs have been committed. “Acknowledgement of the survivor’s truth, acknowledgement of the harm she has suffered, and full apology, with remorse and without excuses—for many survivors, these are the requisite actions by which perpetrators and bystanders can begin the process of healing, moving from truth to repair,” writes the author, who makes a persuasive argument that acts of violence must be understood in both personal and transpersonal terms. In other words, individual trauma is always bound up with ideological structures that can facilitate forms of abuse and prolong suffering. To that end, Herman combines sensitive commentary on the testimonies of particular survivors with analysis of the social, economic, and legal contexts in which their victimization took place. Also astute are the author’s reflections on the shortcomings of the American justice system when it comes to serving “the well-being of the victim rather than the punishment of the offender.” Herman argues convincingly that, in many instances, survivors’ search for justice must include restorative rather than retributive justice. As it stands, “the justice system offer[s] them very little incentive to endure the rigors of a trial.”
A compelling outline of the necessary conditions of personal and collective recovery from trauma.
New York Times Editor's Choice Pick— “An extraordinary book….Beautiful, profound, and important.” —New York Times Book Review “Through masterful storytelling, Judith Herman charts the course from trauma to justice and compels us to follow it. An inspiring and practical call to action, Truth and Repair celebrates survivors’ wisdom and their power to heal themselves and the world we live in.” —Anita Hill "Herman’s greatest contribution in Truth and Repair is more than her reflections on criminal procedure or the merits of restorative justice: it is that she knows how to speak to rape victims in a way that honors #MeToo’s hopefulness rather than instrumentalizing it – not with patronizing pity, but with something that looks more like respect.”—Bookforum “A compelling outline of the necessary conditions of personal and collective recovery from trauma.”—Kirkus “An incisive report on the links between patriarchy and gendered violence… The result is a scrupulous and ardent call for change.”—Publishers Weekly “Truth and Repair is a vital text to understanding the processes that underly trauma, how it unfolds, what it does to victims, and several larger discussions about recovery.”—Booklist “An intriguing exploration of alternative methods of justice for trauma survivors.”—Library Journal “Three decades after the publication of her foundational Trauma and Recovery , Herman brilliantly confronts us with another vital, but much ignored, aspect of recovery: social justice. Justice is an essential component for healing the godforsaken sense of humiliation and abandonment so central in traumatizing experiences. When justice is denied, trauma’s imprint is likely to fester in the form of helpless rage. A magnificent and inspiring contribution with profound implications for the healing professions and for society at large.”—Bessel van der Kolk, MD, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Body Keeps the Score “Herman has written some of the most seminal, life-changing books on violence against women. Here in her new book, Truth and Repair , she does something even more radical. She listens to the survivors themselves and skillfully shapes their voices and wisdom into a practical and truly enlightened road map for our future. Every word rang true and essential.”—V (formerly Eve Ensler), playwright of The Vagina Monologues “For thirty years, every single book written about the impact of trauma has stood on the shoulders of Herman’s groundbreaking book Trauma and Recovery . Now, thirty years later, we receive a bookend to that masterpiece, examining how survivors of gender-based violence seek justice and healing. Truth and Repair is a deeply researched and thought-provoking book offering hope and healing for victims of violence, many of whom have felt betrayed, ignored, or retraumatized by existing larger societal institutions.”—Michelle Bowdler, author of Is Rape a Crime? “Herman’s earlier studies of abuse of women and children recast our understanding of trauma. Now, in Truth and Repair , she comes full circle in describing how initially powerless victims can, through innovative social arrangements, achieve hard-won survivor justice. In the process, we learn much about what justice really means for traumatized people. Herman’s perspective is deeply humane and grounded in historical and political reality. Her work stands alone in its arc and originality.”—Robert Jay Lifton, MD, Columbia University “This book is a revelation. With careful precision and dogged research, Judith Herman offers us not only a diagnosis of our most pressing social ailments, but a prescription for healing. Rarely does a book offer this level of insight, hope and remedy.”—Rachel Louise Snyder, author of No Visible Bruises
This book is a revelation. With careful precision and dogged research, Judith Herman offers us not only a diagnosis of our most pressing social ailments but a prescription for healing. Rarely does a book offer this level of insight, hope, and remedy.”
author of No Visible Bruises Rachel Louise Snyder
Three decades after the publication of her foundational Trauma and Recovery , Herman brilliantly confronts us with another vital, but much ignored, aspect of recovery: social justice. Justice is an essential component for healing the godforsaken sense of humiliation and abandonment so central in traumatizing experiences. When justice is denied, trauma’s imprint is likely to fester in the form of helpless rage. A magnificent and inspiring contribution with profound implications for the healing professions and for society at large.