“Our Life is a Movie”: The Portrayal of Iraqi Intergenerational Trauma In Mohamed Al-Daradji’s Films

Abstract

This presentation will examine the representation of Iraqi generational trauma in film. Particularly, it will focus on films directed by Mohamed Al-Daradji, an Iraqi director who creates films focusing on political issues in Iraq and how they impact individuals and interpersonal relationships. This is an important topic because Iraq has gone through various political and social challenges throughout history, and in a way, it still is. Those events have caused trauma among its citizens, and this trauma can be transmitted down to younger generations through epigenetics, parenting styles, and systemic injustices. Furthermore, trauma has been associated with “loss of language” and silence; thus, many cultures that experience trauma tend not to discuss it or try to heal from it. Therefore, films can be a powerful mode of processing the traumatic events and the traumatic cycles that were passed down through generations. This topic is great for this year’s themes of the Western Regional Honors Council since it analyzes the global issue of generational trauma and focuses on a country outside of the United States to do so. Therefore, this research will analyze this global issue and possibly how the findings may apply to other populations around the globe.

Three of Al-Daradji’s films will be analyzed: Ahlaam (2005); War, Love, God, & Madness (2008),and Son of Babylon (2009). To analyze the films, a psychological criticism approach to content analysis will be used, wherein the characters are treated as simulated humans with their own psychological dimensions (Ryan & Lenos, 2020). The presentation will also use an interdisciplinary approach to examine the interdependencies in various systems, including political, social, cultural, and economic systems. The project may produce recommendations about the use of film to heal from generational trauma and process traumatic political events among communities that experienced them.