Surviving Disownment: Deictic Shift and Embodied Emotions in Sanghera's Shame (2007)

Testimonial writing is a narrative "told in the first person by a narrator who is
also the real protagonist or witness of the events she or he recounts" (Beverly,
1993, p. 70). The unit of narration is usually a significant life experience where
the main focus is not on the 'problematic hero' but rather on the protagonist /
narrator as a "representative…of a large social class or group…" (Beverly,
1993, p. 74). The present study aims at identifying the stylistic features
affecting the intensity and authenticity of Sanghera's ‘Shame’ (2007). The main
question here is what triggers the emotional affect towards the text. I attempt to
analyze the text in the light of different theories from different disciplines. The
employed frameworks include Speech & Thought Presentation from stylistics,
Deictic Shift Theories from cognitive linguistics, and Embodiment & Emotions
from psychology.Sanghera’s unique styleis proven to draw the reader into her
tragic experience and this guarantees the readers’ sympathy with her cause.
She invites the readers to relive her traumatic experience with her rather than
read about which creates a sense of authenticity and immediacy.