The role of voluntary and involuntary memory in the formation of identity in “Missing Person” by Patrick Modiano

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Research Article

Authors

University of Tabriz

Abstract

This study explores the connections and tensions between memory, both voluntary and involuntary recall, as well as identity formation in Missing Person (Rue des Boutiques Obscures) by Patrick Modiano, the contemporary French novelist and Nobel laureate. The text is classified as a postmodern literary work, centering on a protagonist gripped by amnesia and a fragmented sense of self. This research focuses and elaborates on the concepts of voluntary and involuntary memory. Later, an exploration of the psychological and philosophical underpinnings of these phenomena, takes places. Subsequently, it details how these distinctive states of memory perform within the narrative and their effect on the protagonist's mission to recover his past. By reflecting on the interchange between conscious recollection and the sudden emergence of forgotten experiences, triggered by sensory cues or coincidental encounters, we assess how Modiano employs memory as an instrument for characterization. Our analysis aims to demonstrate that the protagonist's identity emerges not as a stable and rigid entity, but as an indefinite and unstable construct, repetitively subject to change and alteration under the impact of the fragmented and often unreliable nature of memory. In conclusion, this paper argues that in Missing Person, the protagonist's identity is not simply elusive, but actively shaped and consequently transformed by the dynamic tensions between voluntary remembrance and the unexpected emergence of involuntary memories; as such, this reflects the tense and uncertain nature of identity in the postmodern world.

Keywords

References

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Critical Language and Literary studies

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 23 February 2025

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