Surviving not living: Bird Box and mothering through trauma

Abstract

Bird Box is described as a post-apocalyptic horror thriller, released in 2018, which depicts the plight of a mother raising two young children in the grip of collective trauma, and the ripple effects thereof. In this article, I draw upon key theoretical constructs from the field of trauma studies including attachment and psychoanalytic theories, in relation to the protagonist of Bird Box (Malorie) and her children, to illuminate the effects of relational, collective and transgenerational trauma on mothers and their children. In particular, I apply my reflections upon features of the film to mothering in the socio-political context of Northern Ireland, and the COVID-19 pandemic, to elucidate the complexities of mothering in these contexts. I suggest that Bird Box creates a visceral experience of mothering through trauma for viewers, which enables us to think through salient questions about the needs of mothers and children, beginning to live again in the aftermath of trauma.