Introduction

First published in 1974, Carrie by Stephen King remains a seminal work in the horror genre, offering a compelling portrayal of the psychological and bodily trauma experienced by a marginalized adolescent girl. Carrie White, the novel’s protagonist, is subjected to continuous bullying by her peers and religious fanaticism at home—two oppressive forces that converge to alienate and ultimately destroy her. Through the metaphor of menstruation and the stigmatization of the female body, King constructs a narrative in which womanhood is pathologized and adolescence becomes a site of psychological mutilation.

While physical mutilation traditionally refers to corporeal harm, King reconfigures the concept as a symbolic form of violence—psychic disfigurement inflicted through societal rejection, religious dogma, and familial abuse. Carrie’s menarche, which should signify a natural biological transition, is instead framed as a site of shame, horror, and ridicule. The menstrual blood, far from being a mark of maturity, is portrayed as a cursed signifier of sin, triggering a spiral of trauma and alienation.

This paper explores how King’s novel dramatizes the complex interplay between trauma, female sexuality, and supernatural empowerment. Carrie’s telekinetic powers, unleashed during moments of extreme humiliation and repression, function as both a symptom and a response to her internalized trauma. They metaphorize the dangerous potential of suppressed female rage and the consequences of denying young women agency over their bodies and identities.

At the core of this study lies the following problem: How does King represent the symbolic mutilation of the female body through Carrie’s psychological suffering, social exclusion, and religious oppression? To address this, the article adopts a critical reading of the novel that examines how trauma shapes identity, power, and the transformation of victimhood into vengeance.

The objectives of this research are fourfold:

1. to examine the psychological and symbolic impact of Carrie’s first menstruation and her mother’s extremist religious discipline;

2. to analyze how social bullying and alienation exacerbate her inner trauma and foster self-rejection;

3. to study the prom night massacre as the narrative climax where all prior traumas are externalized;

4. And to interrogate how King’s narrative reflects broader societal fears about feminine power, trauma, and revenge.

In pursuing these goals, the study is guided by the following research questions:

• How is female mutilation—both physical and symbolic—represented in Carrie?

• In what ways do trauma and social violence contribute to Carrie’s self-discovery and transformation?

• How do telekinetic powers function as metaphors for repressed emotion and trauma?

• What is the role of religious fanaticism in intensifying gender-based oppression?

This paper is grounded in several key hypotheses: that Carrie’s traumatic experiences of pubertal shame and maternal abuse catalyze her awakening to power; that the bullying she endures operates as a collective symbolic mutilation; and that her supernatural retaliation signifies a radical form of reclaiming agency within a hostile patriarchal order.

Ultimately, the significance of this study lies in its interdisciplinary scope—bridging literary analysis, gender studies, psychoanalysis, and trauma theory—to examine how symbolic violence can distort identity and generate monstrous forms of resistance. Carrie is not merely a horror story, but a cultural critique of the mechanisms by which societies marginalize, pathologize, and punish female bodies in transition.

1. Theoretical Framework and Literature Review

1.1. Theoretical Framework

This paper draws on a multidisciplinary theoretical framework combining psychoanalytic theory, trauma studies, and feminist literary criticism. These intersecting perspectives enable a nuanced understanding of the symbolic violence enacted upon Carrie White’s body and identity.

From a psychoanalytic standpoint, the novel illustrates the destabilizing impact of repressed sexuality and maternal domination. Carl Jung’s theory of psychic individuation, particularly the painful process of emancipation from the parental figure, offers a compelling lens through which to examine Carrie’s arrested development and internal conflict. Margaret White's religious fanaticism acts as a barrier to her daughter’s individuation, reinforcing guilt and bodily shame instead of supporting her psychological growth.

In terms of trauma theory, Carrie’s experience exemplifies the cumulative nature of complex trauma, as defined by contemporary scholars such as Judith Herman. The bullying, humiliation, and parental abuse she endures cannot be seen as isolated events but rather as a persistent system of interpersonal and institutional violence. Her telekinetic powers emerge not as supernatural fantasy, but as allegorical expressions of unprocessed trauma and its explosive consequences.

Feminist criticism contributes to this analysis by highlighting the gendered dimensions of horror and monstrosity. Building on the works of Simone de Beauvoir and Julia Kristeva, this paper considers how Carrie’s body is constructed as abject — both feared and repressed — within a patriarchal order that equates menstruation and female sexuality with sin and corruption. Feminist theorists such as Barbara Creed have examined the archetype of the "monstrous feminine" in horror literature and film; Carrie, with her menstruation-linked powers and symbolic association with blood, functions precisely within this tradition.

These overlapping theoretical perspectives allow for a critical interpretation of Carrie not merely as a horror narrative, but as a cultural artifact revealing deep anxieties about female agency, corporeality, and social deviance.

1.2.Literature Review

Since its publication in 1974, Stephen King's Carrie has attracted wide critical attention as a landmark of American horror fiction, particularly in relation to its treatment of adolescent trauma, female embodiment, and monstrosity. The novel has been interpreted through a range of theoretical lenses, including psychoanalysis, feminist theory, trauma studies, and cultural criticism.

A central concern in the literature is the representation of menstruation as a site of trauma and social exclusion. Hafdahl and Florence (2020) argue that Carrie’s menarche functions as both a personal crisis and a societal taboo, symbolizing the moment where her body becomes the object of violent social rejection. Platt (2024) reinforces this reading by framing menarche as the “calamity” from which all of Carrie’s so-called sinful acts emerge, positioning it as a trigger for both psychic rupture and supernatural power.

Carrie’s relationship with her mother has also drawn significant scholarly focus. Margaret White, driven by religious fundamentalism, embodies a force of internalized patriarchy. According to Mulcahy (2023), Carrie’s telekinesis acts not only as a metaphor for abjection but also as a form of psychic resistance to her mother’s oppressive authority. Simone de Beauvoir’s (1949/1953) insights into mother-daughter dynamics further illuminate this aspect, highlighting how women perpetuate patriarchal values by molding their daughters in their own subjugated image.

The notion of the “monstrous feminine,” as theorized by scholars like Lindsey (1991) and Creed (1993), provides a powerful lens to interpret Carrie’s transformation. Her bleeding body becomes a site of abjection and terror, both within the narrative and in the eyes of her community. Dumas (2022) extends this reading by viewing Carrie’s monstrosity as the product of accumulated patriarchal violence and its traumatic residues. Similarly, Hassan and Ibrahim (2022) situate Carrie’s powers within a Puritanical framework of gender control, where female bodies are monitored, punished, and feared.

Despite this rich body of literature, existing studies often isolate thematic strands—menstruation, abuse, or power—without fully exploring how they converge. The present article seeks to address this gap by demonstrating that King constructs a complex circuit in which trauma, corporeal shame, and supernatural empowerment are inextricably linked. By examining the novel through the lens of symbolic mutilation, the analysis contributes to a more integrated understanding of how horror can operate as a feminist critique of social violence inflicted upon the adolescent female body.

2. Methodology

This study adopts a qualitative methodology grounded in close textual analysis, which is particularly suited for interrogating the psychological, symbolic, and cultural dimensions of Stephen King’s Carrie. The approach involves a critical reading of the narrative’s key episodes—specifically those surrounding menstruation, domestic abuse, social ostracization, and telekinetic empowerment—in order to trace the development of trauma and its manifestation through symbolic and supernatural channels.

The analysis privileges a psychoanalytic and feminist interpretive lens, with particular attention to representations of the female body, shame, and the mother-daughter dynamic. By dissecting narrative patterns, imagery, and character development, the study aims to reveal how Carrie’s identity is shaped and ultimately distorted by intersecting forces of gender-based violence and religious oppression.

The examination focuses on selected scenes that serve as narrative and symbolic turning points, such as the locker room menstruation incident, Carrie’s confrontations with her mother, the prom night humiliation, and the ensuing telekinetic catastrophe. These moments are read not as isolated plot events but as cumulative expressions of psychic fragmentation and social inscription on the female body.

Additionally, the analysis engages with scholarly discourse around adolescence, monstrosity, and trauma. Secondary sources, including literary criticism, psychoanalytic theory, and feminist writings, are used to contextualize and deepen the textual readings. The triangulation of primary and secondary materials allows for a multidimensional understanding of the novel’s commentary on female subjectivity under patriarchal control.

While the study does not employ empirical data or fieldwork, its methodological rigor lies in the systematic alignment of narrative evidence with critical theory, providing a solid foundation for scholarly inquiry into the novel’s treatment of trauma, power, and identity formation.

3. Analytical Discussion

Cette section constitue le développement central de l'article. Elle présente une analyse structurée des éléments clés du roman à travers des sous-sections thématiques. Chacune explore un aspect du traumatisme féminin dans Carrie, en lien avec le corps, la société, la religion et la révolte surnaturelle.

3.1 Menarche and Shame: The Abject Body and Symbolic Mutilation

One of the most pivotal scenes in Carrie is the depiction of the protagonist's first menstruation, which functions not as a rite of passage, but as a moment of radical rupture and shame. Occurring in the locker room showers at school, the menarche scene transforms a biologically normative event into a source of horror and social violence. Carrie, unaware of what menstruation entails due to her mother's refusal to educate her, interprets the bleeding as a sign of death. This confusion is compounded by the cruel reaction of her peers, who ridicule her by shouting:

“Plug it up! Plug it up!”
— (King, 1974, p. 11)

They further humiliate her by throwing sanitary products at her, publicly marking her as other, and reinforcing her alienation. Far from receiving support, Carrie becomes the object of collective disgust, and her body is instantly rendered abject.

As Hafdahl and Florence (2020) note:

“Menstruation in the novel is not merely a private experience but a public spectacle that exposes the vulnerability of the female body to social judgment.”

Carrie's menarche thus becomes a symbolic mutilation—an initiation not into womanhood, but into a life of shame, silence, and segregation. Her peers’ violent reactions are mirrored at home by her mother’s religious condemnation of menstruation as:

“the curse of blood.”
— (King, 1974, p. 43)

This deepens Carrie’s internalized shame and alienation. Her trauma is not only physical, but profoundly psychic, rooted in a violent rejection of her body’s natural functions by both her social and familial environments.

This moment also marks the beginning of Carrie’s supernatural awakening. Her telekinetic abilities, previously dormant, begin to surface as a response to the emotional intensity of the humiliation. King subtly links these powers to emotional repression and trauma, suggesting a psychosomatic connection between bodily shame and latent force. As she processes her public degradation, Carrie’s trauma crystalizes into psychic power—a pattern that will intensify throughout the novel. The blood of menarche thus foreshadows the later bloodbath at prom, establishing menstruation as both a symbolic and literal source of destruction.

Margaret White’s role in intensifying Carrie’s trauma cannot be overstated. Her religious fanaticism frames menstruation not as a natural phase, but as divine punishment. Her refusal to educate Carrie about her own body is not merely ignorance but a deliberate ideological act: an attempt to deny her daughter agency, identity, and autonomy. Margaret blames Carrie for the menarche incident and violently punishes her, reinforcing the view that the female body is inherently sinful. Simone de Beauvoir offers a timeless diagnosis of such maternal complicity in patriarchal reproduction:

“When a child comes under their care, women apply themselves to changing her into a woman like themselves, manifesting a zeal in which arrogance and resentment are mingled.”
— (Beauvoir, 1949/1953, pp. 285–286)

The psychological impact of this dual rejection—by peers and parent—manifests in Carrie’s growing sense of worthlessness and otherness. Her longing to belong is thwarted at every turn, and her late menarche (at age sixteen) further isolates her from her peers. In this context, King portrays the onset of puberty not as a developmental milestone, but as the threshold of monstrosity. As Lindsey (1991) insightfully notes:

“Carrie presents a masculine fantasy in which the feminine is constituted as horrific.”
— (Lindsey, 1991, p. 34)

Menstruation becomes both the marker and the catalyst of Carrie’s symbolic descent into monstrosity.

In sum, the menarche scene functions as the foundational trauma in Carrie’s narrative arc. It initiates a cycle of humiliation, rage, and repression that will later explode into supernatural violence. More than a biological event, Carrie’s first menstruation becomes a site of symbolic mutilation, where the boundaries between body, shame, and power begin to collapse.

This inaugural trauma not only marks the beginning of Carrie’s estrangement from her own body, but also establishes the novel’s structural motif: the association of blood with both shame and power. As the narrative unfolds, every significant turning point is punctuated by blood—whether menstrual, maternal, or sacrificial—linking corporeal experience to psychological disintegration and supernatural retribution. The menarche scene thus foreshadows the novel’s final act of vengeance, where the once-subjugated body becomes the locus of uncontrollable force. In this sense, King uses the symbolism of menstruation not merely to evoke horror, but to expose how patriarchal systems of meaning construct femininity as both dangerous and disposable.

3.2 Telekinesis as a Metaphor for Suppressed Trauma

Carrie’s telekinetic powers do not emerge randomly, nor are they portrayed as innate gifts of fantasy. Rather, they are psychically linked to the accumulation of shame, rage, and unprocessed trauma. King presents telekinesis as a form of embodied resistance—a metaphorical extension of Carrie’s repressed emotions and psychological instability. These powers are awakened precisely at the moment when her humiliation, fear, and isolation reach their peak, revealing a deep connection between trauma and supernatural agency.

Following the menarche incident, Carrie’s powers begin to surface. The intensity of her shame and terror initiates what appears to be a psychic eruption. King explains this explicitly:

“Carrie White's exceptionally late and traumatic commencement of the menstrual cycle might well have provided the trigger for her latent talent.”
— (King, 1974, p. 12)

This alignment between trauma and psychic power suggests that Carrie’s abilities are a pathological reaction to psychological violence—a survival mechanism turned destructive. The powers do not represent strength in the heroic sense but rather a symptomatic breakdown of Carrie’s inner world, now externalized as violent kinetic force.

From a psychoanalytic perspective, Carrie’s powers are expressions of suppressed desire, anger, and humiliation. Her growing attraction to Tommy Ross further complicates this dynamic, as her emotions oscillate between vulnerability and longing for normalcy. Lindsey (1991) captures this duality when she notes:

“The escalating forcefulness of Carrie’s telekinetic ability is matched by her increasingly ardent attraction to Tommy Ross, another by-product of her emerging sexuality.”
— (Lindsey, 1991, p. 37)

Thus, telekinesis emerges as an ambiguous force: at once a symbol of feminine awakening and a conduit of unrelenting vengeance.

Importantly, Carrie’s powers also reflect her increasing marginalization and alienation. Rather than finding empowerment through community or familial support, she discovers her strength in solitude—through fear and psychic pain. King draws inspiration from real-world accounts of poltergeist activity linked to adolescent girls, most notably those who suffered extreme emotional distress. He acknowledges that Carrie was inspired by real cases, such as that of Tina White and Sandra Irving, both girls who were bullied to the point of destruction. Their tragic fates (one died by suicide, the other by seizure) serve as spectral precursors to Carrie’s narrative arc, transforming victimhood into fatal power.

Hafdahl and Florence (2020) support this reading:

“If the [telekinetic] power existed... then the power would be strongest with adolescent girls.”
— (p. 11)

This claim reinforces the symbolic link between puberty, female emotional volatility, and supernatural force—a triad rooted in both misogynistic anxiety and literary tradition.

Importantly, Carrie does not perceive her powers as a gift. They emerge involuntarily, often triggered by intense emotional states—shame, anger, fear. They are, in essence, a trauma response. As the narrative progresses, telekinesis becomes Carrie’s only viable outlet for asserting her subjectivity in a world that persistently denies it. Her body, previously the site of ridicule and abjection, becomes a weaponized space—a physical expression of inner fragmentation.

King’s portrayal thus subverts the trope of supernatural ability as empowerment. Carrie’s telekinesis is not liberatory; it is catastrophic. It reveals the cost of trauma that is not processed but repressed—of femininity that is not nurtured but violated.

3.3 Prom Night and the Spectacle of Vengeance

Prom night in Carrie functions as the climax of the narrative and the culmination of the protagonist’s accumulated trauma. What begins as an illusion of social acceptance swiftly devolves into catastrophic betrayal. For Carrie, the prom is not simply a school dance—it is a symbolic attempt to reclaim normalcy, femininity, and dignity. Sue Snell’s well-intentioned gesture of having Tommy Ross invite Carrie is perceived as an act of redemption, both for Sue herself and for Carrie’s peers. However, this fragile moment of integration is shattered by a final act of cruelty: the pig blood prank.

The scene is constructed with theatrical precision. As Carrie and Tommy stand on stage to be crowned prom king and queen, a bucket of pig’s blood—an animal often associated with filth and degradation—is dumped on Carrie. The choice of this specific substance is deliberate and dehumanizing. Chris Hargensen’s voice echoes in Carrie’s mind:

“Pig blood for a pig.”
— (King, 1974, p. 87)

This act reasserts the association between Carrie’s body, shame, and animality. It not only humiliates her but also collapses the distance she had begun to establish between herself and her previous marginalization.

The blood, once again, becomes a symbol of trauma. It triggers a regression to the original menarche scene, as Carrie is transported psychologically back to the showers, to the horror and confusion of that first violent exposure. King describes this traumatic flashback vividly:

“She was red and dripping with it; they had drenched her in the very secretness of blood, in front of all of them… she could smell herself and it was the stink of blood—the awful wet, coppery smell.”
— (King, 1974, p. 136)

This moment marks Carrie’s psychic rupture and the unleashing of her full telekinetic power. The humiliation becomes intolerable, and the prom hall, once a space of communal celebration, is transformed into a scene of judgment and destruction. Her peers are not only punished for their complicity but for the deeper social system they represent: one that punishes difference, enforces conformity, and mocks vulnerability.

Giacomolli (2023) defends the reader’s identification with Carrie’s vengeance:

“Looking at Carrie’s victims at the end of the novel, one cannot help but immediately feel a tragic relief, especially after having witnessed all those people had done to her throughout the story.”
— (p. 11)

The massacre is brutal, but within the logic of the narrative, it is framed as a response to relentless dehumanization. Carrie becomes an agent of apocalyptic justice—her power no longer metaphorical but manifest.

From a symbolic perspective, the scene also reflects the fear of female sexuality and empowerment. Carrie's ability to destroy is awakened through a sequence of betrayals linked directly to her maturation as a woman. Tasnim and Hussain (2022) elaborate on this cultural anxiety:

“A menstruating woman, using her sexuality to invoke her telekinetic superpower, is a manifestation of society’s paranoia... they would capture, dissect, analyze any woman who dare to exhibit this power, and finally control her by killing her.”
— (p. 166)

In this sense, prom night is more than revenge—it is an eruption of suppressed power in a society that pathologizes female desire, bodily autonomy, and emotional intensity. The public spectacle of vengeance echoes the public spectacle of shame. Both are performances forced upon Carrie by a community obsessed with control.

The stage, initially set for celebration, becomes a theater of annihilation. Carrie’s trauma has reached its climax, and her response is not merely emotional—it is elemental. Fire, blood, and death mark the end of her narrative and the society that rejected her. The prom night massacre is the terminal point of Carrie’s transformation from victim to myth, from girl to horror figure, from shame to wrath.

3.4 Blood as Trauma and Power: A Symbolic Trajectory

Blood is the most pervasive and polyvalent symbol in Carrie. It marks nearly every key moment in the protagonist’s life, operating simultaneously as a sign of trauma, shame, punishment, and power. The novel opens with blood—Carrie’s menarche—and ends with blood, in the catastrophic violence of prom night. Between these events, blood functions as the narrative thread binding her psychic transformation to her physical and social abjection.

Initially, blood is associated with ignorance and horror. Carrie’s terror at her first period stems not from the biological fact itself, but from her lack of understanding and the social reaction it provokes. King writes:

“She was red and dripping with it… she could smell herself and it was the stink of blood… the awful wet, coppery smell… they had finally given her the shower they wanted.”
— (King, 1974, p. 136)

This moment fuses menstruation with humiliation and violence, establishing blood as an agent of both personal crisis and collective cruelty. The body becomes a spectacle, and blood its most visible and stigmatizing element.

Carrie’s mother, Margaret White, reinforces this negative association. She warns her daughter:

“After the blood, the boys come, like sniffing dogs… trying to find out where that smell is.”
— (King, 1974, p. 73)

Here, blood is directly linked to sin, sexuality, and degradation—a toxic triad of meanings that constructs the female body as both impure and dangerous. Carrie's perception of herself is shaped by this narrative, deepening her feelings of otherness and internalized misogyny.

Scholars such as Mulcahy (2023) emphasize the patriarchal logic that underpins these associations:

“Patriarchal society commonly views the female body as abject. Menstruation is considered one of the most abject qualities of the female body, as women are instructed to hide all signs of blood.”
— (Mulcahy, 2023, p. 2)

Thus, blood is not just physical—it is ideological. It signifies the rejection of the female body as natural, the policing of its functions, and the shame imposed upon its visibility. King turns this logic against itself. What begins as stigma becomes source: the very blood that marks Carrie as monstrous becomes the source of her retaliation.

In this reversal, Carrie reclaims blood as a symbol of agency. Through the pig blood incident and the subsequent massacre, she transforms a symbol of humiliation into a catalyst of revenge. The site of pain becomes the site of power. Blood no longer merely signifies shame—it signifies control.

King reflects on this transmutation in Danse Macabre, stating:

“Carrie is largely about how women find their channels of power and what men fear about women and women’s sexuality.”
— (King, 1981, p. 106)

Blood, in this context, is no longer only biological—it is political. It reflects the historical terror of female embodiment and the social consequences of failing to regulate it. In Carrie, every drop of blood spilled—whether menstrual, maternal, or vengeful—marks a rupture in the established order.

By the end of the novel, blood has shifted from a symbol of abjection to one of sovereignty. Carrie’s vengeance is not random—it is structured, symbolic, and absolute. Her bloodlines—literal and metaphorical—carry a message that resonates beyond her own destruction: when feminine power is repressed, it returns not quietly, but in fury.

Conclusion

Stephen King's Carrie offers a harrowing portrayal of how systemic psychological and physical violence can distort female identity and provoke catastrophic outcomes. Through the figure of Carrie White, King constructs a narrative where trauma is not incidental but structural—inscribed onto the female body through religious dogma, social ostracism, and maternal oppression. Each act of symbolic mutilation—whether verbal humiliation, physical abuse, or public shaming—contributes to the erosion of Carrie’s subjectivity and ultimately catalyzes her violent retribution.

The novel demonstrates how menstruation, rather than marking a biological transition into womanhood, becomes the locus of horror, abjection, and social punishment. The recurring motif of blood operates as both a sign of shame and a conduit of power. Carrie’s telekinetic abilities emerge not as supernatural fantasy, but as a metaphor for repressed rage and the psychic energy of unresolved trauma. Her eventual explosion at prom night is not merely a revenge fantasy; it is the embodiment of a society’s failure to recognize and respond to the suffering of its most vulnerable members.

Through this narrative arc, King critiques the patriarchal mechanisms that regulate, shame, and punish female bodies. The novel exposes how violence against women—whether institutional, familial, or peer-driven—can generate consequences that reverberate far beyond the individual. Carrie's story is not just about monstrosity, but about what creates it. Her tragedy signals the urgent need to confront the cultural and ideological forces that perpetuate trauma in silence.

In examining Carrie through the lens of symbolic mutilation, this study underscores the ethical imperative of acknowledging the psychological cost of marginalization. King’s novel, though rooted in horror, functions as a social allegory—one that compels readers to reflect on how trauma is inscribed, how violence is normalized, and how resistance, even when destructive, arises from deep human suffering.