Between Past and Future: The Maternal Image in K. Atkinson’s Short Story “Tunnel of Fish”

The focus of this article is the artistic representation of the maternal image in K. Atkinson’s short story “Tunnel of Fish”, examined through the lenses of psychological trauma, transgenerational transmission of experience, and the dynamics of mother-child relationships. The aim of the study is to identify the structural and symbolic mechanisms underlying the construction of the maternal figure in a state of emotional liminality, as well as to determine the ways in which guilt, adolescent behavioral patterns, and disrupted parental functions are artistically encoded. The object of research includes an analysis of the interrelation between June’s inner world and the psychological dynamics of her relationship with her son Eddie, the identification of role-reversal mechanisms, and the investigation of how the mother’s emotional immaturity affects the formation of the child’s identity. Thus, the study encompasses a holistic examination of the maternal image as a phenomenon that integrates psychological, social, symbolic, and mythopoetic dimensions, allowing for an in-depth understanding of K. Atkinson’s authorial approach to motherhood in contemporary British literature. The methodological framework combines structural-semiotic and narratological analysis, elements of psychological typology and mythocriticism, as well as the interpretation of symbolic oppositions within the text. The novelty of the study lies in its comprehensive examination of the maternal image in K. Atkinson’s “Tunnel of Fish”, a text that has been relatively rarely analyzed as a standalone object in both domestic and international studies on contemporary British prose. The study’s originality also consists in its exploration of the maternal figure through the lens of the typology of destructive maternal models proposed by H. Cloud and G. Townsend, while simultaneously emphasizing the psychological trauma experienced by the protagonist and its impact on her inner world and maternal practice. The results demonstrate the connection between the protagonist’s early trauma and the development of patterns of emotional immaturity; a role reversal is identified, in which the son assumes adult functions while the mother exhibits infantile behavior. The findings confirm that unprocessed trauma and persistent guilt shape a scripted model of motherhood, leading to recurring conflicts and emotional dysfunction. The birth of the daughter is interpreted by the protagonist as a compensatory strategy, which inhibits genuine attachment and reproduces cycles of emotional vulnerability.