Multiple Silences in a Cacophonous Age (original) (raw)
Related papers
Journal of Pragmatics, 2007
The article presents a typology of silence in social interaction, based on a number of features, including the number of participants in the interaction, the identity of the text that is left unsaid, and the intention of the silent person. Four types are proposed-conversation, thematic, textual and situational. Since conversational silence has been extensively discussed elsewhere, the focus of the article is on the other three types, and several problematic cases are discussed concerning not only the classification of instances of silence but also whether what has been called silence is in effect silence. The types of silence are illustrated by examples such as silence in the library, during classroom lessons, in political speeches, remembrance ceremonies, and theatrical and musical performances.
Speaking from Silence: On the Intimate Relation Between Silence and Speaking
2019
In understanding the world through language, silence, regarded simply as the absence of speech, appears to be the enemy of understanding. But in fact, it can be shown that silence is always a function of language. As we learn from Merleau-Ponty, Heidegger, and others, the relation between silence and the word of language is a positive one. There are acts of silence that can generate the movement towards meaning in language. The focus of my remarks in this paper will explore three modalities of silence that characterize the positive relation between silence and the word of language. First, there is silence as the withdrawal of the word. This is the silence of the voice that wants to hold back from speaking and to hold back the word from falling into chatter. Second, there is silence as giving voice to words. This is the silence that enacts the spacing within language that possibilizes the intentions of meaning within speech and the efforts of communicative understanding. Third, there...
Silence: Because What's Missing is Too Absent to Ignore
Journal of Societal and Cultural Research, 2015
What is silence? Is there a psychology of silence—and what does the literature reveal? The exploration of the concept of silence in the psychological literature reveals an almost biological entity—that speaks, grows, hurts, and conceals—despite being nothing at all. Humans are a verbal species, so verbal in fact that the very absence of sound seems to make humans uncomfortable. This verbal world—so dependent on manifest explanation—may make silence one of the most effective means of communication (even though it appears to communicate nothing). This research paper will explore the psychological literature, and show that silence speaks though it says nothing, grows though it has no substance, hurts though it can touch nothing, and conceals though it cannot hide from perception. Though it consists of nothing in particular, it generates psychological phenomena such as pressure, anxiety, suspicion, isolation, rejection, inner conflict, ambiguity, and agitation. Despite its lack of sound or meaning, the language of silence is spoken by all—and once silence is here, its missing explanation is too absent to ignore.
The Art of Participating in Silence
Art Inqiuiry, 2018
The purpose of the essay is to use associations related to silence in order to ascertain whether "participation/participation in silence" is in fact an oxymoron. First, the reflection focuses on the possible meanings of silence. The author proposes treating silence as a performative (non)act of speech. She then uses the criteria developed by J.L. Austin to demonstrate the performative and abstract (and therefore not narrative or descriptive) nature of silence. Secondly, the expression "participation in silence" is considered in the light of Aristotle's views on the individual-community axis. Finally, earlier reflections are used to identify the links between silence and art. John Cage's 4'33 is a selected example, though not the only one. It turns out that participation in silence is not an oxymoron.