For this week's blog, I decided to share what I had written last Friday in class in response to the "Engendering Silence" chapter. My junior year of high school I was nominated to become a member of NHS. After I had taken the time to complete all the requirements necessary, I found out that I was not chosen to be a member. I knew this was because committee members did not care for the person I was and had issues with me. Just to confirm what I already knew, I asked the main "male" sponsor who was on the committee and why they had rejected my application. Silence! I received no answers. Not because they didn't have any, but because they were scared to give them to me for they were not answers of merit. They were simply answers of dislike and hatred for the person I was.
When I had eventually found out, for certain, who was on the committee, I took matters into my own hands. As valedictorian, I outed, and maybe "tattled" on, these two particular people in my speech in front of hundreds of people. Two years later, one was asked not to come back and teach at my school. Thus, I reclaimed power and was not allowed to be punished by their remaining silent! Instead I turned my forced subordination into action and did a little retaliation!!
This story reveals the true relationship between silence and speech. The silence displayed by the committee members represents a lack of respect and proves that silence can be used to retain power over others just like speech. As seen in Unspoken, silence can also manifest itself as a way in which to resist such oppression.
ReplyDeleteI think that you did the right thing Nicole. They had no logical reason to reject your application. I really admire you for what you did, you spoke for yourself and took the power over them with speech. This is one example on how speech can be stronger than silence sometimes, well done!
ReplyDeleteSome people need to be "tattled" on to end the silence. I am sure they were secretly talking about you. I wrote about this in my blog. Secrets could be the same as silence or even stronger than silence. Silence or speech being stronger has been a very debated idea in our class. I believe you find your strengths in speech and you should be very proud.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a great example of how speech and silence relate. This applies to the "Engendering Silence" chapter - if the sponsors were of the traditional, "male" rhetoric, they would've been comfortable with treating someone they disagreed with with silent contempt, essentially marginalizing you through their behavior. Obviously they made the wrong choice!
ReplyDeleteGreat story relating silence and speaking. You were wronged and even through their silence, you were able to achieve justice. I think that your story is just about the opposite story of any of Cheryl Glenn's examples, and l think it proves a powerful point about speaking and silence: although silence can hide many things and prevent trouble (Bill Clinton, Clarence Thomas) eventually those who have done wrong will have to come to terms with what they did.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Will here that silence can hide many things and prevent trouble, but from what I have learn and I can see from what Nicole did here speaking up when you are wronged may not have effect right away but the person that speaks out and isn't silent seems to always have the last say.
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