In my personal opinion, speaking, especially the truth is what builds community. To remain silent is to hide from one's fears and feel as if you are protected. However, I don't feel that you are safe in silence. The illusion of feeling safe appears to me that it could be dangerous to the person themselves, almost like a self-destruction. Everyone should speak to tell yourself that your beliefs and ideas are real and should be able to become reality, not just stay hidden within you. I think this is the moral that Lorde wants us to believe, not the old rule that silence is a virtue or golden. (Shawn Parkhurst, 16)
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Silence is Golden, or is it?
In Audre Lorde's "The Transformation of Silence into Language and Action" it is conveyed that silence may not be the best for society or for yourself. Many people do things in life based on fear, however I feel that fear often paralyzes a person. If people remain quiet or silent, that silence can be seen as the protector from their fears. To remain silent is to not defend a position, explain a statement, or open yourself to new ideas.
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You very nicely sum up Lorde's major points on the issue of silence in this post. I think you are right to suggest that she asks us to look at silence in a new way--as something that is disempowering as opposed to virtuous or golden.
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