Throughout the semester, autobiographies have been a platform through which those “unnaturally silenced” (Carter), the groups and individuals who are “denied the ability to speak, to make a statement, [or] to voice their opinions” (Carter 218), have a space to counter the hegemonic ruling class in society that induces this bubble of silence. And while the publications of these voices are a revolution in itself, it makes me wonder the role that life narratives play in provoking social change. In other words, after completing a yearlong course, studying various counter-narratives that challenge the dominant frames of marginalized groups, I pause to consider the very power of the voices that we read, and the power of our own attitudes towards them.
One article studied in the beginning of the year that I refer back to is Kay Schaffer and Sidonie Smith’s Conjunctions: Life Narratives in the Field of Human Rights. Schaffer and Smith explore the influence of these published life narratives as a catalyst in advancing human rights campaigns on an international scale. I refer back to this text now with a clearer understanding of the barriers that life narratives must overcome just to manage its way into the leading public sphere of knowledge, one of which being our own judgment of certain texts. After working with the archives, and looking at the stories that are stowed away, it is interesting to see the similarities between what is documented as being important enough to be kept as an installment in history, and, thinking back to the published texts, what is important enough to be published in today’s market. Like archivists, we, as a society, are “constantly confronted with choices about what to include and what to exclude, allowing for some voices to be heard while others are silenced” (Carter 219).
I am drawn to the power of our opinions in this matter. In a previous blog post, I examine the banning of Marjane’s Satrapi’s graphic narrative Persepolis. It makes me wonder, specifically in the West, in a society where an individual can simply search up “publishing a book”, and come up with an abundance of options to get their work published, what stops certain voices from doing so, to take a stand against a society that oppresses their identities?
The method may seem simple enough, but again it is our own reception and power that stops various voices from being heard. As Rodney Carter examines in his article, “Of Things Said and Unsaid: Power, Archival Silences, and Power in Silence”, those in power have the ability to make their words heard (Carter). Consequently, this selection of authority creates a “perfect” silence (Carter) that “occurs when and individual speaks but they have no authority behind them…[resulting] in the speech act not being acknowledged and hence the words are not able to achieve their desired effect or fulfill their purpose” (Carter 218).
So while the narrative form does present an accessible way for victims to reclaim their self-determination and cultural identity, to be able to speak and represent their respective identities to the fullest extent, to provide an insight for the rest of the world ignorant of the conditions and stigma many people face (Schaffer & Smith), we as an audience also have the task to listen to these stories, and provide the audience that they wish to reach. I reflect on this at the end of year, and realize the power of the narratives we have read, and simultaneously, realize the power that we have in simply reading and taking the time to be aware of the social issues brought forth.
Works Cited
Carter, Rodney G.S. “Of Things Said and Unsaid: Power, Archival Silences, and Power in Silence.” Archivaria 61 (2006): 215-33. Archivaria. Association of Canadian Archivists. Web. 6. Apr. 2017. <http://archivaria.ca/index.php/archivaria/article/view/12541>.
Satrapi, Marjane. Persepolis. New York, NY: Pantheon, 2003.
Schaffer, Kay. and Smith, Sidonie. “Conjunctions: Life Narratives in the Field of Human Rights.” Biography, vol. 27 no. 1, 2004, pp. 1-24. DOI: 10.1353/bio.2004.0039
Dong, Maya . “Publishing A Book.” Google.ca, n.d. Photograph. 8 April 2017.