Composition: History & Theory: 1990 - 1999
Royster, Jacqueline Jones. “When the First Voice You Hear Is Not Your Own.” (1996)
Description
In “When the First Voice You Hear Is Not Your Own,” Royster addresses three ideas centered on “voice” as a subjective position: first, she presents her own stories to contextualize and elicit critical responses; second, she moves toward the idea that there are still areas of voice that are problematic because voice is still limited to written or spoken notions; finally, Royster expresses a desire for the recognition that voice can of course be visual and oral but also a “thing heard, perceived, and reconstructed” (612). In each scene that Royster constructs, she addresses these issues by examining how interpretations by the outside community are seen as suspect but that they “embody ways of seeing, knowing, being and acting that probably suggest as much about the speaker and the context as they do about the targeted subject matter” (613). Royster also asks for some consideration of those who are telling stories to alter paradigms. Her frustration stems from speaking and not being heard, not being believed, and not being deemed believable (618). However, she maintains that it is still better to speak than be silent. Finally, she addresses the notion of authentic voice, stating that those that are “hybrid people” can inhabit and maintain many voices, all of which are authentic (619). Royster’s final point is a push for better codes of conduct as we continue to reexamine and listen to multiple perspectives while trying to cross boundaries that are to remain fluid.
Date of Upload
11/3/09