Silence

153 Pages·2015·0.891 MB·English

by  John Biguenet

A book series about the hidden lives of ordinary things.
Series Editors:
Ian Bogost and Christopher Schaberg
Advisory Board:
Sara Ahmed, Jane Bennett, Johanna Drucker, Raiford Guins,
Graham Harman, renée hoogland, Pam Houston, Eileen
Joy, Douglas Kahn, Daniel Miller, Esther Milne, Timothy
Morton, Nigel Thrift, Kathleen Stewart, Rob Walker,
Michele White.
In association with
Books in the series
Remote Control by Caetlin Benson-Allott
Golf Ball by Harry Brown
Driver’s License by Meredith Castile
Drone by Adam Rothstein
Silence by John Biguenet
Glass by John Garrison
Phone Booth by Ariana Kelly
Refrigerator by Jonathan Rees
Waste by Brian Thill
Hotel by Joanna Walsh
Tree by Matthew Battles (forthcoming)
Hood by Alison Kinney (forthcoming)
Dust by Michael Marder (forthcoming)
Shipping Container by Craig Martin (forthcoming)
Doorknob by Thomas Mical (forthcoming)
Cigarette Lighter by Jack Pendarvis (forthcoming)
Bookshelf by Lydia Pyne (forthcoming)
Bread by Scott Cutler Shershow (forthcoming)
Hair by Scott Lowe (forthcoming)
Blanket by Kara Thompson (forthcoming)
silence
John Biguenet
Bloomsbury Academic
An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc
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BLOOMSBURY and the Diana logo are trademarks of
Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
First published 2015
© John Biguenet, 2015
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
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without prior permission in writing from the publishers.
No responsibility for loss caused to any individual or organization acting on
or refraining from action as a result of the material in this publication
can be accepted by Bloomsbury or the author.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress.
ISBN: PB: 978-1-6289-2142-7
ePub: 978-1-6289-2144-1
ePDF: 978-1-6289-2146-5
Series: Object Lessons
Typeset by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India
for Sha
“The rest is silence.”
—William ShakeSpeare
Contents
i
1 What is silence? 3
ii
2 Selling silence 9
3 Seeking silence 18
4 Silence versus solitude 23
5 Voluntary silences 33
iii
6 The representation of silence 43
7 Silent reading 55
8 Silence on stage 65
9 The unspeakable 71
iV
10 The silenced moment 77
11 The silence of dolls 81
12 Silencing 94
13 Silence and secrets 100
V
14 The future of silence 111
Notes 115
Bibliography 126
Index 133
viii Contents
i