THE VOICE YOU HEAR WHEN YOU READ SILENTLY
is not silent, it is a speaking-
out-loud voice in your head; it is spoken,
a voice is saying it
as you read. It's the writer's words,
of course, in a literary sense
his or her "voice" but the sound
of that voice is the sound of your voice.
Not the sound your friends know
or the sound of a tape played back
but your voice
caught in the dark cathedral
of your skull, your voice heard
by an internal ear informed by internal abstracts
and what you know by feeling,
having felt. It is your voice
saying, for example, the word "barn"
that the writer wrote
but the "barn" you say
is a barn you know or knew. The voice
in your head, speaking as you read,
never says anything neutrally- some people
hated the barn they knew,
some people love the barn they know
so you hear the word loaded
and a sensory constellation
is lit: horse-gnawed stalls,
hayloft, black heat tape wrapping
a water pipe, a slippery
spilled chirr of oats from a split sack,
the bony, filthy haunches of cows...
And "barn" is only a noun- no verb
or subject has entered into the sentence yet!
The voice you hear when you read to yourself
is the clearest voice: you speak it
speaking to you.
~~-Thomas Lux
Read this poem several times. Read it out loud. What is your reaction to this poem. What does it make you think of? Think of it in terms of your barn, your vocabulary and what this says about the comprehension of anything. What is YOUR reaction?
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12 comments:
As I read the poem I nod with agreement. I do hear my voice but as I discuss my readings with others I understand that we do not all hear the same thing. Depending on my thoughtfulness at the time or my connections I may hear or understand the author differently from my fellow colleagues. The barn to me was a childlike time, a time of happiness, freedom, and a right of passage into decision making. I have learned that not everyone will see the joy I saw, when they read the same words. I know that when I read about a topic I am passionate about I search carefully for acknowledgement of my thoughts and feelings. I hear my own voice as I read different genres and I love hearing the ideas of others!
The words "is not silent" says it all. How well I understand the voice within. I reread my last entry. My voice was calm, reflecting back to special childhood memories that took place in that beautiful old barn. When the poem talks about voice I am quick to reflect that at times it would be nice to shut down the voice, or at least be able to turn down the volume.
My voice, the voice within me...thus the reason I choose not to view a movie of a previously read book. I like the voice in my head, it's my interpretation of the author's work. The voice will change and adapt to my understanding of or connection to a subject. It also changes over time. For example, familiar bible passages reread over time can bring new insights depending on where I am or where I have been. Quite a neat process!
I guess our head voice is the loudest voice of all. Sometimes it would be nice to turn it off. But there are times when it's the best voice of all, especially when reading. The meaning of words mean different things to different people. The word "Barn" to me conjures up lots of wonderful sounds, beautiful pictures, and great times. Although, our barn is not being occupied by any animals, it was at one time. We had three beautiful horses, sheep, cows, pigs and rabbits. I remember birthing time, being up all night, and seeing miraculous new lives being born in our barn. The smells, the cold crisp air, the rustling of hay, and even the dreaded mucking of stalls and lugging of water, still bring up fond memories. But the best part, was watching my kids frolic in the barn, while getting ready for 4-H horse shows. How together we were as a family - the great conversations, the learning experiences, and most of all the love we showed to each other and to our beloved animals. I could go on and on, my voice never stopping - all aiding in my comprehension of reading and writing.
Just checking my password for the one millionth time...would think a person with poor memory skills would write it down somewhere! Won't share with you what the voice inside my head is telling me right now.
OK. Now that I have written down my username and password, I can get down to those voices in my head...I mean, the one voice I am SUPPOSE to hear when I am reading silently. I love the voice I hear in my head when I am reading silently AND aloud with, or to, my students. That voice can be my best bud or my worst enemy, but no one can tell me how I am feeling is wrong or silly, there are no stupid questions or "wonderings", and I am free to make a thousand connections with no time limitations. Of course, as an extremely visual person, I also enjoy the vivid pictures I conjure up to accompany a story or my thoughts. I am the writer of my thoughts, the director of my visual imaginings, and the always appreciative and engaged audience.
I have always found it interesting that two people can read the same thing and come out with a totally different perspective on what they have read. That is the wonderful thing about the written word, it is always up for interpretation based on your past experiences, or your imagination. I too, try not to see a movie of a book that I have enjoyed. It never quite reaches the expectations of how my voice envisioned it. It also annoys me when the movie makers take the liberty of changing the ending. I guess they are listening to their voice, but what about the author's voice, and their vision for the story? The interaction of all the voices involved is what makes reading such an enriching experience.
How I relate to Laurie's comment about the voice inside her head being her "best buddy or her worst enemy." As others have already said, there are so many times I wish I could turn that "enemy voice" off.
But...when my voice is being my "best buddy" it is just the greatest. When I am reading, I have always been able to escape into the world as described in a particular piece of literature. I will often find connections with the characters and imagine myself in that setting. When I was younger, I would frequently write "new chapters" for many of the stories I read. My voice would intertwine with the author's voice and I would create many a new adventure.
Profound! Tomasen, where DO you find these writings that you share with us? You never cease to amaze me(us!)
While exploring my integration project of "meditation" I am constantly aware of my inner voice and the messages that come to me in those quiet moments. More often than not, our own inner voice is soothing, comforting, safe and, as Laurie so eloquently stated, "the always appreciative and engaged audience." We are human, afterall, and love to be "heard"!
The thing I love most about our class is the way that we are constantly looking at reading with a new set of eyes and ears...our perspective changes and ultimately affects the way we teach. So I'll end as I began....profound!
voices
Let me just make this clear...you hear voices in your head too? And this is ok?
There are times when I am reading some non fiction or information text that I need to hear my voice out loud to aid in comprehension. Then there are times when I don't want to share the magic of the words. I may reread the text just to play the words over my tongue again, to enjoy the sound, and how the words capture the moment, thought...
Does verbalizing/vocalizing lead to visualizing, or visualizing lead to voice?
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