L’analyse discursive du silence dans la littérature / The Discursive Analysis of Silence in Literature

Abstract

Silence is generally defined as negative or absence, opposed to speech. However, silence is part of language and, like speech, it crosses texts and allows the subject to construct various meanings. Despite the (in)visibility of silence in speech, one can feel its clues, perceive its presence in cracks, breaks and failures. Through this work, we try to show the relationship between language, silence and meaning, more particularly in literature. We reflect on how the linguistic/discursive marks of silence construct meanings. To do so, we rely on the work of Kerbrat-Orecchioni (1986, 1990), Heuvel (1985), Orlandi (1997), Bakhtine (1984) and Sarraute (1996), among Caligrama, Belo Horizonte, v. 26, n. 1, p. 95-110, 2021 96 other researchers who reflect on silence in discourse. As a conclusion, it is considered that despite the insufficiency of typographical means to express silence, the literary text, composed of words and silences, brings forms to speeches and allows them to construct/give various meanings.