The relationship between voice and power: The internal acquisition and development of personal expressive voice

Writers speak of voice in many different contexts: developing an authentic voice, finding the right voice, using the appropriate voice to tell the story, relating voice to style. Teachers assume that students and developing writers actually have their own voices before they come to class. Many college composition students for a variety of socio-psychological reasons, are still searching for their own individual voices when they enter the classroom. But dysfunctional families in the U.S. create communication environments that reinforce low self-esteem and powerlessness. Because of the relationship between self-esteem and expressive communication and the relationship between self-esteem and value for self, others and the world, the reasons for communicating may be ambiguous and what to communicate may seem unimportant. Many students have told me that they can never think of anything to write, and that what they do write will never be of interest to another person. This study is an analysis of this problem, an analysis of the assumptions that writers must make about themselves, others and the world in order to feel that they have nothing important to say and that no one will value what they said even if they did put their ideas down on paper. Empowerment as discussed by Freire can be applied to the process of inner conscientization. In writing classes this developmental process can be combined with the concept of partnership to achieve critical consciousness. It is a study of the search for personal voice; the search for voice parallels the process of defining the self and the valuing of the self. The steps involved in self-definition and in ascribing value to the self begin at a very young age, the ages during which the personality is formed. A teacher of composition must recognize that some students are still searching for their own voices. They will try to fit the composition teacher into their framework of the world. Teachers are in a position to challenge their perceptions; by asking them to write about personal experiences or asking them to persuade others, we do challenge their perceptions. It is inaccurate to assume that all composition students have a sense of personal identity and power and that they feel the world is interested in their ideas