volume 1.1, 2000
The Shape of the Unspoken
Gabe Foreman, Trent University, Ontario
Lavinia and the Powers of Horror in Titus Andronicus
Karen Tatum, The University of Alabama
Inaugural note from the editor
It has taken more time than we would have liked, which proves Hofstadter's Law: "Things always take longer than expected, even taking Hofstadter's Law into account." But here it is, the first issue, containing what we think are interesting articles that hopefully indicate the quality and breadth of the graduate scholarship we would like to publish.
We had hoped to publish three articles, but due to personal reasons our third essay was not ready for publication. We are considering adding it as soon as it gets ready--one of the advantages of e-publishing.
From Canada comes Gabe Foreman's article that provides valuable insight into the nature of speech and silence in that first monument of English literature, Beowulf. Speech act theory helps to indicate what separates the man from the monster in the poem when their actions are awfully similar: "Beowulf asserts the supremacy of words over silence. It is a thin appropriation that can last only as long as his credibility and his heroism." This last observation then enlightens the sad atmosphere of the last part of the poem, as Foreman discusses the "thinness" of Beowulf's speech, and his realization of the thinness of human speech in general, towards the end of his life.
Karen Tatum, a Ph.D. student finishing up her dissertation at The University of Alabama, contributed a powerful essay that discusses Titus Andronicus from a Kristevian perspective. She investigates the "mechanisms underlying Shakespeare's depiction of Lavinia's sacrificial suffering, silence, and suppression for the re-establishment of effective Roman order." Hers is a compelling reading that changes perceptions and challenges the use of language--order (linguistic and political) is established through and out of fear of the Maternal, a process that necessitates gruesome acts of violence, a horror that is unspeakable yet spoken.
For their help in getting this first volume up, thanks to all those who submitted their work. Thanks to our contributors for their patience in what has been a long process. Thanks to the readers here at The University of Alabama, and special thanks to Lea Davis, Shannon Reed, and Kevin Crawford, without whose admirable effort and timely help this would never have been possible.
We hope that you, the reader, will enjoy the essays here presented, and that you, the writer, will consider submitting your own work for publication. We look forward to your submission and welcome your suggestions.
Michel Aaij
Editor, egotistics