Philosophy & Rhetoric Dec 2023

Voice, Unhearability, and Epistemic Violence: The Making of a Sonic Identity

Alison Yeh Cheung California Polytechnic State University

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article suggests that Asian American rhetorics of sound destabilize representational politics by complicating the racialization of sonic difference. The author investigates the relationship between notions of Asian American citizenship and not-Blackness in vocal performance. By attending to sonic rhetorics through Awkwafina’s blaccent controversy, the article explores the condition of epistemic violence that position Asian American voices as “unhearable.”

Journal
Philosophy & Rhetoric
Published
2023-12-31
DOI
10.5325/philrhet.56.3-4.0357
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (0)

No articles in this index cite this work.

References (24)

  1. Asian Women United of California (1989)
    Making Waves: An Anthology of Writings By and about Asian American Women
  2. (1989)
    “Deterritorializing ‘Critical’ Studies in ‘Mass’ Communication: Towards a Theory of ‘Mino…
    Journal of Communication Inquiry  ↗
  3. (1991)
    Aiiieeeee!: An Anthology of Asian American Writers
  4. (2013)
    Indian Acts: Brown Voice and Racial Performance in American Television and Film
  5. (2011)
    “Tracking Epistemic Violence, Tracking Practices of Silencing.”
    Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies
Show all 24 →
  1. (2004)
    Tell This Silence: Asian American Women Writers and the Politics of Speech
  2. (2020)
    Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning
  3. (1999)
    “The Racial Triangulation of Asian Americans.”
    Politics & Society  ↗
  4. (2023)
    Asian Americans in an Anti-Black World
  5. (2016)
    Asian American Media Activism: Fighting for Cultural Citizenship
  6. (2008)
    Representations: Doing Asian American Rhetoric
  7. (1998)
    “Can the Queen Speak? Racial Essentialism, Sexuality and the Problem of Authority.”
    Callaloo  ↗
  8. (2008)
    Representations: Doing Asian American Rhetoric
  9. (2022)
    “Racial Privilege as a Function of White Supremacy and Contextual Advantages for Asian Am…
    Communication, Culture and Critique  ↗
  10. (2020)
    “The Bourgeois Cinema of Boba Liberalism.”
    Film Quarterly  ↗
  11. Robinson, Tykeia Nicole. 2022. “Awkwafina’s Statement on Her Blaccent and Cultural Appropriation Allegations …
  12. (2006)
    “From Cultural Exchange to Transculturation: A Review and Reconceptualization of Cultural…
    Communication Theory  ↗
  13. Sano-Franchini, Jennifer. 2018. “Sounding Asian/America: Asian/American Sonic Rhetorics, Multimodal Orientali…
  14. (1998)
    Forever Foreigners or Honorary Whites?: The Asian Ethnic Experience Today
  15. (2001)
    “‘Voice’ and ‘Voicelessness’ in Rhetorical Studies.”
    Quarterly Journal of Speech  ↗
  16. White, Abbey. 2022. “Awkwafina Addresses Blaccent, AAVE and Cultural Appropriation Criticisms.”Hollywood Repo…
  17. Wong, Janelle, and Viet ThanhNguyen. 2023. “Opinion: Affirmative Action Isn’t Hurting Asian Americans. Here’s…
  18. (2005)
    Calling Cards: Theory and Practice in the Study of Race, Gender, and Culture
  19. Zhang, Muqing M. 2018. “Performing Blackness Won’t Fill Our Asian-American Culture Deficit [OP-ED].…
CrossRef global citation count: 1 View in citation network → Build reading path →