Beyond Words
Intersections of Silence in Literature, Semiotics and Cultural Discourse
Will be published approx. on 16. June 2026
Book
Hardback
214 pages
978-1-78892-740-6 (ISBN)
Description
Explores silence in its philological dimensions: as a vehicle of meaning, a narrative device and a medium for expressing or concealing emotion.
This book explores how silence occurs across languages, literatures and cultures, fulfilling a wide range of communicative functions. It examines how silence can be collective or individual, intentional or unintentional, conveying meanings that extend beyond words and shaping interaction, perception and expression.
The volume investigates the multifaceted nature of silence from literary, semiotic and cultural perspectives, weaving together analyses that reveal its complexity across different media and contexts. The chapters address silences both within and beyond interaction, including interaction-like contexts, encompassing such diverse phenomena as animal silence, the silence of trauma and the iconic phase of silence.
Taken together, the contributions provide a comprehensive and multidimensional understanding of silence in auditory and visual forms of expression, and across varied linguistic and cultural contexts.
This book explores how silence occurs across languages, literatures and cultures, fulfilling a wide range of communicative functions. It examines how silence can be collective or individual, intentional or unintentional, conveying meanings that extend beyond words and shaping interaction, perception and expression.
The volume investigates the multifaceted nature of silence from literary, semiotic and cultural perspectives, weaving together analyses that reveal its complexity across different media and contexts. The chapters address silences both within and beyond interaction, including interaction-like contexts, encompassing such diverse phenomena as animal silence, the silence of trauma and the iconic phase of silence.
Taken together, the contributions provide a comprehensive and multidimensional understanding of silence in auditory and visual forms of expression, and across varied linguistic and cultural contexts.
Reviews / Votes
This exquisite book uncovers an enigmatic eloquence of silence among languages, cultures, media and art forms. Interweaving literature, linguistics and visual culture, the volume brings together a global cast of scholars to unveil how the unspoken speaks powerfully across stories, symbols and human experience. * Dat Bao, Monash University, Australia * In this original and contemporary collection, silence shimmers both as an entry point and common denominator for the exploration of a host of fascinating communicative, cultural, and creative themes. The volume makes an important new contribution, examining the representations of silence as well as its manifestations as a form of social action across a host of literary, political, visual, and artistic genres. * Adam Jaworski, Emeritus Professor, The University of Hong Kong *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Bristol
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 165 mm
Width: 243 mm
Thickness: 21 mm
Weight
514 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78892-740-6 (9781788927406)
DOI
10.21832/STADLE7406
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Wolfgang Stadler | Paul Mayr
Beyond Words
Intersections of Silence in Literature, Semiotics and Cultural Discourse
E-Book
03/2026
Multilingual Matters
€14.49
Available for download
Persons
Wolfgang Stadler is Professor Emeritus of Russian (applied) linguistics and subject-specific language education and a former Dean of the Faculty of Education at Innsbruck University, Austria.
Paul Mayr is a Research Associate in Romance linguistics at the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.
Paul Mayr is a Research Associate in Romance linguistics at the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany.
Content
Boris Norman: Foreword: Silence Through the Ages
Wolfgang Stadler and Paul Mayr: Preface: Silence Revisited
Part 1: Literary and Narrative Silences
Chapter 1. Ornella Kraeme: Silent Sicilian Signore: An Analysis of Silence as the Unspeakable
Chapter 2. Rachel Lehmann: (Not) Breaking the Silence: The Foreclosure of 'Rape' in Women's Trauma Narratives
Chapter 3. Amy Singleton Adams and Patricija Corey: A Voice Like a Drum: Claiming Creative Silence in Donna Jo Napoli's Bound
Chapter 4. Eric Kim: Speech Therapy: Animal Silence as 'Restorative Communication' in Anton Chekhov's Toska
Chapter 5. Wolfgang Stadler: 'I Hope [Your Love] Will Break His Silence': Silences in Bethan Roberts' My Policeman and its Russian Translation
Interlude: A Semiotic Perspective on Silence
Chapter 6. Michal Ornan-Ephratt: The Onomatopoeic Sounds of Silence
Part 2: Cultural Discourses and Representations of Silence
Chapter 7. Lucia Romero Gibu: Functions of Silences in Spanish Speakers' Discourses on Migration-Related Challenges in Germany
Chapter 8. Melani Schroeter: Visual Representations of Silence
Chapter 9. Tiyasha Sengupta: In Between Words and Panels: A Multimodal Investigation of Silence in Poober Akaash Laal
Reflections and Afterword
Rita Rieger: Instead of an Epilogue: One More Word on Silence and Silent Transformations through Reading
Paul Mayr and Wolfgang Stadler: Taking Stock - What was this Silence all About?
Wolfgang Stadler and Paul Mayr: Preface: Silence Revisited
Part 1: Literary and Narrative Silences
Chapter 1. Ornella Kraeme: Silent Sicilian Signore: An Analysis of Silence as the Unspeakable
Chapter 2. Rachel Lehmann: (Not) Breaking the Silence: The Foreclosure of 'Rape' in Women's Trauma Narratives
Chapter 3. Amy Singleton Adams and Patricija Corey: A Voice Like a Drum: Claiming Creative Silence in Donna Jo Napoli's Bound
Chapter 4. Eric Kim: Speech Therapy: Animal Silence as 'Restorative Communication' in Anton Chekhov's Toska
Chapter 5. Wolfgang Stadler: 'I Hope [Your Love] Will Break His Silence': Silences in Bethan Roberts' My Policeman and its Russian Translation
Interlude: A Semiotic Perspective on Silence
Chapter 6. Michal Ornan-Ephratt: The Onomatopoeic Sounds of Silence
Part 2: Cultural Discourses and Representations of Silence
Chapter 7. Lucia Romero Gibu: Functions of Silences in Spanish Speakers' Discourses on Migration-Related Challenges in Germany
Chapter 8. Melani Schroeter: Visual Representations of Silence
Chapter 9. Tiyasha Sengupta: In Between Words and Panels: A Multimodal Investigation of Silence in Poober Akaash Laal
Reflections and Afterword
Rita Rieger: Instead of an Epilogue: One More Word on Silence and Silent Transformations through Reading
Paul Mayr and Wolfgang Stadler: Taking Stock - What was this Silence all About?