Ethnographic
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After Ethnomethodology
by Abdel Hernández San Juan
2- Restitution of Voice.
Within the theory of knowledge the concept of performativity has
been related to the position of the literal subject. If the subject
of knowledge is defined by being in movement and the object of knowledge
by the effects of such movements --been performed from the position
of knowledge--, then the concept of performativity should be seen
through the different positions by which knowledge and the objects
of knowledge interact with themselves. While a way can be taken from
research problems, another one is possible by defining issues and
themes, asking questions, etc, knowledge and the objects interact
themselves by different ways according to the position of the subject.
On the other hand, the concept of performativity should be seen as
related with rhetoric’s, the media of the discourses and
the variability of the meanings which becomes performed according
to the media of its presentation and representation, parole, oral
speech act, writing, printed materials, slides, video projections,
etc, the same text presented within such different medias can be a
completely different text, modified by the performativity of the effects
and the rhetorics of the media.
Also, beyond the variability of the meanings according to the media
of its presentations, performativity and rhetorics relates themselves
by presentational modes of genres, a poem can be read on a very serious
form, a very serious lecture can be read as a poem, a paper lecture
written as a letter, and its is not the same to said something on
the same by the first person of the singular, than by the third person
of the plural on something out there.
By the way the concept of performativity should be defined according
to the genres of discourses, a relationship subject-object which become
performed given to the generic triggers of the voice, articulatory
forms of the voice. As the concept of performativity results of relevance
to the theory of knowledge, it is, however, only one between many
other concepts and performance itself is not necessarily something
that we should do as additional to the performance that was already
there, on the every day life of the quotidian. The concept of performativity
and the concept of relation are, in fact, very different one to the
other; they are not the same thing. A relation suppose to be a kind
of interaction defined by compenetration, introspection, reciprocity
and the mutuality of communication, mutual given ness, performativity,
instead, is defined by been unexpected, sorpresive, interpelative
and usually works out of the principles of compenetration, mutual
understandings and agreements which characterize the composivedness
of relations.
A clear example of the principles of performativity can be the idea
of someone who creates a response to something that has been said
on the auditorium by the lecturer and/or by some other one from the
public, some unexpected speech. The performative phrase is always
integrated by a response to the meanings of someone another phrase
which becomes the object of the performantive effect, something from
here and there should be priorized according to the performative purposivedness
and attitude as to create a kind of interpelative unexpected response.
Within performativity subjects are not in the position of communication
but of interpellation and sometime, the performative act can moves
outside of our ethical principles.
We should then define a move beyond performativity which I will like
to call and define as Restitution of the Voice as the voice brings
us beyond the redundancy of performance and performativity. If performance
was already there, performativity can be not more than just a redundancy
of the same. To go out and beyond the performative redundancy we need
something as non repetitive. As the redundancy of performance and
performativity suppose to be a kind of repetition of the identity
of the represented within representation, it usually work as a redundancy
of identity, a kind of identitary redundancy, the usual idea of the
speaker and/or the writer who should mention his country of origin
and his original cultural background every time when is taking the
word.
While performance and performantivy are redundancies of identity,
instead of identification, relations suppose to be defined by identification.
If we have a relation with basis on compenetration and on the mutuality
of communication them we have a kind of identification between the
people who are in relation, related themselves. To the redundancy
of performance and performantivity identification is not sufficiently,
they need something more than just identification, they need the concept
of identity and the concept of identity is a redundancy. Within performativity
and performance the subject is talking about something, but making
redundant his own identity, I am from, I come from and I am saying
this or that because, etc, etc, redundant references to identity,
something which redound as in the name of who, even when speaking
in its own name his name should be a redundancy of some other represented
"cultural identity".
The identitary redundancy which evolves the concept of - in the name
of who - makes the act of speaking in his own name a redundancy on
the identity of the whose name is speaking from, on and/or about.
Representation then, as concept, become a redundancy of the performative
redundancy evolved within the two concepts of representation, the
representational and psychological one–with regard on how well
represented is the woman on the painting, a matter of reference and
reflex, for example—and representation as the representer, the
idea of someone who represent some other one as a delegated.
They are all of them examples of the redundancy of identity by the
redundancy of performantivity. If you are original from certain country
you should need to said that only one time, to say something, to express
yourself you can said it at the very beginning, I am originally from
and/or I born, etc, one time and them you can said anything on anything
as anybody from everywhere. If representation suppose to be different
to the represented and by the way a principle of difference should
work without repetition and redundancy to makes difference productive
and productivity possible. The concept of difference has been, however,
also exposed to the same performatic redundancy of identity. Only
the restitution of the voice even within writing can restitute the
productive and non repetitive principle of difference. From the relation
between performance and parole—Austin and Searle–, to
the Wittgenstein one on the common sense, including the concept of
performance at the linguistic competence theory – transformational
linguistic of learning – and the body art performance proceeded
from the painting of gestures, performance is something that was already
there.
To be creative and to practice critical conscience – even in
unity with himself according to the ontology of the been--, the subject
need difference, something that suppose to be related with some empty
space between the given and the productive activity. Moving then the
relation subject-object considering even the mobility of objectivity
– is something similar and perceived among childrens interactivity
when making clicks on any computer element, forms and color the openness
of combinatory possibilities opens the relations subject-object to
a free playing, the same can be exposed to different positions and
perspectives impossible to be captured as objective from only one
position, objectification then, should be priorized over the idea
of objectivity.
As soon as assumed the mobility of objectivity the concept of textual
nomadities comes to as primer matter, textual nomadities as the flux,
fluctuation and refluxtuation of information as well as the regarding
of any effects of contexts to parameters by which the variability
of the effects of contexts flux’s and change according to the
media of the presentation of text and images and according to the
relation between texts and images among such population of textual
nomadities, somehting that can be clearly seen between internet flux’s
of texts, clicking of texts and images, the nomadism of constant texts
variations and the constant inclusiveness of performativity as the
inevitable position by which the subject can opt and click, stop and
goes, makes responses to the unexpected when the surprises becomes
from the flux’s of clicking and reclining both intentional acts
of purposivedness and automata’s of responses, creative navigations
and automatic accommodations of textual flux’s, individual itineraries
and tendencies of the cyberspace.
The concept of can be seen as literal voice, but also as the what
can be read as voice on the printed writing material, reading the
voice on the printed writing on paper, books, literary works as when
writing been even stylistically writing mantains its relation with
the alives enuntiated and also as the texturated grane which from
writing one can perceived the legibility of the text as something
always susceptible to be read on the printed material as the speechnees
of the analitical author voice. The voice can be, in fact, the only
figure to restitute the truly texture of the individual expressive
speaker among such described situation of the current and today performance,
performative and performed subject-object relations.