On the Philosophy of Human Silence (Thinking within the Limits of Words and Things)

Tadeusz Kobierzycki

XXIII World Congress of Philosophy, Grece, Athens 04-10 August 2013
Section 28 Philosophical Anthropology, 8 August 2013

Introduction

Philosophy is a system of thinking and perceiving the world with the help of pictures and letters, sounds and silence. Within the language, everything is hidden and it is where everything can be revealed. Silence is the most “abandoned” part of speech in every grammar of every language and great question of philosophical anthropology. In the words of the Polish poet C.K. Norwid, “Sometimes it is better to talk to silence than with a man.”((C.K. Norwid, Milczenie [Silence], publ. J. Mortkowicza, Warsaw, no date, p. 42))

Silence can be a common or a special kind of state: the child is silent, the adult, the parent, the master, the philosopher, God. „O si tacuisses, philosophus manesisses” – „ If you had been silent, you would have remained a philosopher.”((Cf.. A.M.S. Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy, San Francisco 2012.)) ( A.M. S. Boethius,480-524/5).“Thou knowest it, Zarathurstra, but thou dost not speak it!” – “Yea, I know it, but I will not speak it!” ((F. Nietzsche, Thus spoke Zarathustra, transl. by T. Common, Dover Publication 1999, p. 100.)) (F. Nietzsche, 1844-1900)

The ontologization of silence takes place when people do not talk, because they do not have such abilities, the possibility to do so or they are keeping silent intentionally (pass over in silence). When they cannot identify the conditions of speech in silence or when they connect silence with emotions. When they want to conceal something, protect themselves, their identity, to keep their own or someone else’s secret or when they are waiting for some event to start((R. Zaborowski, Milczenie u Homera [Silence in the works of Homer], [in]: Semantyka Milczenia [Semantics of Silence], ed. K. Handke, Warsaw 1999, p. 135-167. Silence is referred to by words like: 1) aken, akeon, akeonta, akeonte, 2) akeousa , 3) aneo, 4) sigao, sige, 5) siopao, siope, 6) amfasie, 7) (ouk) ekfemi, 8) (ouk) prosfemi, 9) eufemio, eufemos, 10) pauo, 11) (oyden, me), amei Bomai, 12) hexet` en fresi mython. )).

The Iliad and Odyssey by Homer contain 27 802 words, including 112 that relate to contexts of silence. Plato extends the scope of epistemology and praxeology of silence and introduces into his dialogues new words that refer to the teachings of silence – epistomidzo and hezychazo. But silence is also physical quietness, the sign of silent things (“stones and timbers and irons”).

1. Silence (sige) in the works of Plato – contexts and dialogues

Most words symbolizing the situation of silence in Plato’s philosophy refers to the root sige, sigao, sigazo (111 altogether); the second most frequent is pause (pauo – 116 words). The word sige is considered as the antinomy of speech and silence (Euthydemus 300b): „ may there not be a speaking of the silent? (…) Nor a silence of speaking?” The answer is: no!
In silence and the speech of silence (language) it is possible to recognize the meaning of the world of plants (i.e. words of the oak, Phaedrus 275 b), the world of arts that “can act in silence like painting, sculpture and other things”; similarly, such silence is used by arithmetic, counting, geometry, playing checkers. Rhetoric is considered to be the art of using silence and talk (cf. Gorgias 450c). The word is the image of things (eike) and the silent image of the same, it speaks the same thing and keeps quiet about everything else. Silence (sige) is the sign of silent things (“stones and timbers and irons”).

Plato writes – “the thought of the one recognizing is a live and lively speech, and the written words can by righteously considered to be a kind of a phantom of the previous.” (Phaedrus 275d) Silence is the distinguishing feature of a sacred place (Phaedrus 238c) and the condition for a mystery situation that causes anxiety or religious ecstasy, as well as divine speech (The Republic 394a). Silence appears in border situations before death (The Apology of Socrates 37e, Phaedo 117e), in the state of courage and in pondering (Phaedo 84b,c), in an inappropriate or unique situation (Phaedo 107a), in one’s sleep (Crito 43b), during everyday life activities (The Republic 515a), in the place of death (abyss) (The Republic 616a).

In “The Laws” Plato notes that silence can be intentional (passing over in silence) (788a), legal or judicial (788c), educational in communication with children (792a), in relations with elderly people (425a), during social interactions, games, celebrations and in issues relating to honour (671c) or the lack of it, commanding (876b, 938a), in theatre, in public places (700c,d). And also in situations that are dangerous (Seventh Letter 349a), as a form of psychological defence (fear or anxiety), as a form of courage and resistance to pain and aggression (Crito 51b), silence after death (Second Letter 310d,e) or when one has nothing to say (The Apology of Socrates 24d), etc.((Cf. T. Kobierzycki, Cisza i milczenie (sige) według Platona [Quiet and silence (sige) according to Plato], [in]: Semantyka Milczenia [Semantics of Silence], ed. K. Handke, Warsaw 1999, p. 111-133.)).

Silence means the reduction of “the content of useless words” and vagueness of meanings of speech. Its ontologization is as much as “immersing in silence”.

2. Silence as an anthropological phenomenon

When the borders between talk and silence become vague, the border between the subject and the object of speech disappears. Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) considered silence as a relation between God and man. In his opinion, what was divine in the man could only be expressed in silence. The man is created out of speech and silence, of that which is divine and mundane. Human life is an algorithm of images and thoughts, of the silence’s speech.

“When Amor left Psyche, he said to her: You will bear a child who will be a divine infant if you keep silent but a human being if you betray the secret.
– Every man who knows how to keep silent, becomes a divine child, for silence is where the reflection on his divine origin; one who speaks remains human.
– How many know how to keep silent – that many know what it means to be silent.”[IV A 28 (1842-43)]((S. Kierkegaard, Journals, transl. Alexander Dru, Harper Torchbooks, 1958.)).

Silence can be described as: 1) anthropological-theological function (helps identification or divine-human projection), 2) communicative-interpersonal function (preventive measures for speech in the community-loneliness relation) 3) ethical-aesthetical function (it supports or weakens the semantic functions of words) 4) economical-ontological function (deontologizes or ontologizes silence and thinking) 5) creative function – helps to communicate serious issues (limits or rejects the talk of unserious matters) It is the condition, the mask or the symbol of truth.

“The talk of serious matters is creativity; the talk of necessary matters is the shortest possible sign, verbal or not; insignificant matters should not have any talk at all.”((H. Elzenberg, Kłopot z istnieniem. Aforyzmy w porządku czasu. [Trouble with existence. Aphorisms ordered by time] Toruń 2002, p. 181.))
Polish analytical philosopher (reist), Tadeusz Kotarbiński (1886-1981) wrote that: “It is easier to write down the trough, think it through, and discuss it than to silence it out.” ((T. Kotarbiński, “Metoda konstrukcyjna a rozumowanie osobiste” [Construction method and personal reasoning], „Przegląd Filozoficzny” XVII (1914), p. 182.))

The most important thing is to discover the deontologization and ontologization process of anthropological silence and its borders. Francis Bacon believed that “silence is the virtue of fools.”((H. Bacon, De dignitate et augumentis scientiarum, Norimbergae 1829, Sumptibus Riegellii et Wiefsneri, t. 2, s. 116. )) We are reminded of that because of sayings: “Talk is silver, silence is gold”, Qui tacet, consentire videtur, Those who are silent agree. Polish poet Wacław Potocki wrote: “To be silent – that’s the middle road/By taking it, I won’t offend neither man nor God((W.Potocki, „Powolność przyjaciół, prawda nienawiść rodzi”, w:Dzieła, [Collected Works] vol. 3, PIW, Warsaw 1987, p. 209.)).

3. Silence as a part of a theological language

In Christian theology which adopted the legacy of ancient times and transformed it, silence is of preventive nature – “No one sins by being silent”. The Christian idea of silence is linked with rationality: “A rational man is silent.”((The Open Bible. Ed. Nilson KJV (King James Version), 1985)). Thanks to the Jewish theology that gave us so many ideas of silence that are present in Europe, the Greek rules of ontologization and deontologization of silence are changing. It can be seen in “Psalms” that differentiate between the silence of the living and the dead.

„ The dead do not praise the Lord, nor do any who go down into silence. But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore. [ Psalm CXV]” ((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., p. 155.))

Sacred silence – just like the silence about insignificant matters helps prevent the deterioration of speech, which defies the laws of speech and laws of silence.((The virtue of silence / Greek: arete sigaion/ is one of the human being’s perfections, that completes the perfection of speech /gr arete logion/. Talking is not a complete perfection, it must coexist with silence. Speech and silence are borderlines for each other, as well as conditions of existence and fulfilment (perfection))). Taboo of silence and taboo of speech support each other or block themselves. This takes place when silence starts to play the role of speech, and the speech plays the role of silence (quasi-speech). The speech enters silence and the silence becomes something like an antinomy. This happens in the case of suffering.

4. Silence as a part of human transgression

When silence is connected with suffering, sin or death, it becomes a serious matter, like the silence in border situations that were described by Karl Jaspers (1883-1969). This view was shared by Oldenberg, the author of „The study of Buddhism and Christian love”:

„Freeing himself from the suffering of this world the wise man silently walks towards the silence of the Unexplored outside any form of individual life. [7 III 1954]”((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., p. 428.))

Silence as an element of that suffering is wide, it includes condition of humans, animals, plants and the world of objects. Silence relates to something that exists in speech and outside the speech of life. A suffering man can exercise silence towards that which is unknown. This is similar to the way a believing person acts while exercising a prayer as a kind of stimulation for culminating experiences, when the prayer becomes powerful silence”((C.K. Norwid, „Sieroty” [Orphans], w: Pisma wszystkie [Collected works] vol. 1, Warsaw 1971, p. 8.)) – the effect of world’s quiet and silence towards the suffering.

Silence has its psychoacoustic aspect, so it is not quiet, where nothing can be heard at all. Such silence saves a man’s life from deafness or the silence of nonexistence.

“But what if by causing “silence” within myself I make myself d e a f to those sounds that I’m to hear “there”? What if “by dying for myself I’ll become dead for everyone else?”((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., s. 349.)) – Henryk Elzenberg asks. What then?

Studying the problem of silence as a sign of putting to death /or putting oneself to death/ may lead to the suggestion that silence in death is the source of the speech of life that draws the human soul to the immortality side or else it falls into the sphere of complete silence

5. Silence as an element of the ideal of silence

Henryk Elzenberg (1887-1967) in his book “Kłopot z istnieniem” [“Trouble with existence”] (2002) understood the notion of silence as perfection in a platonic and later in a Buddhist, Hindu, cabalistic and Christian sense.((Cf. Plato, Euthydemus, transl. B. Jowett.)) Silence and speech are parts of one whole (childhood, early youth, adolescence, second half of life, etc.). The silence of a hero fighting a war /i.e. a Greek in Troy/ is different from that of a philosopher sentence to death by the mob /Socrates/ and those two are different from the silence of a mentally hurt Danish prince /Hamlet/.

In 1931 44-years-old Elzenberg included the studies of Hindu religious texts in his analysis of silence. In one of the shlokas which he quoted from the religious-philosophical scripture Bhagavad Gita it is written:

„ those who remain same in criticism and praise, who is taciturn and thoughtful, is contented with whatever he gets, who doesn’t care for any house and resolute in mind. Such a man full of devotion is very dear to Me. (Bhagavad-Gita, XII 18-19.)”((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., p.217-218. It is not clear if the text of Bhagavad-Gita comes from the 5th or 2nd Century B.C. or 1st Century A.C., but beyond doubt it has an understanding of silence that is different from the Christian one.))

A silent man is dear to God. This is a kind of holy violence that is acknowledged by God’s silence.

Conclusions

As H. Elzenberg wrote, from his birth man “sinks in silence”, to hear “the voices of deep life”, and later to fail, for the real and mystical backing away from the speech puts an end to normal communication with the living. [cf. 30 I 1944]”((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., p. 342. ))

Without the analysis of mystical communication, man’s silence would have to have its nihilist explanation (cf. F. Nietzsche (1844-1900) or psychoanalytical, when silence becomes a sort of conspiracy against own statements and a kind of speaking phobia. Similar remarks can be made regarding collective silence.
A nation threatened with extermination can apply the technique of a conspiracy of silence against the enemy. However It is one thing to act in hiding and be silent (this is a feature typical for every conspiratorial activity), and another thing is to act in hiding and state the opposite. [26 III 1910]((H. Elzenberg, op. cit., p. 48; Those remarks were made towards the book by Brzoza (Feliks Młynarski) recommending the creation of a Polish conspiracy “state” during the partition era.)) No community and no totality can be completely silent.

A form of total silence is talking in hiding. Those reports are only partially possible to express or to pass over in silence. As Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889-1951) noted, without a border there would be no world. There would also be no world without silence which allows us to study that what is said. “What we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence” (Tractatus logico-philosophicus, 7). I would say, we can keep silent, but not always do we have to talk!

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