TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
yoz's say-so: Silence is not always golden
The origin of the expression "Speech is silver, silence is golden" is unknown
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
T
he origin of the expression "Speech is silver, silence is golden" is unknown. Some trace it back to ancient Egypt, while others attribute it to an 18th-century German poem. I don't know which is right, but over the years the expression had changed a lot.
In the 16th century, it spawned the idiom "Silence is a woman's best garment", but the message was still the same: that silence can bring happiness, peace and an end to conflict. This is all true. Silence can lift people from disputes or produce a better understanding as we listen more rather than exchange lots of words. All these are great visions.
However, in some cases silence can be self-defeating. Imagine if no media outlet had paid any attention to the Darfur tragedy in Sudan, which included allegations of genocide. What if Indonesians had been frightened to demand the right to a proper democracy back in 1998? What if the great discoverers - Nicolaus Copernicus and Christopher Columbus - had never stood up for their paradigm-defying beliefs? The world would have never been aware of the truth or of human achievements, and freedom of speech and democracy would have been difficult to attain.
These incidents portray the truth about the power of speaking up for what we believe in.
I was drawn by the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt when he said, "It's not our right to criticize our country, but rather our duty." It's so powerful. And if the words are transposed onto modern life, they would probably mean, "It's not our right to say what's supposed to be said, but rather it's our duty for we live in a world where truth is almost unattainable."
Just take an example of our parents who demand the truth from us; or how are we supposed know what people really want or feel or think if they never tell us anything?
Speaking up can also help clear the air. By not just remaining in silence, we can participate in thought-exchange and avoid misunderstandings; people may be able to comprehend why or what makes you act in this or that way. Forget about the negative connotation attached to raising your voice or the notion of hurting others by speaking your mind out loud. Who cares? Speaking is healthy, it promotes brainwork.
The truth is the truth and is meant to be exclaimed. Furthermore, there are times when we don't get to have "golden" at all and all we can do is to settle for a piece of "silver".
- Yoz Tanuwiria
