Suspended in Utterance: Glossolalia as a Non-Semantic Form of Resistance and Material Inscription
This proposal addresses the symposium’s theme, ‘suspended in language?’, by presenting findings from my Practice-as-Research (PaR) study, “Glossolalia (Speaking in Tongues): Performing the Unknown.” This research fundamentally repositions glossolalia—ecstatic, non-semantic vocalization—from its conventional categorizations (theological or pathological) into a disciplined object of artistic inquiry. The paper argues that glossolalia is an intentional, non-dissociative creative act that embodies a state of suspension within linguistic structures. Glossolalia exists in a fluid medium: it is utterance, yet it is neither translatable nor legible within normative language. This places the voice in a unique state of linguistic suspension, actively pausing the power dynamics inherent in semantic communication. This act serves as a direct form of resistance against linguistic rigidity, mirroring the call’s emphasis on finding avenues beyond and against language. Methodologically, the PaR study, structured in stages (Chrysalis, Emergence: Narrow Path, Flight), is anchored in autoethnography and investigates the relationship between inscription and the body (a sub-theme of the call). The vocal expression is framed as a material process where sound and breath operate as texture—sonic and haptic—rather than as semantic meaning. This approach aligns with explorations of non-verbal modes of articulation and the possibility of shared practices through non-verbal propositions. The presentation will analyse how glossolalia, when suspended from theological duty and rational demands, functions as a powerful artistic operation that reveals the limits of linguistic legitimacy and opens up a space for radical, a linguistic form of inscription. The work ultimately contributes to the discourse on losing the capacity to speak and gaining the capacity to babble as a critical gesture in artistic research.