Recorded Performance Reflections

I recorded a story I told my husband. He recently gave me a book to read that he really liked. I did not think it was as good as a series I had read and told him about the books I had read.

The context of the story I told effects how I told the story. I was speaking to my husband at home and not to a colleague or students. In that case my language would have been more formal. I also highlighted different aspects of the story than if I had been talking about it in a different setting. The fact that I was speaking to my husband effected what I said. This is an example of audience participation in the story. For example I downplayed the love story aspect of the book because I knew he would not be interested in it. I spoke at more length about the action and political intrigue in the book because I knew he would be more interested in those aspects. I also referred to other stories and books that I knew he was aware of. If I had a different audience I may not have been able to do that.

Another aspect of context is who I am. The speaker affects how the story is told. My point of view, my beliefs, my past experiences shape how I tell the story and what I think is important about the story to tell. Even my beliefs about my audience shape how I tell the story. My past and personality also shape the words I use to tell the story, my inflection and tone.

My husband also participated in the story by nodding and making facial expressions. I changed the direction I was going in while explaining the story because of a look on his face. I also explained a part more in depth than I would have if he had not looked confused. The head nods encouraged me to continue. I was monitoring my story and the effect it was having on him the entire time. He shared in the creation of my performance and it would have been very different if the context or audience had been different.

I noticed that there was music in the way I told the story. My inflection changed depending on what I was saying and the meaning I wanted to get across to my husband that was not in the content of my performance. I also made gestures with my hands and head. How I did this may be important for my relationship with my husband. “Basso and Seeger argue that musical dimensions of performance can shape linguistic patterning and social relations.”(Bauman and Briggs, 1990)

Telling my story was an action. I was trying to convince my husband to read the book. There was purpose to my speaking and it was the action of persuasion. The illocutionary force of my story was: This is a good story. You should read it. I think the perlocutionary force was: This was a story Amy liked and wants me to share. It did not convince him to read the book.

The language in the story was different than a conversation in many ways. My utterance was much longer and not interrupted by another person. The performance also included stalling words like “um” that were not present in the conversation. My sentences were longer and I took longer pauses while speaking. I had the floor and was not afraid of losing it until I was done. I also spoke slower than I do in a conversation.

My performance was more than just an action of persuasion. It is also an action because it is part of the creation of reality and the structure of my marriage. I was also communicating that I love my husband and want him to share good experiences with me. I was communicating this message as well as trying to convince him to read the book, as well as communicating the content of the performance, the plot of the books. Performance plays a part in the social construction of reality. This is an example of my husband and me constructing our reality. This performance is also tied to past performances. We have shared books in the past and the book I am currently reading is one my husband convinced me to read. We have learned to trust each others opinions through past experiences.