Whose Voice is it Anyway? Implications of Free Writing

Abstract

This essay surveys a number of different interpretations of the metaphor of "voice". It begins by exploring the use of free writing exercises as a means of nurturing the emergence of physical (audible) voice in creative writing classes before assessing some of the ramifications and implications of the trope, both diachronically and synchronically. A key issue of this discussion is whether voice is regarded as individual or social.