International Studies Quarterly
“The many metaphors of silence: Conceptualizing silence as a collaborative structure”
2026-07-11
Abstracts Silence is a powerful metaphor, but functions as a black box within which many distinct social phenomena coexist. Consequently, metaphorical slippage makes it difficult to operationalize silence in empirical research. First, I show the need for greater metaphorical specification in the study of silence through the example of silence as a collaborative structure: a wide-spanning silence appearing as a unitary object which, behind its opacity, is sustained by various intersecting but distinct trajectories of silence and silencing. Empirically understanding these collaborative structures thus requires attentiveness to the interplay between the modalities of silence represented through different metaphors. Next, I demonstrate the utility of this concept for the study of IR through a brief discussion of the global silence on conflict-related sexual violence against men and boys. Considering the issue’s increased recognition, I conclude with a cautionary explication of how the framing of CRSV against men and boys as a “silenced” issue limits approaches to addressing the problem and adversely impacts intra-network advocacy relationships. This underscores the significance of the unique methodological problems with studying silence involving the imposition of the “horizon of expectation”.