Joemets, Human Voice

== Abstract ==
Human Voice: Its Meaning and Textuality Outside the Verbal and the Musical is an article written by Viivian Joemets. The article talks about taking the human voice and create meaning outside the verbal and musical context, and only studying the voice in its barest form. 
== Key Concepts ==
Joemets defines voice as "human bodily expressive sound." When it is released from a person's body, they come out in the form of text. More importantly, when the vocals reflect off the surrounding surfaces, they are heard as sound. The sound that is produced from the voice is masked by many different attributes. These attributes include words and pitches, and they cover up the purity of every person's voice. More importantly, the different voice characteristics contributes to each individual's identity. Without the different figures, a person's voice does not produce any meaning; recordings of voices show that we interpret human voice differently from a recording because the emotion and personality behind a voice shows that it is alive. A person's voice is commonly expressed verbally in musical or in spoken form. A person's voice can also be expressed unintentionally. The unintentional voices that come out of us are bodily sounds such as breathing and swallowing. Once we let out these unintentional sounds, they turn into voice, which is produced by our vocals. We also use our voice as an instrument to pass along messages; as children learn to use their voice, it's expression that they learn to turn into language. 
== Examples ==
One key concept that Joemets mentions is the idea of semantic. Semantic is the voice that produces a sense of emotion. The voice that is produced is due to our state of mind.
An example can be seen when someone is upset or is on the verge of crying. The person's voice may crack and may become shaky when they begin to talk. 
Secondly, Joemets explains that once a person has learned to use language and communicate with others, they cannot revert. Some people experience traumatic head injuries, and lose their speech abilities. But once it is lost, they work to recover it because once you've learned to communicate and speak to others using language it becomes unacceptable not to use it. 
== Further Readings ==
* What Is Voice? What Is Speech? What Is Language?
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/pages/whatis_vsl.aspx
This website explains how speech is created by the voice and how speech is used to express a person's thought, feelings, and ideas.
* The neuronal infrastructure of speaking
http://www.sciencedirect.com.proxy2.library.illinois.edu/science/article/pii/S0093934X12000739
This website explains how semantics plays a role in voice and the formation of speeches
* How the Voice Works
http://www.entnet.org/content/how-voice-works
This website explains how voice is turned into sound.
* The Qualities of the Human Voice
http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy2.library.illinois.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cax&AN=9242596&site=ehost-live
This journal talks about what is heard in the human voice.
* An Experimental Study of Individual Vocal Quality
http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy2.library.illinois.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cax&AN=9282980&site=ehost-live
This is an experiment that describes how every individual has their own distinct vocal quality.
== Keywords ==
Voice, Human, Language, Communication, Recording
== Citation ==
Jõemets, V. (2014). Human voice: Its meaning and textuality outside the verbal and the musical. Semiotica, 2014(198), 305-320. doi:10.1515/sem-2013-0114
Category:Reading