Sohila Elattar - Week 12 - Harmful Impact of Silence

Silence is one of the greatest powers in the world, it brings peace and time for people to reflect on themselves. However, it can quickly viewed in the opposite way, when in discussion with others. Silence is the most powerful when it creates emotional distance and allows unresolved feelings of tension to fester.

I think you are all aware of the silent treatment and how toxic it can be. I think not many people realize how controlling and manipulative the silent treatment can be in relationships, whether it be familial, romantic, or platonic. It can be used as a weapon to help regain power over a person who you believe wronged you. Yes, it may be comforting to the person who is giving the silent treatment, as the “silent treatment” can act as a form of protection, but the effect it has on the one the silent treatment is being inflicted on is intense. The person who is on the receiving end of this type of treatment is left in a state of uncertainty, wondering what went wrong, and will be playing a guessing game with themselves trying to figure out how to solve whatever problem occurred for this type of reaction. It can leave the person amiss and can easily change the entire dynamic of one’s relationship.

Silent Treatment Between a Couple

Silence has got to be a relationship’s worst enemy. When discussing with someone about something important, or just in general, prolonged silence can cause them to fill in the silence with their negative assumptions. The anxiety that you do not know what the other person is thinking often leads to overthinking which leads one to spiral and struggle to find an answer in a situation where there is none.

If people do not communicate their feelings openly, then silence can act as a barrier that stops people from understanding each other and building stronger connections. The only way to break down this barrier is by honest, open communication.

Comments

  1. Avni TewariMarch 3, 2025 at 6:35 PM

    Sohila, your disc ussion on the power of silence is extremely insightful, especially in how you explore its dual nature, both as a means of reflection and a destructive force in relationships. You do a great job of showing how silence, in the form of “silent treatment” becomes a tool of manipulation and control instead of an emotional reaction. The way you describe the receiving end is specifically very compelling as I’ve never experienced it or gave anyone the experience. Your point about how silence forces people to fill in the gaps with negative assumptions is compelling, but isn’t it inevitable? How can someone receive silent treatment with a scenario that has positive connotations? One way you could possibly expand your argument is by talking about examples of how communication can resolve conflict quicker, and can be more effective than silence, which would really emphasize your point.

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  2. Dionne WongMarch 5, 2025 at 3:23 PM

    Hi Sohila, I thought it was really cool how you went into depth about the power of silence, something that we seem to ignore or miss the presence of. I haven’t read a lot of other blogs in our cohort that talked about how power can easily turn towards the wrong direction and have negative consequences, but I think you explained the negative effects of silence in your blog really well. I appreciate how you started off by talking about some positive effects, like how silence can give people time to collect their own thoughts or how having silent treatments can sometimes help the person initiating it by giving them some space. I thought beginning with addressing these limitations helped me look into the bigger picture of what silence really means to different people.

    I also found your blog really engaging because you seemed to be reading my mind at some points by addressing the thoughts that came up in my mind as I read your discussion. I think this came partly from your use of pronouns like “you” acknowledging my individual experiences. As I was thinking about your points, your writing style in second-person point of view helped me visualize a complete scene of when I’ve personally potentially harmed others by giving them the silent treatment or times when I haven’t really understood what the other person was thinking and felt myself fall in a cycle of overthinking, like you mentioned. I really appreciated how you were able to communicate your opinions of how impactful silence can be to victims of it by prompting me to think about my own circumstances; it definitely made your blog a lot more interactive. Thanks for sharing!

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