ABSTRACT
The obstacles may be many, both personal and institutional. There is a sense that whilst the seminar is a useful part of an academic programme, it is not always taken as seriously as the lecture. Speaking opens up the possibility of discovering what might count as criteria here, which cannot be broached in a purely intellectual way. One has to feel the effect(s) of speaking in a certain way or of adopting a certain expression. One has to feel the effect(s) of speaking in a certain way or of adopting a certain expression. It is also a tension between an idea of what is personal in the possession of one's voice and what is impersonal. The attraction of ventriloquism becomes apparent in the light of how much seems to be at stake in our possessing a voice to the extent that speaking is apt to become unbearable.
