COM2614
ASSIGNMENT 3 SEMESTER 1 2025
UNIQUE NO.
DUE DATE: 22 MAY 2025
, COM2614 Assignment 3 (PORTFOLIO) – Semester 1, 2025
Part A: Reflection Entry
Date: 15 April 2025
Reading/Video/Topic: Epistemic Violence and Communication
A. Initial Reactions (234 words)
Engaging with this week’s material on epistemic violence left me both unsettled and
enlightened. I had never encountered the term before, yet its meaning immediately
struck a chord. I began to recognise how knowledge systems, particularly those rooted
in Indigenous or oral traditions, are often disregarded or dismissed in formal academic
environments. This realisation made me uncomfortable, especially when I reflected on
how I had unknowingly accepted these exclusions as standard or objective.
One of the most challenging ideas came from Gayatri Spivak’s assertion that even
those with good intentions can contribute to epistemic violence by speaking for
marginalised groups. This made me reconsider the ways I engage with others’
narratives, especially through the dominant lens of Western academia. It raised difficult
but necessary questions about representation and voice.
As someone who comes from a multilingual African community, I was particularly
affected by the idea that language itself can act as a barrier. English dominates
academic discourse, often sidelining rich cultural expressions such as proverbs,
storytelling, and oral wisdom that are central to African epistemologies. This experience
prompted me to critically examine how my own cultural heritage has been shaped by,
and has resisted, dominant ways of knowing.
I now understand communication not just as a tool for sharing information, but as a
medium that can either validate or suppress certain forms of knowledge. This has
transformed how I think about whose voices are heard—and whose are not.
ASSIGNMENT 3 SEMESTER 1 2025
UNIQUE NO.
DUE DATE: 22 MAY 2025
, COM2614 Assignment 3 (PORTFOLIO) – Semester 1, 2025
Part A: Reflection Entry
Date: 15 April 2025
Reading/Video/Topic: Epistemic Violence and Communication
A. Initial Reactions (234 words)
Engaging with this week’s material on epistemic violence left me both unsettled and
enlightened. I had never encountered the term before, yet its meaning immediately
struck a chord. I began to recognise how knowledge systems, particularly those rooted
in Indigenous or oral traditions, are often disregarded or dismissed in formal academic
environments. This realisation made me uncomfortable, especially when I reflected on
how I had unknowingly accepted these exclusions as standard or objective.
One of the most challenging ideas came from Gayatri Spivak’s assertion that even
those with good intentions can contribute to epistemic violence by speaking for
marginalised groups. This made me reconsider the ways I engage with others’
narratives, especially through the dominant lens of Western academia. It raised difficult
but necessary questions about representation and voice.
As someone who comes from a multilingual African community, I was particularly
affected by the idea that language itself can act as a barrier. English dominates
academic discourse, often sidelining rich cultural expressions such as proverbs,
storytelling, and oral wisdom that are central to African epistemologies. This experience
prompted me to critically examine how my own cultural heritage has been shaped by,
and has resisted, dominant ways of knowing.
I now understand communication not just as a tool for sharing information, but as a
medium that can either validate or suppress certain forms of knowledge. This has
transformed how I think about whose voices are heard—and whose are not.
