“Reading” Silences | How Nikki Successfully Bridged the “Missing Gaps”
Nikki Giovanni
#onherbirthdaytoday
7th June 2026
As professors, something that we very often tell our students, is to “read” the silences in the page, and “identify” the gap, which is the crucial starting point of success!
Well, we emphasise quite often on reading the silences, and identifying the gaps, because of the simple reason that, the human brain is by default wired to naturally focus on what is already in front of us. Therefore, identifying a gap requires us to look at a “seemingly” complete picture and imagine “What’s missing here?”
In short, finding the missing gap requires reading the silences. When deconstructing a text, a structure, a value system, or a societal norm, the most profound ‘eureka moments’ come not from what is explicitly stated, but from what is left unsaid, silenced or marginalised.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, takes an active, creative and vibrant imagination to look at a canonical oops established narrative and ask, "Whose voice is missing here?"
Nikki Giovanni, the renowned Poet of the Black Revolution, did just that!
She started reading the silences, and began asking herself, “What’s missing here?”
And how-o-how did she do that?
First and foremost, she felt that the language that she spoke thus far wasn’t hers in the first place. Hence, instead of adhering to standard academic English, she started to actively deconstruct it.
To this end, Nikki began infusing her verse with street vernacular, colloquial syntax, and the syncopated, call-and-response rhythms of jazz and blues. By decentering such white literary standards, she helped establish a distinct “Black aesthetic” that validated the lived experiences, language, and oral traditions of African Americans as legitimate, high art.
Secondly, Nikki also felt that, the broader Black Arts Movement was often dominated by male figures like Amiri Baraka.
Hence, she stepped in to carve out a space for Black women in the movement. In fact, she dedicated herself to uplifting female writers - who might otherwise have been sidelined - by editing and publishing Night Comes Softly (1970) – an anthology that stands tall as one of the earliest and most vital anthologies composed entirely of poetry by Black women.
By doing so, she was able to give a space for the marginalised women’s voices.
Thirdly, Nikki also observed that, it was very difficult for marginalised voices to be heard and accepted by mainstream media and publishing houses. She was fully aware that her militant poetry would be rejected by the so-called mainstream publishers who weren’t interested in the voice of a radical Black woman.
Hence, without waiting for traditional validation, Nikki decided on ways to take her work directly to her audience. With this in mind, she formed her own publishing company, NikTom Ltd, and self-published her first volume, Black Feeling Black Talk (1968). She sold the book out of the trunk of her car and launched her second book at the Birdland jazz club in New York. This hands-on approach propelled her to become one of the few poets to ever author multiple New York Times bestsellers.
Fourthly and finally, as University Distinguished Professor with the Department of English at Virginia Tech, where she spent over three decades, Nikki felt that, chasing academic scores and grades only promoted passivity amongst students. And hence, she boldly encouraged her students to express themselves creatively, and acquire for themselves life skills, instead of just chasing the grades.
Her bold attempt to read the silences, and analyse “What is missing?” made her a champion of the voiceless. Her influence thus extended well beyond the page, bridging the gap between literary theory and civic engagement!
May her tribe increase!
So what pray, is the takeaway?
Well, the next time you ‘read’ a text, watch out for ‘what’s missing’, and try ‘reading’ the silences!
That way, you are not only engaging with the text, but also engaging in shaping society for the better!
PS: You may want to read our past post on How to Identify Research Gaps, HERE on our blog.
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