(KatD1)
Near the end of the first season of American Horror Story, the reality of Tate's hidden past has become known to Violet. In this scene from episode 11 where Violet confronts Tate, nonverbal communication is used in abundance.
(SPOILER ALERT WITH CONTEXT FOR THE SCENE!) Tate, a ghost, was shot in the house after shooting up his high school. From there, before becoming involved with Violet, he raped Violet's mother (wearing a rubber sex suit pretending to be Ben) and got her pregnant. While delivering the child, Vivien passed away. In this scene, Violet confronts Tate.
(SPOILER ALERT WITH CONTEXT FOR THE SCENE!) Tate, a ghost, was shot in the house after shooting up his high school. From there, before becoming involved with Violet, he raped Violet's mother (wearing a rubber sex suit pretending to be Ben) and got her pregnant. While delivering the child, Vivien passed away. In this scene, Violet confronts Tate.
(Minear & Gomez-Rejon, 2011)
Nonverbal communication is the primary way we communicate emotion. "Two channels of nonverbal behavior that are particularly important in communicating emotion are facial expressions and vocal pitch" (Floyd, 2011, p. 182). Violet's anger is apparent immediately. Her vocal pitch doesn't range for most of the scene, and she doesn't smile or give any sense of happiness. A conversation between Violet and Tate in which Violet asks Tate about why he did what he did could come across in a very different way without Violet's nonverbals (or lack thereof).
Later in the scene, when Violet begins to show more emotion, the pitch of her voice goes up. "You have to pay for what you did, all the pain you caused, all the sorrow. You murdered my mother! You did!" Violet says (Minear & Gomez-Rejon, 2011). Tate's vocal range, on the other hand, is all over the place. From screaming, "You're all I want!" to nearly whispering, "What are you saying?" we see all kinds of different emotions from Tate. We're actually better at reading emotions through vocal range than facial expressions. "We don't necessarily get more information about their emotional state from their voice than from their facial expressions, but we might get more accurate information" (Floyd, 2011, p. 182).
Later in the scene, when Violet begins to show more emotion, the pitch of her voice goes up. "You have to pay for what you did, all the pain you caused, all the sorrow. You murdered my mother! You did!" Violet says (Minear & Gomez-Rejon, 2011). Tate's vocal range, on the other hand, is all over the place. From screaming, "You're all I want!" to nearly whispering, "What are you saying?" we see all kinds of different emotions from Tate. We're actually better at reading emotions through vocal range than facial expressions. "We don't necessarily get more information about their emotional state from their voice than from their facial expressions, but we might get more accurate information" (Floyd, 2011, p. 182).
(Wicca Dreamers Creations)