Vox by Christina Dalcher
Publish Date: August 21 2018
Read Date: 09/04/2018 - 09/12/2018
The average person speaks upwards of 20,000 words per day. Yes, you read that correctly TWENTY THOUSAND. Think of all of the general greetings, arguments, messages of hope, love and thankfulness that are all included in those thousands of words we speak daily. Now, narrow your limit to 100 words. A mere 0.5% of the usual vocabulary we use daily. Can you do it? Can you limit your daily spoken words to 100? Well... in this story line.. If you are a woman. You have to.
Dr. Jean McClellan is the top of her field. A renowned Nuerolinguist in the field of study for restoring speech to Wernicke's area of the brain. Dr. McClellan is also a woman. She can no longer work, read, write or surpass 100 words a day. She wears a counter on her wrist that keeps detailed track of all words spoken. She is not the only one.
All women, and girls, in the future United States are stripped of their right to work, read, write and use an expansive vocabulary. If they miscount or purposely go over their allotted 100 words per day, the wrist counter delivers a shock to them, reminding them of their mistake.
Dr. McClellan is at home when she is summoned by the leader of the "Pure Movement" and representatives of the President. The President needs her help, and her expertise. The Presidents brother has reportedly been in an accident causing brain trauma to Wernickes area, stripping him of his access to coherent speech. Dr. McClellan has been tasked with continuing her research to find a cure and cure the Presidents brother. At first, she refuses to comply. She is then presented with the option that should she choose to help, her wrist counter and her daughters will be removed for the duration of the project allowing unlimited access to words. Jean agrees, and is assigned her team.
She fully plans on waiting out the clock, giving her and her daughter as much speech counter- free time as she possibly can manage.
She is given access to her previous research and begins working on her task at hand. She soon learns there is more to the plan than she is being let on to believe. There are 3 teams total. Each team is assigned a different task in the master plan.
One team, the White Team, is meant to develop, test and mass- produce the Anti-Wernickes serum, meant to reestablish verbal communication. This is Dr. McClellans team.
One team, The Gold Team, is meant to develop, test and mass- produce the Wernickes serum, meant to force verbal silence on its intended victim.
and the last team, The Red Team, is meant to ecplore water solubility of Wernickers serum.
It all becomes very clear to Dr. McClellan. She was brought it to create a bioweapon, and its antidote.
With the help of her team, and the Resistance to the Pure Movement, she discovers a way to silence those in power for good, hoping to restore the world as she knows it. However, her plan doesn't go exactly the way she wanted and she may lose someone dear to her.
