Towards Epistolary Dialogue

In this essay, we investigate the potential of letters as a communicative genre that embodies dialogue, and thus, disrupts power relations. To do so, we first outline a theoretical framework that draws upon feminist and critical communication pedagogies. We specifically focus on two scholars-Nel Noddings and Paulo Freire-for the ways they utilize dialogue in developing their pedagogical positions. We then explain our epistolary method of letter writing, which stood as the central component of a semester-long project between us as student and teacher. We use excerpts from our letters to analyze the epistolary form as conducive to dialogic engagement-what we call epistolary dialogue. We argue that epistolary dialogue is made possible due to letters being invitational, temporal, personal, and constructive.