Tangled In Silent Norms

Tangled in Silent Norms by Rebecca Engle is a piece that explores the weight of unspoken expectations, the way society enforces rules without ever naming them, and how those rules entangle people-especially those who live differently, think differently, or resist being forced into molds.It's a reflection on neurodivergence, disability, and identity, showing how the silence around difference often shouts louder than words. The "tangles" are both internal and external:Internal, in how one wrestles with self-expression under constant pressure to conform.External, in the systems of education, family, and culture that quietly dictate what's acceptable, without questioning who gets harmed in the process.Engle's work pushes back against ableist structures, exposing how "silent norms" can restrain people more forcefully than spoken rules or outright restrictions. At the same time, it carries an undercurrent of resilience-of finding one's voice in the very spaces meant to silence it.It reads as both personal and universal: personal, because it's informed by her own lived experience as a neurodiverse woman and educator; universal, because it speaks to anyone who has felt forced into silence by expectations they didn't choose.