The silent census

 

Experimental Short Story #15
Title: The Silent Census
Theme: Surveillance, Identity, and Bureaucratic Absurdity
Series: 60 Experimental Short Stories
Blog: farazparvez1.blogspot.com


The Silent Census

“How many are we if none of us can speak?”

CONFIDENTIAL DOCUMENT – CENSUS DIVISION
Form #99-Z(█) – Revision 41b
Subject: Verification of Individual Identity & Voice Authorization
Name: [REDACTED]
Voice Pattern: [UNAUTHORIZED]
Citizen Rank: Conditional Non-Speaking Observer
Remarks: Subject claims to remember previous census but offers no proof of vocal eligibility.


WITNESS ACCOUNT – TRANSCRIBED BY CENSUS SCRIBE
Field Officer G4-711:

“She stood in line like the rest of them. No mouth. None of them have mouths until the form approves their existence. We gave her a pencil to write her identity. She wrote, ‘I was once named Roohi.’ But the form erased it before our eyes. It’s happening more now.”


VOICELESS MEMO #207
Internal Note – Not for Circulation

“We’ve reached 23 million unverifieds. Many remember having names, families, accents. Some recall lullabies. But none are verifiable by Form 99-Z. Until their voices are authorized, they remain undocumented.”


CITIZEN APPEAL – UNSUBMITTED DUE TO VOICE FAILURE
Roohi's Account (Recovered from Unauthorized Scrap)

“They took my name at birth and told me I’d earn it back with silence. Every year they ask me to stand in line and prove my memory. How can I prove memory when I cannot speak? The form says I never existed. But I remember laughing once.”


Form #99-Z Decision Notification
Subject: Roohi [Name Unrecognized]
Status: NULLIFIED
Next Census Eligibility: Pending Vocal Authorization
Recommendation: Reassess in 10 years
Comments: “Subject displayed non-conformant behavior: remembered laughter.”


Analysis: A Story You’ll Hear in Silence

The Silent Census is not a traditional tale. It does not unfold in paragraphs, nor does it indulge in flowing narrative arcs. Instead, it disassembles the structure of storytelling as we know it. Voices are not characters—they’re permissions. Memories are not histories—they’re errors. And the story does not end—it is filed away.

This experimental narrative critiques how bureaucracies erase human identity through mechanical processes. It’s a disturbing dance of forms and forgetfulness, inviting readers to question how much of their own voice is authorized and how much is simply endured.


A Note to Our Readers
Welcome once again to our Experimental Short Story Series, proudly hosted at farazparvez1.blogspot.com. With The Silent Census, we continue our journey through the unconventional, the unexplored, and the untamed territories of fiction.

We remind our cherished readers that this is Story #15 out of 60—a tribute to the power of narrative experimentation. By the end of this voyage, we plan to compile this bold series into a collectible eBook and possibly even a limited print edition. Your support, encouragement, and readership are the breath in our literary lungs.

Stay with us. Let the stories whisper, scream, and sometimes remain silent.
Visit. Read. Share. Return.
Because this journey isn’t over—
It has only begun.

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