'Rhetorics of Stuttering' Course Illuminates Underheard Voices

Students enrolled in Dartmouth's inaugural Rhetorics of Stuttering course this winter got an insider's perspective from their professor.

Josh Compton, professor of speech and creator of the first-of-its-kind course, considers himself a "covert" stutterer.

"My stutter is classified as a covert stutter, which means that I often pass as fluent by doing a lot of tricks and vocal maneuvers I've learned over the past 40-plus years," says Compton.

Compton's conviction that his own stuttering has ultimately enhanced his communication skills was part of his inspiration for the course.

"My stutter has taught me the power of voice and the courage it can take to put ideas into words," he wrote in the class syllabus. "It has fueled an empathy that I think makes me a more thoughtful, more understanding professor than I would be without it."

Compton designed the course to approach stuttering with both "heart and mind" through the lens of multiple disciplines—from neuroscience, linguistics, and psychology to portrayals of stuttering in literature, poetry, and popular media. Students explored the complex relationship between voice, identity, and communication, particularly when the voice challenges conventional norms of fluency.

The course offered insight into empathetic listening and collaborative dialogue—skills at the heart of Dartmouth's Dialogue Project, which Compton supports as a member of its Steering Committee.

"The class has given us the opportunity and the tools to think deeply about how good communication depends on understanding, and more often than we might have initially thought, patience," Compton says. "And I mean patience from listeners when their conversational partner stutters, and patience from stutterers when non-stutterers are trying to learn to be better communicators. We've built a powerful ethic of empathy in this class."

"As a stutterer, Professor Compton has been excellent at highlighting that stuttering is not just an individual challenge but also deeply tied to social and environmental barriers," says Quintin Campbell '25. "This class has made me think more critically about how we define speech norms and has given me a greater appreciation for the resilience of those who navigate the world with a stutter."

Throughout the term, students submitted written papers and also delivered several short and long speeches.

"I think one of the biggest surprises for the class has been how much we can learn about our own voices by studying stuttering—whether we stutter or not," Compton says.

20250304-compton-046.jpeg

Quintin Campbell '25 delivers a speech.

"The course has completely changed how I view voice," says Axel Schulz '28. "In modern society, efficient communication is prioritized over stopping and listening, over making communication a truly collaborative and artistic practice in and of itself. I learned to love my own voice more, as well as the voices of others."

"What makes this course special is that, beyond learning about a topic I previously knew nothing about, we also gave speeches every week, and my presentation skills really improved," says Corinne Fischer '26.

Fischer was especially inspired by a week devoted to stuttering-related humor, and her discovery of comedians Nina G and Drew Lynch. For her final paper, she focused on humor as a tool for people who stutter and those with disabilities.

For Campbell, the most rewarding aspect of the course was "understanding the power of advocacy and representation"—a common theme in class discussions led by Compton, an active advocate himself. Compton frequently writes and speaks about his experience with stuttering in both academic and popular outlets, from the Journal of Magazine Media to the Proud Stuttering podcast.

Schultz was deeply moved by stutterers he studied who embrace their voice instead of "overcoming" it.

"This class turned something usually othered and silenced, the stuttering voice, into a subject worthy of study, beauty, and most importantly, our ears," he says.