Use your listening ears!

I wonder what exactly Sterne is attempting to say in The Audible Past. Perhaps I need to keep reading, but I find myself really disagreeing with him thus far. I do not dispute the fact that the way a culture hears helps shape, and is shaped by, the culture, though I don’t think it can be considered definitive. Why does Sterne focus so heavily on listening while there are still technological issues that effect listening today? And what exactly does he mean by “listening?” Sterne repeatedly writes “sound, hearing, and listening” though I’m not sure if these three are one in the same, or three completely different items/issues for him.

Furthermore, why should “we … presume to know exactly what it was like to hear at a particular time or place in the past" (19). All history is interpretation. Reading Victorian novels offers a glimpse into the historical society, but does not tell the reader what exactly it was like during that time and place. I’m not sure why Sterne focuses so heavily on sound as being shaped by history and culture, I think all things are. Written text certainly is shaped by culture and different movements arrive at different times. Visual arts see the impact of a historical moment. I do not see why sound recordings should be any different.

There are no real answers here and I’m hoping to read more of the book and find some answers. Sterne intrigues me more out of disagreement than enlightenment, but I still need to figure out what his real message is. I will keep reading and hopefully have some more answers before class discussion. For now, however, I think sound recordings are outstanding and helpful, though not definitive, in understanding history.