Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Monday, September 04, 2006
Nature and Culture: Nobody's Listening
(an excerpt)
In Nature every creature listens. They listen to each other; they listen for prey and predators. No being would dare make a sound without listening first. Their lives depend on it; their ears are an antenna for the world.
In Culture no one listens. Everyone shuts out the sounds they don't want to hear. We put on headphones, close the door, change the channel or just tune out. Our antennae are down.
And since no one is listening to the sounds around us, they become uglier, more harsh, and unnatural. Then Culture listens even less. This is why we have a growing legion of people who mindlessly follow--never listening as they rustle the leaves, never finding their prey, and never sensing their predators. This is a very dangerous thing.
- Bunita Marcus
(an excerpt)
In Nature every creature listens. They listen to each other; they listen for prey and predators. No being would dare make a sound without listening first. Their lives depend on it; their ears are an antenna for the world.
In Culture no one listens. Everyone shuts out the sounds they don't want to hear. We put on headphones, close the door, change the channel or just tune out. Our antennae are down.
And since no one is listening to the sounds around us, they become uglier, more harsh, and unnatural. Then Culture listens even less. This is why we have a growing legion of people who mindlessly follow--never listening as they rustle the leaves, never finding their prey, and never sensing their predators. This is a very dangerous thing.
- Bunita Marcus
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
