Noise by-laws function as ethnographic records of cultural sound attitudes

Evidence

How the Study of Noise Legislation Reveals Cultural Differences Noise by-laws are not created arbitrarily by individuals; they are argued into existence by societies. Hence they can be read to reveal different cultural attitudes toward sound phobias. For instance, along with articles dealing with well-known noise sources, the city of Genoa (Italy), in its Regolamento di Polizia Comunale (1969), identifies some unusual problems. Article 65 states that from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m., shutters must be opened and closed as quietly as possible. A keynote for the European, the shutter is a soundmark for the outsider. — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 646

Categorization

• SEED: Method for the reader: catalog local noise ordinances as sound-phobia fieldwork; each by-law is a cultural specimen.
• XREF: Connects to the book’s earlier concept of the soundmark; here ordinances reveal what a community acoustically treasures. — connects to: Noise legislation is a documentary register of acoustic phobias — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 242; Noise is fundamentally subjective rather than an objective property of sound — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 614; Victorian culture gendered noise as masculine and silence as feminine domesticity — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels: The Quest for Absolute…, 163 (+9 more)
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 646

Broader Connections

• The same expressive act carries different weight depending on setting noise and activity #expands (0.82)
• Victorian culture gendered noise as masculine and silence as feminine domesticity #expands (0.70) — George Michelsen Foy, Zero Decibels, 163
• One can intentionally tune into how a group collectively perceives sound #exemplifies (0.60) — Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening, 338
• Sound power constitutes a form of imperialistic acoustic domination #complicates (0.50) — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 267
• A soundscape is composed of audible events rather than visible objects #expands (0.45) — Schafer, Murray R, The Soundscape- Our Sonic Environment…, 28