6. ASPECTOS LEGALES
6.2 Marco jurídico del proyecto
Finally, the third body of work where one would reasonably expect to see some discussion about how various acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear affect the perception of sound and space is the field of phenomenology.
Addressing existing research pertaining to the historical phenomenology of sound and acoustic space is germane to this thesis as phenomenology provides a means by which to explore the reality of auditory phenomena as a ‘lived’ experience. Furthermore, the incorporation of a phenomenological perspective into this study affords the opportunity to illustrate how various prosthetic technologies for the ear altered the perception of acoustic space across history, and how this
contributed to a re-tuning of the mind’s ear.
A literal translation of the word ‘phenomenology’ reveals it’s meaning in the generic definition of ‘the logos of phenomena’, or that which appears or reveals itself to humankind (Bullington, 2013). The development of phenomenology as an approach to the study of philosophy is largely credited to philosophers Edmund Husserl (1965) and Martin Heidegger (2008). Husserl’s work predominantly focuses on the phenomenology of essence, presence and structure. Husserl argues that intentionality lies at the centre of human attention and experience, and that it is only possible to understand these essences by bracketing, or suspending,
existing assumptions about the nature of the outside world. This suspension, he contends, is necessary in order for individuals to analyse their own unique experiences. Heidegger, whose research continued from Husserl’s body of work,
questions ontology and the role of being, and asserts that experience must be understood in relation to cultural and historical embeddedness. Husserl and Heidegger essentially lay the foundations for the study of phenomenology, which initially predominantly focused on scientific-related matters. Ihde (1979) notes that phenomenology has “in its own way has been interfaced with the sciences from its outset. Perhaps the most widely noted relation, due in part to Edmund Husserl's characterisation of the beginning steps of phenomenology as a
descriptive psychology” (p. 1). However, over the last century it has evolved to become an interdisciplinary field of inquiry, as phenomenological research has come to include elements of a number of different fields of scholarship, for
example, film, feminist studies, cultural studies, ethnography, geography, politics, science, human emotions, sociology, music, and of course, sound.
Over the last fifty years a growing body of literature has emerged that looks at the phenomenology of sound. These studies include research into sound and screen media (Batcho, 2014; Branigan, 1989; Cook, 2015); the phenomenology of music and melody (Cluett, 2006; Davismoon, 2016; Lewin, 1986; Palmieri, 2014); voice and auditory phenomenology (Di Bona, 2017; Pecora, 1985; Rosen, Jones, Chase, Grossman, Gin & Sharma, 2015); the political agency of sound (Berland, 1984; Reveill, 2016), and the phenomenology of listening (Blenkinsop & Pierson, 2013; Bodie & Crick, 2014; Ihde, 2007; Erlmann, 2004). However, despite
scholarly attention has been paid to the perception of acoustic space through the lens of acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear.
Arguably the most comprehensive study of the phenomenology of sound to date is phenomenologist Don Ihde’s (2007) Listening and voice: Phenomenologies of sound. First published in 1976, Ihde aimed to present an “original
phenomenology” (p. xi), rather than discussing the work of other
phenomenologists such as Husserl and Heidegger. Instead, Ihde focuses upon auditory perception and the inclusion of various auditory technologies in human experience. In addition to introducing several key principles that explain the processes and different facets in hearing and the experience of sound, he provides a theoretical framework for the study of sound from several different perspectives, including the embodiment of acoustic devices and the construction of imagined auditory fields which can occur through the use of acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear. The limited way in which he illustrates this process is through a
momentary description of his own experience of using hearing aids and how hearing impairment, followed by the use of hearing aids, affected his ability to not only hear sound, but also the relationship with his surrounding acoustic
environment. However, Ihde’s description of his experience of sound mediated through hearing aids is very brief, and is used as an example rather than a comprehensive examination of the phenomenological effects of hearing aids in their own right. Nevertheless, Ihde’s exploration into the phenomenology of sound informs this study, specifically the ways that this thesis approaches the
study of sound and the phenomenology of auditory experience, namely auditory space, through acoustic prosthetics (discussed in greater detail in Chapter Three).
There is a further body of work, albeit small, within the field of
phenomenology that examines how hearing impaired individuals experience sound. For example, Catherine Aquino-Russell (2006) explores how people with a deficit in hearing perceive the lived experience of sound. This study describes the different experiences of hearing loss of seven individuals, specifically the ways in which the subjects gave and received messages via sound. However, while this study provides some worthy insight into the lived experience of impaired hearing, there is scant discussion of how hearing aids modified the subjects’ experience of sound, and no mention of how they perceived acoustic space, with or without the use of hearing aids. A further study by Ingrid Jonsson and Birgitta Hedelin (2018) explores experiences of hearing loss for women between the ages of 36 – 56. The study is primarily concerned with how these women “keep in touch with life” (p. 111) while enduring a deficit in hearing. Again, while there is some fleeting
discussion of the use of hearing aids, little attention is given to how these acoustic prosthetic devices altered the users’ perception of sound and acoustic space.
Bruce Kent and Sandra Smith (2006) also present research into hearing impairment and the use of hearing aids. Their study examines how adolescent hearing aid users are perceived socially, and how impaired hearing in children can affect social, educational and emotional development. However, while the use of hearing aids is discussed, it is limited to the context of whether or not the use of an
aid for hearing is perceived as being ‘normal’ by the peers of the hearing impaired child. Consequently, there is no mention of how these acoustic prosthetics for the ear alter the user’s experience of acoustic space. Although these studies raise some valid points in regards to the experience of impaired hearing, which will inform the discussion of hearing deficits in Chapter Four, this thesis is first and foremost concerned with how acoustic prosthetics technologies for the ear have historically altered the perception of sound and acoustic space.
Recent work from thespian Chris Wenn (2015) presents a phenomenology of theatrical performance through headphones. Presenting a case of study of a performance where the audience was required to wear headphones, Wenn asks what it is like to wear headphones as an audience member in a theatre. His study came about through an increase in the number of performances that “use the phenomenological potential of intimate, ‘secret’ listening as a theatrical element” (p. 1). However, although Wenn’s work explores the use of headphones within this context, the discussion primarily focuses upon the dynamics and phenomenology of performance, rather than the nuances of acoustic space and sound localisation that can influence the listener’s perception of their surrounding acoustic
environment. Furthermore, he approaches headphones as generic acoustic
prosthetic technologies, and therefore does not take into account the varied effects produced through the use of different types of headphones.
What is evident through a survey of existing bodies of work that consider the phenomenology of sound is that there is a shortage of available research
pertaining to acoustic space and sound mediated through acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear. While Ihde (2007), Aquino-Russell (2006), Jonsson and Hedeline (2018) and Kent and Smith (2006) consider hearing impairment and the use of hearing aids, and Wenn (2015) examines the use of headphones within a theatrical context, it is immediately evident these areas would benefit from much greater consideration and exploration. Furthermore, none of these studies are historical, an addition that this thesis will make to the existing body of work. This is necessary in order to understand how acoustic prosthetic devices alter
experience of sound and acoustic space, and how we understand and perceive the world around us. The need for further research is even more pivotal as the use of acoustic prosthetics becomes increasingly widespread, while offering wearers new and potentially influential experiences of sound and acoustic space.
Summary
This chapter discusses extant research that examines acoustic space, acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear, and the phenomenology of sound. This review of literature has identified a number of gaps that currently exist in each of these areas. Although the reasons remain unclear, it is suggested that these oversights in existing research could be attributed to the dominance of the eye and the visual over the ear and the auditory that is evident in current bodies of knowledge. Additionally, it is possible that the close examination of acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear has been overlooked on the grounds of these
devices, in particular headphones, being seen as fashionable technologies and therefore not worthy of serious consideration.
This thesis, however, argues that acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear throughout history have modified the perception of acoustic space, which in turn has altered the relationship between the user and their acoustic environment and thus their sense of being in the world. Given their ubiquity, the effects of the use these devices reach far beyond the patterns of individual use, making these auditory devices important figures of attention in their own right. Acoustic
prosthetic devices should no longer be considered generic devices as their purpose, function, capabilities, and - most importantly here - their effects are many and varied.
This literature review identifies and discusses several studies that have briefly touched on the effects of various prosthetic technologies for the ear. However, their treatment has been fleeting and overall fails to take into account the minutiae of these devices that can appreciably influence the user’s perception of acoustic space. While this thesis will draw from some of this material, it also seeks to present a history of prosthetic technologies for the ear in order to explore the effect(s) of these devices on the user’s perception and experience of acoustic space from a phenomenological perspective. This study questions and examines how acoustic prosthetic technologies for the ear have affected perceptions and experiences of sound and acoustic space. In light of the current development of new acoustic technologies and prosthetics for the ear that provide an array of
different and increasingly immersive auditory experiences, this field requires further research to order understand how these devices have not only historically altered the experience of acoustic space, but also the relationship between the user and their surrounding environment in a rapidly changing world of auditory