Analyzing My Own Assumptions

In this post I will be analyzing my own assumptions based off on my previous posts in response to the article written by John Schwartz, "Sound Check."

1. What cultural or social values, beliefs, etc., do we share with the society or culture in which the text was written? Why have they endured?
The general population has grown to adopt the audiobook and e-book culture. Many people argue that it saves a lot of trees and thus reduces our environmental footprint on the Earth. The author does seem to side with this argument as he has recorded an audiobook himself and admires other successful audiobooks and authors. I think they have endured for so long because of the rise of technology in the 21st century.

2. What cultural or social values, beliefs, etc., do we not share? Why not?
Personally, I strongly dislike audiobooks. In order for me to fully appreciate a story I must read it on paper with my own voice inside my head. I can never understand or fully wrap my hand around just audio. The author doesn't seem to mind this but then again doesn't state whether he prefers printed books compared to audiobooks or vice versa. He simply suggests that he does indeed like audiobooks and does not have a problem with them.

3. If the text is written in a culture distant or different from our own, what social values, beliefs, etc., connect to or reflect our own culture? What social values, beliefs, etc, can we not see in our own culture?
It is written in an American culture primarily because the author is American and works for one of the oldest American newspapers in the country. Also, audiobooks tend to be a more American thing especially with the creation of the Kindle.

4. If the text is written in our culture but in a different historical time, how have the social values, beliefs, etc., developed or changed over time?
This text was not written in a different culture. However, since it was published more than three years ago, it is possible that the author has changed his stance on whether he likes or dislikes audiobooks.

Nickrds09. "Frogner Park Trees." 06/03/12 via Wikipedia. Creative Commons License.

EDIT:
For this reflection I read both Samantha's and Alex's blog posts. Samantha wrote about education reform while Alex wrote about the legalization of performance drugs. I think it was interesting to note that all three of us generally tended to disagree with the author at one point or another. There wasn't someone who wholeheartedly agree with what the author was saying, which I think is a good thing. You have to be very critical of everything you read, especially on the internet.