Auscultation

Stethoscope is a symbol of a doctor for many people. It gives an impression of care and pain management. Stethoscope is used for auscultation, or listening to the internal sounds of animal or human body. Source: blogs.dixcdn.com

            Steven Church's Auscultation takes the sense of hearing to a whole new level for the people who 

cannot fully appreciate it. In four different sections, the author tells brief stories about the importance of the sound. In Chamber 1, Church starts off with the story back in August 2007 in Utah, where six miners were trapped 1,500 feet underground in a mine. The rescuers tried to rescue the miners by sending them a signal to make lots of noise, and then listening with electronic ears for any signs of human life, but the rescuers eventually gave up the rescue effort after they failed to detect any important sounds from underground. In Chamber 2 and 3, the author talks about the stethoscope, and how significant it is to a doctor by giving a humorous example of a doctor play-set that comes with a plastic stethoscope "because you can't dress up as a doctor without one" (Church 27). The author also gives his personal experience of the time when he first heard his daughter's heartbeats using fetal heart monitor, and tells the reader how significant the sound was for him. In Chamber 4, Church talks about an another case of mining incident, this time in 2002. The rescuers were desperately searching for the nine lost miners when they suddenly heard a constant hammering which was "the sole musical evidence of survival" (Church 30). Because of the sound that the rescuers perceived, the miners were saved. Through these loosely connected stories, Church shows how the ability to hear can be more significant than what many people think. By using real life experiences, events and facts, the author writes a very creditable essay. Church managed to use interesting techniques like the humorous example of a doctor play-set and the metaphor to describe the hammering from the underground to make sure that his story wouldn't put anyone to sleep. I am fully convinced now that sound is an essential element in life, thanks to the author's great examples and facts in his essay, Auscultation.