In our busy lives we often forget to stop and listen to the wonderful sounds our ancestors heard every day. Our lives are now filled with the constant buzz of a passing car or the constant drumbeat of airplanes overhead among other noises. In the video package “Sounds of Silence” Gordon Hampton encourages people to experience nature and all its magnificent sounds. Hampton demonstrates, however, that even where he wants his square inch of silence to be, he cannot escape the sounds of an industrialized nation. The package begins with quick, detailed shots showing scenes of a city. Accompanying these shots are sound bites, and the quick cuts between clips make the viewer feel as if the entire sequence is chaotic. These quick shots at the beginning serve to compress time effectively as the entire sequence only takes a few seconds in total, but there are several clips in the sequence. The cuts then become slower as the sequences focus more on nature, in an attempt to highlight the tranquility and peaceful sounds of the natural world. The footage, however, is still faster than a normal video would be and that's because the creator simply uses images to allow the viewer to recognize what the sounds are. Throughout the package, the focus is on the sound bites and the video clips only serve to make the sounds recognizable to the viewer. By making these short clips and then lengthening them when Hampton speaks, the viewer is able to see everything through Hampton's point of view. Also, because the focus is on the sound rather than the sight, the video is very unique because normally the focus of videos is on the actual images rather than the sound bites. Surprisingly, there were only a few wide shots......middle of paper......c, after the character introduction, transitions are added to add a sense of fluidity and a calmer atmosphere. The clips are also longer and the shots wider, which only adds to this sense of tranquility. At the end of the piece, however, the viewer is sympathetic to Hampton and also a little amazed that he has regained his hearing. The viewer is sympathetic because Hampton is trying to listen to and record natural sounds when a plane flies overhead and ruins it for him. Without the shot of the plane flying over and being able to see Hampton's expression, this scene wouldn't be able to evoke the same emotions. After that sequence, the final one brings the audience back to a sense of tranquility due to the ocean waves crashing on the beach and the slightly brighter light used to signify a new beginning for Hampton, who is doing what he truly loves to do..