I tried asking the tree-in-the-forest-question in Holland once, and the reaction I got gave me some insight into Dutch culture and its similarities with American culture.
Both American and Dutch culture value the practical, the useful, the what-you-see-is-what-you get. American immigrants and pioneers didn't have time to sit around philosophizing; they were too busy trying to settle the wild frontiers, overthrow British tyranny, strike it rich, or just plain survive. Maybe the Dutch didn't have a vast frontier to settle, but they had colonies and trade routes to dominate, Spain to overthrow, other European aggressors to fend off, and a whole lot of soggy land to rescue, and keep rescued, from the ocean.
This wildly over-simplified yet piercingly on-target historical analysis makes it unsurprising that being pragmatic, problem-solving, and fully in touch with the concrete realities of life are far more valued in both cultures than being what the Dutch picturesquely call a "wolkenfietser" (literal translation: cloud bicyclist. And doesn't the very fact that they have such a term say it all?).
In many ways, Dutch culture is even more down-to-earth than American culture. "What's it good for?," "How can we turn this situation to our advantage?," and "How much money can we make on this?" are often the implicit or explicit response to just about any stimulus. And I waltzed right into this culture several years ago, had a lovely home-made Indonesian dinner (see dominated colonies, above) with some of my beloved extended family members, and, for reasons that currently escape me entirely, asked the tree-in-the-forest-question during after-dinner conversation.
The initial response was non-verbal. Try to picture a couple of 70-somethings sitting across from you. Now picture the nonverbals that would go with this subtitling: "We're not sure we heard that right, but if we did we're speechless because that is the most utterly vacuous question we have ever heard and a total no-brainer. WHY would anybody from this planet ever even consider irking us with such inanity? Don't you have something better to do? (a small country somewhere to colonize, maybe?)."
The nonverbal episode segued smoothly to an admirably restrained verbal response. Culturally speaking, it had to be considered admirably restrained, because not only are the Dutch even more pragmatic than Americans, they're also even more straightforward. They tend to pretty directly speak their minds, in a manner that Americans can experience as blunt and tactless, but it's just the cultural norm, and not intended to offend (case in point: there's a little handbook to help Turkish immigrants assimilate into Dutch culture entitled "Just Act Normal. ").
So the polite response I got was that, yes, the tree would make a sound even if no one were there to hear it fall. When I asked how they knew, the answer went like this: "Because when I went for a walk in the forest the next day I would see that the tree had fallen and know it had made a sound." Well, I can assure you I had no snappy comeback for that one; I just told them the tree wouldn't make a sound if there was no on there to hear it.
I bet I don't have to do the virtual subtitling thing again for you to imagine the response to that assertion! They didn't even segue into a verbal response asking me to explain the deeply flawed, if not certifiably insane, reasoning leading to my hopelessly misguided conclusion. Clearly, there was no interest in viewing the whole thing as a philosophical question to be explored, no sense that there might be more than one "correct" answer to the question.
That's when I got the sudden insight that these reactions signified both individual concrete thinking and perhaps a cultural value system favoring concrete over abstract thought. Not knowing when to stop, I immediately tried testing this insight by rapping sharply on the wooden table between us and proclaiming it to be mostly empty space, no matter how solid it might seem. Well, that was the end of that conversation, I can tell you! I swear if they'd had any antipsychotic medication on them I'd have been force-fed it right then and there (or maybe they thought I'd made a recent visit to the local smartshop).
As a Trained Scientist, I'm aware an n of 2 is not a representative sample. I'm sure there are many fine citizens of the Netherlands who are more than willing to engage in debate over the tree-in-the-forest or any other philosophical question (preferably over a beer or three). My real points are that, culturally speaking, the Netherlands is more similar to the U.S. than it is different, and there are many things to find humorous in both countries. Also, I am from another planet.
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