ABSTRACT
In the experiments on linear naming discussed in the preceding chapter, normal subjects characteristically seemed to apprehend the lines as expressive or physiognomic vehicles rather than as geometric-technical entities or as pictures of objects. Concomitantly, the subjects seemed to comprehend the conceptions to be represented in terms of dynamic, inner-gestural features—connotations most amenable to overt expression through the physiognomic properties of the linear patterns. Through this bilateral handling of pattern and concept—bringing both moments in some way into the same physiognomic-dynamic universe— the normal subjects were able to transform otherwise “meaningless” linear patterns into symbolic vehicles capable of directly exhibiting otherwise abstract, intangible conceptions.
