ABSTRACT
John Hughlings Jackson had been among the first to recognise that everyday “propositional” or syntactical speech is usually governed by left-hemispheric function. The effects of the traumatic impacts are evident in language and deficiencies of right-hemispheric function. The contribution of the human environment, both Edelman and Singer agree, is through the use of language. A consideration of a certain kind of poetry gives a further illustration of the nature of right-hemispheric language. The transformation exemplifies “the therapeutic purpose of right-hemispheric language”. This kind of language is analogical/metaphoric having the quality of “picturing”. The language is used in a particular kind of relationship which can be seen as triadic. Both partners gaze towards a third thing, the “picture” or image which both partners are creating, an example being the “vice”. The image is not static, but moving, having a developing course. The conversation is emotionally toned.
