David F. Armstrong and Sherman E. Wilcox
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195163483
- eISBN:
- 9780199867523
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195163483.001.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
This book uses evidence from and about sign languages to explore the origins of language as we know it today. According to the model presented in this book, it is sign, not spoken languages, that is ...
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This book uses evidence from and about sign languages to explore the origins of language as we know it today. According to the model presented in this book, it is sign, not spoken languages, that is the original mode of human communication. The book demonstrates that modern language is derived from practical actions and gestures that were increasingly recognized as having the potential to represent and hence to communicate. In other words, the fundamental ability that allows us to use language is our ability to use pictures of icons, rather than linguistic symbols. Evidence from the human fossil record supports the book's claim by showing that we were anatomically able to produce gestures and signs before we were able to speak fluently. Although speech evolved later as a secondary linguistic communication device that eventually replaced sign language as the primary mode of communication, speech has never entirely replaced signs and gestures.Less
This book uses evidence from and about sign languages to explore the origins of language as we know it today. According to the model presented in this book, it is sign, not spoken languages, that is the original mode of human communication. The book demonstrates that modern language is derived from practical actions and gestures that were increasingly recognized as having the potential to represent and hence to communicate. In other words, the fundamental ability that allows us to use language is our ability to use pictures of icons, rather than linguistic symbols. Evidence from the human fossil record supports the book's claim by showing that we were anatomically able to produce gestures and signs before we were able to speak fluently. Although speech evolved later as a secondary linguistic communication device that eventually replaced sign language as the primary mode of communication, speech has never entirely replaced signs and gestures.
Heinrich Schenker
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195151510
- eISBN:
- 9780199871582
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195151510.003.0012
- Subject:
- Music, Theory, Analysis, Composition
This chapter stresses that, assuming performers have mastered their instruments, the study of each piece of music must from the onset be directed toward its expressive content; each piece makes its ...
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This chapter stresses that, assuming performers have mastered their instruments, the study of each piece of music must from the onset be directed toward its expressive content; each piece makes its own individual demands. Certain technical difficulties are equated with difficult life-situations, and the performer is admonished not to simplify but to overcome them. In aphoristic style, evenness of touch, ingenious fingerings, tempo questions, hearing oneself are all considered. The chapter closes with a fervent plea to the performer to eliminate any anxiety and to “infuse the tones with genuine life”.Less
This chapter stresses that, assuming performers have mastered their instruments, the study of each piece of music must from the onset be directed toward its expressive content; each piece makes its own individual demands. Certain technical difficulties are equated with difficult life-situations, and the performer is admonished not to simplify but to overcome them. In aphoristic style, evenness of touch, ingenious fingerings, tempo questions, hearing oneself are all considered. The chapter closes with a fervent plea to the performer to eliminate any anxiety and to “infuse the tones with genuine life”.
David Maskell
- Published in print:
- 1991
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198151616
- eISBN:
- 9780191672774
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198151616.003.0009
- Subject:
- Literature, Drama, 17th-century and Restoration Literature
In the seventeenth century, plays were bounded heavily by the power of language and verbal effects. However, Racine provided stage directions so that even deaf spectators would see and understand his ...
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In the seventeenth century, plays were bounded heavily by the power of language and verbal effects. However, Racine provided stage directions so that even deaf spectators would see and understand his plays. In his plays, he introduced a theatrical language that is active in both the visual and verbal effects. The main argument of this study is that Racine's theatrical language has a more important visual component than is usually conceded. He exploited visual language throughout his career by highlighting decorations, by investing in the exits and entrances of his actors, by emphasizing physical actions, by investing in costumes and stage properties, and by endowing his characters with the skills of an orator through teaching them the proper display of passion, facial expressions, gesture, and tone of voice. In addition, Racine created a link in the speech and action as well as powerful interaction between the speaker and the listener. Theatrics in the seventeenth century conformed to and were constricted by the bounds of genre definition, but Racine unleashed and exploited theatrical language.Less
In the seventeenth century, plays were bounded heavily by the power of language and verbal effects. However, Racine provided stage directions so that even deaf spectators would see and understand his plays. In his plays, he introduced a theatrical language that is active in both the visual and verbal effects. The main argument of this study is that Racine's theatrical language has a more important visual component than is usually conceded. He exploited visual language throughout his career by highlighting decorations, by investing in the exits and entrances of his actors, by emphasizing physical actions, by investing in costumes and stage properties, and by endowing his characters with the skills of an orator through teaching them the proper display of passion, facial expressions, gesture, and tone of voice. In addition, Racine created a link in the speech and action as well as powerful interaction between the speaker and the listener. Theatrics in the seventeenth century conformed to and were constricted by the bounds of genre definition, but Racine unleashed and exploited theatrical language.
William Kinderman
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195100679
- eISBN:
- 9780199868315
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195100679.003.0002
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
This chapter presents a detailed analysis of the first movement of Mozart's Sonata in G Major, K. 283. Emphasis is given to gestural aspects of the music, including the dialogical treatment of ...
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This chapter presents a detailed analysis of the first movement of Mozart's Sonata in G Major, K. 283. Emphasis is given to gestural aspects of the music, including the dialogical treatment of motives and phrases. This movement is seen to embody the notion of “the thread” (“il filo”) that Leopold Mozart singled out as a mark of good composition. The psychological dimension of this music is seen to be rich in sensitivity (Empfindung), involving an active process of integration in which the work seems constantly to be listening to itself. Engagement is offered with theoretical works by Hatten, Caplin, Ratner, and Allanbrook, among other writers.Less
This chapter presents a detailed analysis of the first movement of Mozart's Sonata in G Major, K. 283. Emphasis is given to gestural aspects of the music, including the dialogical treatment of motives and phrases. This movement is seen to embody the notion of “the thread” (“il filo”) that Leopold Mozart singled out as a mark of good composition. The psychological dimension of this music is seen to be rich in sensitivity (Empfindung), involving an active process of integration in which the work seems constantly to be listening to itself. Engagement is offered with theoretical works by Hatten, Caplin, Ratner, and Allanbrook, among other writers.
Paul Crowther
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199210688
- eISBN:
- 9780191705762
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199210688.003.0008
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Aesthetics
This chapter analyses the nature of auditory experience and shows how music might be seen as historically emergent from this. The theory is then linked to an account of emotion and gesture, and music ...
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This chapter analyses the nature of auditory experience and shows how music might be seen as historically emergent from this. The theory is then linked to an account of emotion and gesture, and music is further characterized as a formalization of vocal gesture, which (through pitch) comes to be achievable through instruments rather than the voice alone. It is argued that musical meaning centres on virtual expression, and that music's distinctiveness as an artistic medium follows on from this in complex ways. Attention is also paid to the conditions whereby we can make a transition from music per se to musical art. The basis of this is that comparative horizon of the medium's diachronic history already raised in previous chapters. Attention is paid to the nature of canonic value in music.Less
This chapter analyses the nature of auditory experience and shows how music might be seen as historically emergent from this. The theory is then linked to an account of emotion and gesture, and music is further characterized as a formalization of vocal gesture, which (through pitch) comes to be achievable through instruments rather than the voice alone. It is argued that musical meaning centres on virtual expression, and that music's distinctiveness as an artistic medium follows on from this in complex ways. Attention is also paid to the conditions whereby we can make a transition from music per se to musical art. The basis of this is that comparative horizon of the medium's diachronic history already raised in previous chapters. Attention is paid to the nature of canonic value in music.
Marc Gopin
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195146509
- eISBN:
- 9780199834235
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195146506.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Abrahamic and cultural processes of change have been neglected by elite diplomacy and conflict resolution efforts in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict (although possibly only at a conscious level). ...
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Abrahamic and cultural processes of change have been neglected by elite diplomacy and conflict resolution efforts in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict (although possibly only at a conscious level). However, cultural and religious habits can be very helpful in peacemaking processes, and are expressed in two kinds of human engagements – informal and formal or ritualistic; such nonrational interactions are a necessary catalyst of rational negotiations. The power of symbol and metaphor is also a strong factor in interreligious encounters. This is investigated first by looking at the most elemental level of the encounter – the human face – and then at two other key ingredients of empathetic psychology – silence (listening) and humility. An examination is then made of symbolic and moral gestures, symbolic communication, and rituals. Numerous illustrative examples of these points are given from the author's experiences in Israel and Palestine.Less
Abrahamic and cultural processes of change have been neglected by elite diplomacy and conflict resolution efforts in the Palestinian/Israeli conflict (although possibly only at a conscious level). However, cultural and religious habits can be very helpful in peacemaking processes, and are expressed in two kinds of human engagements – informal and formal or ritualistic; such nonrational interactions are a necessary catalyst of rational negotiations. The power of symbol and metaphor is also a strong factor in interreligious encounters. This is investigated first by looking at the most elemental level of the encounter – the human face – and then at two other key ingredients of empathetic psychology – silence (listening) and humility. An examination is then made of symbolic and moral gestures, symbolic communication, and rituals. Numerous illustrative examples of these points are given from the author's experiences in Israel and Palestine.
Livnat Holtzman
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780748689569
- eISBN:
- 9781474444828
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748689569.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam
More than any other issue in early and medieval Islamic theology, anthropomorphism (tashbīh) stood at the heart of many theological debates. These debates were not purely intellectual; they were ...
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More than any other issue in early and medieval Islamic theology, anthropomorphism (tashbīh) stood at the heart of many theological debates. These debates were not purely intellectual; they were intrinsically linked to political struggles over hegemony. The way a scholar interpreted the anthropomorphic descriptions of God in the Qur’an and the Hadith (for instance, God’s hand, God’s laughter or God’s sitting on the heavenly throne) often reflected his political and social stature, and his theological affinity. This book focuses on aḥādīth al-ṣifāt – the traditions that depict God and His attributes in an anthropomorphic language. The book reveals the way these traditions were studied and interpreted in the circles of Islamic traditionalism which included ultra-traditionalists (the Hanbalites and their forerunners) and middle-of-the-road traditionalists (Ash’arites and their forerunners). The book presents an in-depth literary analysis of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt while considering the role of the early scholars of Hadith in shaping the narrative of these anthropomorphic texts. The book also offers the first scholarly and systematic presentation of hand, face, and bodily gestures that the scholars performed while transmitting the anthropomorphic traditions. The book goes on to discuss the inner controversies in the prominent traditionalistic learning centres of the Islamic world regarding the way to understand and interpret these anthropomorphic traditions. Through a close, contextualized, and interdisciplinary reading in Hadith compilations, theological treatises, and historical sources, this book offers an evaluation and understanding of the traditionalistic endeavours to define anthropomorphism in the most crucial and indeed most formative period of Islamic thought.Less
More than any other issue in early and medieval Islamic theology, anthropomorphism (tashbīh) stood at the heart of many theological debates. These debates were not purely intellectual; they were intrinsically linked to political struggles over hegemony. The way a scholar interpreted the anthropomorphic descriptions of God in the Qur’an and the Hadith (for instance, God’s hand, God’s laughter or God’s sitting on the heavenly throne) often reflected his political and social stature, and his theological affinity. This book focuses on aḥādīth al-ṣifāt – the traditions that depict God and His attributes in an anthropomorphic language. The book reveals the way these traditions were studied and interpreted in the circles of Islamic traditionalism which included ultra-traditionalists (the Hanbalites and their forerunners) and middle-of-the-road traditionalists (Ash’arites and their forerunners). The book presents an in-depth literary analysis of aḥādīth al-ṣifāt while considering the role of the early scholars of Hadith in shaping the narrative of these anthropomorphic texts. The book also offers the first scholarly and systematic presentation of hand, face, and bodily gestures that the scholars performed while transmitting the anthropomorphic traditions. The book goes on to discuss the inner controversies in the prominent traditionalistic learning centres of the Islamic world regarding the way to understand and interpret these anthropomorphic traditions. Through a close, contextualized, and interdisciplinary reading in Hadith compilations, theological treatises, and historical sources, this book offers an evaluation and understanding of the traditionalistic endeavours to define anthropomorphism in the most crucial and indeed most formative period of Islamic thought.
Eric F. Clarke
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195151947
- eISBN:
- 9780199870400
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195151947.003.0004
- Subject:
- Music, Psychology of Music
This chapter discusses the ways in which sounds can specify motion, and the significance of this motion in music. Rather than considering motion in music to be metaphorical in nature, the chapter ...
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This chapter discusses the ways in which sounds can specify motion, and the significance of this motion in music. Rather than considering motion in music to be metaphorical in nature, the chapter argues that sounds are capable of perceptually specifying genuine motion, but in a virtual space rather than a real space. This sense of motion is in turn one of the ways in which music brings about a strong sense of subjective identification for a listener, the sense of motion appearing to place the listener in amongst the materials of music. These ideas are illustrated and demonstrated through examples taken from pop music (Fatboy Slim), opera (a short section from Berg's Wozzeck), and Classical instrumental music (a passage from a Mozart String Quintet).Less
This chapter discusses the ways in which sounds can specify motion, and the significance of this motion in music. Rather than considering motion in music to be metaphorical in nature, the chapter argues that sounds are capable of perceptually specifying genuine motion, but in a virtual space rather than a real space. This sense of motion is in turn one of the ways in which music brings about a strong sense of subjective identification for a listener, the sense of motion appearing to place the listener in amongst the materials of music. These ideas are illustrated and demonstrated through examples taken from pop music (Fatboy Slim), opera (a short section from Berg's Wozzeck), and Classical instrumental music (a passage from a Mozart String Quintet).
Lorraine McCune
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195177879
- eISBN:
- 9780199870202
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195177879.003.0008
- Subject:
- Psychology, Developmental Psychology
This chapter evaluates the contribution of prelinguistic communication and the recognition of sound/meaning correspondence, emphasizing the importance of communicative grunts. Topics covered include ...
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This chapter evaluates the contribution of prelinguistic communication and the recognition of sound/meaning correspondence, emphasizing the importance of communicative grunts. Topics covered include grunts use in human infants, the origins of communication, grunts and the transition to referential words, the role of gesture, and the increase in overall communicative frequency with communicative grunt onset.Less
This chapter evaluates the contribution of prelinguistic communication and the recognition of sound/meaning correspondence, emphasizing the importance of communicative grunts. Topics covered include grunts use in human infants, the origins of communication, grunts and the transition to referential words, the role of gesture, and the increase in overall communicative frequency with communicative grunt onset.
Walter van de Leur
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195124484
- eISBN:
- 9780199868711
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195124484.003.0009
- Subject:
- Music, History, Western
This chapter plots the development in Strayhorn’s later arranging and composing. By the mid-1950s, Strayhorn had expanded his music writing with numerous individual elements into a mature and ...
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This chapter plots the development in Strayhorn’s later arranging and composing. By the mid-1950s, Strayhorn had expanded his music writing with numerous individual elements into a mature and distinctive style that showed an increased complexity on all levels, while at the same time it had an unsurpassed emotional quality. The chapter looks at the most important components in his later-year composing, including chromaticism, melodic cells, classical construction, angular lines, static harmony, harmonic ambiguity, complex modulations, widened tonality, linear and through-composed forms, multiple-thematic writing, complex through-imitation, clusters, layering of chords, and rhythmic gestures. Examples are drawn from Cashmere Cutie, Pretty Girl, U.M.M.G., Ballad for Very Tired and Very Sad Lotus Eaters, Up and Down, Orson, Day Dream, and Take the “A” Train (1956).Less
This chapter plots the development in Strayhorn’s later arranging and composing. By the mid-1950s, Strayhorn had expanded his music writing with numerous individual elements into a mature and distinctive style that showed an increased complexity on all levels, while at the same time it had an unsurpassed emotional quality. The chapter looks at the most important components in his later-year composing, including chromaticism, melodic cells, classical construction, angular lines, static harmony, harmonic ambiguity, complex modulations, widened tonality, linear and through-composed forms, multiple-thematic writing, complex through-imitation, clusters, layering of chords, and rhythmic gestures. Examples are drawn from Cashmere Cutie, Pretty Girl, U.M.M.G., Ballad for Very Tired and Very Sad Lotus Eaters, Up and Down, Orson, Day Dream, and Take the “A” Train (1956).
Shaun Gallager (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- February 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199271948
- eISBN:
- 9780191603112
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199271941.003.0006
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Mind
What role does embodiment play in the generation of language? This chapter examines this question by taking a close look at gesture in the previously discussed case of a deafferented subject (Chapter ...
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What role does embodiment play in the generation of language? This chapter examines this question by taking a close look at gesture in the previously discussed case of a deafferented subject (Chapter 2). Experiments show that although gesture cannot be reduced to either body schematic processes or consciously controlled movement, it (and by extension, language) does depend on specific aspects of embodied experience. An integrative theory of gesture in outlined and contrasted with motor and communicative theories.Less
What role does embodiment play in the generation of language? This chapter examines this question by taking a close look at gesture in the previously discussed case of a deafferented subject (Chapter 2). Experiments show that although gesture cannot be reduced to either body schematic processes or consciously controlled movement, it (and by extension, language) does depend on specific aspects of embodied experience. An integrative theory of gesture in outlined and contrasted with motor and communicative theories.
Simone Pika and John C. Mitani
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199545872
- eISBN:
- 9780191720369
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199545872.003.0009
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics, Psycholinguistics / Neurolinguistics / Cognitive Linguistics
This chapter presents observations that suggest wild chimpanzees use a gesture, the directed scratch, in a referential fashion. Directed scratches share two crucial components with homesign systems. ...
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This chapter presents observations that suggest wild chimpanzees use a gesture, the directed scratch, in a referential fashion. Directed scratches share two crucial components with homesign systems. They involve some form of reference and may specify a distinct action, therefore qualifying as characterizing signs. Although homesign systems go a step beyond, by exhibiting simple grammatical structure and recursion, directed scratches may constitute the first step toward symbolic gestures. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that gestures used by our closest living relatives might have been the crucial modality within which the evolutionary precursors of symbolic communication evolved. Additional comparative research investigating the factors triggering the development of referential gestures will be required to resolve what is unique to humans and what constitutes ‘fossil’ forms of human language or language abilities.Less
This chapter presents observations that suggest wild chimpanzees use a gesture, the directed scratch, in a referential fashion. Directed scratches share two crucial components with homesign systems. They involve some form of reference and may specify a distinct action, therefore qualifying as characterizing signs. Although homesign systems go a step beyond, by exhibiting simple grammatical structure and recursion, directed scratches may constitute the first step toward symbolic gestures. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that gestures used by our closest living relatives might have been the crucial modality within which the evolutionary precursors of symbolic communication evolved. Additional comparative research investigating the factors triggering the development of referential gestures will be required to resolve what is unique to humans and what constitutes ‘fossil’ forms of human language or language abilities.
Ronald W. Langacker
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195331967
- eISBN:
- 9780199868209
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195331967.003.0013
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Syntax and Morphology
A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. ...
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A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. Abstracted units retain these properties to varying degrees. At both the semantic and the phonological pole, discourse unfolds in a number of channels: objective content, information structure, speech management; segmental content, prosody, gesture. Discourse presupposes an elaborate conceptual substrate which supports and makes coherent what is overtly expressed. One facet of this substrate is the context, including the speaker-hearer interaction and the ongoing discourse itself. Another is the viewing arrangement, i.e. the relation between the interlocutors and the situation described. Also involved are speech acts, based on culturally recognized scenarios of linguistic interaction; while typically covert, these can also be expressed by clauses used descriptively or as performatives (actual enactments of the scenarios). Closely related are vocatives and other kinds of expressive utterances. Being used for many purposes, discourse occurs in many spoken and written genres. Depending on the genre, various levels and dimensions of organization can be discerned. Important in conversation is organization into attentional frames: intonation groups each representing a single window of attention. As discourse proceeds, a conceptual structure is built and progressively updated. Discourse is most effective when it follows certain basic principles of structure building. Grammar is shaped by discourse, and grammatical structures serve particular discourse functions. Grammar includes not only conventional patterns for assembling complex expressions but also established ways of applying them to the ongoing discourse. Grounding is often effected in this manner.Less
A discourse consists of usage events, and in the usage based approach linguistic units are seen as being abstracted from such events. Discourse is fundamentally interactive and necessarily dynamic. Abstracted units retain these properties to varying degrees. At both the semantic and the phonological pole, discourse unfolds in a number of channels: objective content, information structure, speech management; segmental content, prosody, gesture. Discourse presupposes an elaborate conceptual substrate which supports and makes coherent what is overtly expressed. One facet of this substrate is the context, including the speaker-hearer interaction and the ongoing discourse itself. Another is the viewing arrangement, i.e. the relation between the interlocutors and the situation described. Also involved are speech acts, based on culturally recognized scenarios of linguistic interaction; while typically covert, these can also be expressed by clauses used descriptively or as performatives (actual enactments of the scenarios). Closely related are vocatives and other kinds of expressive utterances. Being used for many purposes, discourse occurs in many spoken and written genres. Depending on the genre, various levels and dimensions of organization can be discerned. Important in conversation is organization into attentional frames: intonation groups each representing a single window of attention. As discourse proceeds, a conceptual structure is built and progressively updated. Discourse is most effective when it follows certain basic principles of structure building. Grammar is shaped by discourse, and grammatical structures serve particular discourse functions. Grammar includes not only conventional patterns for assembling complex expressions but also established ways of applying them to the ongoing discourse. Grounding is often effected in this manner.
Jennifer Ingleheart
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199232536
- eISBN:
- 9780191716003
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199232536.003.0010
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Plays and Playwrights: Classical, Early, and Medieval
The strong visual appeal of Ovid's Metamorphoses has long invited comparison with the pleasures of pantomime, most influentially in a publication by Galinsky. In the study of Ovid's references from ...
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The strong visual appeal of Ovid's Metamorphoses has long invited comparison with the pleasures of pantomime, most influentially in a publication by Galinsky. In the study of Ovid's references from exile to his poetry being ‘danced in the crowded theatres’, this chapter argues in detail that the obvious text for pantomime realisation is the Metamorphoses, rather than the Heroides (as has occasionally been claimed); through close attention to the detail in Ovid's poetry, it explores how the subject‐matter of that epic, with its compact vignettes of action, emotive rhetoric, exotic settings, and underlying emphasis on bodily transformation, must have been suggestive to pantomime dancers. Furthermore the chapter argues that there is plenty of action which could easily be represented through movement, gesture, and basic stage props. The discussion incorporates the crucial evidence of Jacob of Sarugh about pantomime performances of the myth of Apollo and Daphne. This chapter engages with the issue of pantomime libretti.Less
The strong visual appeal of Ovid's Metamorphoses has long invited comparison with the pleasures of pantomime, most influentially in a publication by Galinsky. In the study of Ovid's references from exile to his poetry being ‘danced in the crowded theatres’, this chapter argues in detail that the obvious text for pantomime realisation is the Metamorphoses, rather than the Heroides (as has occasionally been claimed); through close attention to the detail in Ovid's poetry, it explores how the subject‐matter of that epic, with its compact vignettes of action, emotive rhetoric, exotic settings, and underlying emphasis on bodily transformation, must have been suggestive to pantomime dancers. Furthermore the chapter argues that there is plenty of action which could easily be represented through movement, gesture, and basic stage props. The discussion incorporates the crucial evidence of Jacob of Sarugh about pantomime performances of the myth of Apollo and Daphne. This chapter engages with the issue of pantomime libretti.
Harald Krebs
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195116236
- eISBN:
- 9780199871308
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195116236.003.0007
- Subject:
- Music, Theory, Analysis, Composition
This chapter offers a number of suggestions to performers of metrically dissonant music. It is important for performers to be aware of the location and scope of metrical dissonances in the works they ...
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This chapter offers a number of suggestions to performers of metrically dissonant music. It is important for performers to be aware of the location and scope of metrical dissonances in the works they perform. Exercises such as the isolation and independent practicing of individual layers, and the creation of hypothetical consonant versions of given passages, will help performers to become familiar with the structure of such passages, and to negotiate them successfully. It is not usually necessary to accentuate layers that are out of alignment with the notated meter (since they will stand out without such “bringing out”). It may, on the other hand, be wise to apply subtle stresses to the layers that form the notated meter (in passages where those layers receive little or no accentuation by register, density, dynamics, etc.). In subliminally dissonant passages (where the notated meter receives absolutely no confirmation, and the music is locally consonant), the performer could communicate the underlying dissonance with various physical gestures. Performers must communicate the meaning of metrically dissonant passages. They must feel the waves of tension and relaxation created by metrical dissonances and their resolutions, and convey them to the audience. Imagining a narrative might be helpful to the performer in achieving convincing communication of the emotional content of metrically dissonant passages.Less
This chapter offers a number of suggestions to performers of metrically dissonant music. It is important for performers to be aware of the location and scope of metrical dissonances in the works they perform. Exercises such as the isolation and independent practicing of individual layers, and the creation of hypothetical consonant versions of given passages, will help performers to become familiar with the structure of such passages, and to negotiate them successfully. It is not usually necessary to accentuate layers that are out of alignment with the notated meter (since they will stand out without such “bringing out”). It may, on the other hand, be wise to apply subtle stresses to the layers that form the notated meter (in passages where those layers receive little or no accentuation by register, density, dynamics, etc.). In subliminally dissonant passages (where the notated meter receives absolutely no confirmation, and the music is locally consonant), the performer could communicate the underlying dissonance with various physical gestures. Performers must communicate the meaning of metrically dissonant passages. They must feel the waves of tension and relaxation created by metrical dissonances and their resolutions, and convey them to the audience. Imagining a narrative might be helpful to the performer in achieving convincing communication of the emotional content of metrically dissonant passages.
Michael C. Corballis
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263112
- eISBN:
- 9780191734885
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263112.003.0008
- Subject:
- Archaeology, Prehistoric Archaeology
This chapter describes the relevance of cerebral asymmetry. Although cerebral asymmetries abound in non-human animals, there are still reasons to suppose that there may have been a single-gene ...
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This chapter describes the relevance of cerebral asymmetry. Although cerebral asymmetries abound in non-human animals, there are still reasons to suppose that there may have been a single-gene mutation producing a ‘dextral’ (D) allele, which created a strong bias toward right-handedness and left-cerebral dominance for language at some point in hominid evolution. The alternative ‘chance’ (C) allele is presumed directionally neutral, although there may be other influences producing weak population manual and cerebral asymmetries in the absence of the D allele. The discussion argues that language evolved from manual gestures, and the D allele may have served to guarantee manual and vocal control in the same (left) hemisphere in the majority of humans. The ‘speciation event’ that distinguished Homo sapiens from other large-brained hominids might be as witch from a predominantly gestural to a vocal form of language.Less
This chapter describes the relevance of cerebral asymmetry. Although cerebral asymmetries abound in non-human animals, there are still reasons to suppose that there may have been a single-gene mutation producing a ‘dextral’ (D) allele, which created a strong bias toward right-handedness and left-cerebral dominance for language at some point in hominid evolution. The alternative ‘chance’ (C) allele is presumed directionally neutral, although there may be other influences producing weak population manual and cerebral asymmetries in the absence of the D allele. The discussion argues that language evolved from manual gestures, and the D allele may have served to guarantee manual and vocal control in the same (left) hemisphere in the majority of humans. The ‘speciation event’ that distinguished Homo sapiens from other large-brained hominids might be as witch from a predominantly gestural to a vocal form of language.
Lynette A. Jones and Susan J. Lederman
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195173154
- eISBN:
- 9780199786749
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195173154.003.0007
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience
This chapter discusses skilled hand movements that are non-prehensile. Such movements cover a diverse array of activities ranging from the gestures made as part of normal speech or as a substitute ...
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This chapter discusses skilled hand movements that are non-prehensile. Such movements cover a diverse array of activities ranging from the gestures made as part of normal speech or as a substitute for speech (sign language) to the movements involved in depressing keys on a keyboard. With the exception of pointing and goal-directed aiming movements, these activities typically involve all fingers and both hands. The characteristics of these movements and the conditions under which they have been studied are reviewed. The similarities and differences between the keyboard skills of typing and piano-playing are considered in detail, and the importance of explicit training to acquire and retain expertise in both skills is highlighted. Other topics covered in this chapter include eye-hand span and keyboard skills, sensory feedback and errors in performance, and bimanual music skills.Less
This chapter discusses skilled hand movements that are non-prehensile. Such movements cover a diverse array of activities ranging from the gestures made as part of normal speech or as a substitute for speech (sign language) to the movements involved in depressing keys on a keyboard. With the exception of pointing and goal-directed aiming movements, these activities typically involve all fingers and both hands. The characteristics of these movements and the conditions under which they have been studied are reviewed. The similarities and differences between the keyboard skills of typing and piano-playing are considered in detail, and the importance of explicit training to acquire and retain expertise in both skills is highlighted. Other topics covered in this chapter include eye-hand span and keyboard skills, sensory feedback and errors in performance, and bimanual music skills.
F. S. Naiden
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195183412
- eISBN:
- 9780199789399
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195183412.003.0002
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Ancient Religions
This chapter deals with the first three steps. The treatment of the first step, the approach, is brief, but it shows the importance of the supplicandus and the need for the suppliant to choose among ...
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This chapter deals with the first three steps. The treatment of the first step, the approach, is brief, but it shows the importance of the supplicandus and the need for the suppliant to choose among the variations that supplication permits. In the treatment of the second step, gestures and words, which is much less simple and twice as long, the salient issue is whether all gestures make contact, as Gould and others have held. The chapter next describes the third step, requests and arguments, on which literary critics have concentrated their attention. Here generic differences prove more important than they do in the first two steps.Less
This chapter deals with the first three steps. The treatment of the first step, the approach, is brief, but it shows the importance of the supplicandus and the need for the suppliant to choose among the variations that supplication permits. In the treatment of the second step, gestures and words, which is much less simple and twice as long, the salient issue is whether all gestures make contact, as Gould and others have held. The chapter next describes the third step, requests and arguments, on which literary critics have concentrated their attention. Here generic differences prove more important than they do in the first two steps.
David F. Armstrong and Sherman E. Wilcox
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195163483
- eISBN:
- 9780199867523
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195163483.003.0002
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
This chapter begins with a discussion of the gestural theories on the origin of language. It argues that the natural sign languages used by modern deaf people are fully modern languages in every ...
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This chapter begins with a discussion of the gestural theories on the origin of language. It argues that the natural sign languages used by modern deaf people are fully modern languages in every meaningful sense. Aspects of the structures of these languages and the historical processes through which these languages came into existence can shed light on the way human language in general most probably evolved. An overview of the succeeding chapters is presented.Less
This chapter begins with a discussion of the gestural theories on the origin of language. It argues that the natural sign languages used by modern deaf people are fully modern languages in every meaningful sense. Aspects of the structures of these languages and the historical processes through which these languages came into existence can shed light on the way human language in general most probably evolved. An overview of the succeeding chapters is presented.
David F. Armstrong and Sherman E. Wilcox
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195163483
- eISBN:
- 9780199867523
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195163483.003.0003
- Subject:
- Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
This chapter discusses current knowledge about the linguistic or language-like behaviour of modern great apes, especially chimpanzees (including bonobos) and gorillas. Evidence supports the idea that ...
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This chapter discusses current knowledge about the linguistic or language-like behaviour of modern great apes, especially chimpanzees (including bonobos) and gorillas. Evidence supports the idea that gesture-based language might have preceded speech in human phylogeny: (1) paleontological evidence for human anatomical evolution; (2) primatological evidence concerning the behaviour of the closest living relatives of human beings; and (3) neurological evidence concerning the organization of the substrates for linguistic behaviour in the brain.Less
This chapter discusses current knowledge about the linguistic or language-like behaviour of modern great apes, especially chimpanzees (including bonobos) and gorillas. Evidence supports the idea that gesture-based language might have preceded speech in human phylogeny: (1) paleontological evidence for human anatomical evolution; (2) primatological evidence concerning the behaviour of the closest living relatives of human beings; and (3) neurological evidence concerning the organization of the substrates for linguistic behaviour in the brain.
