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- Herausgeber: DigiCat
- Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
- Sprache: Englisch
In "The Hand Phrenologically Considered," the anonymous author delves into the intricate relationship between phrenology and the study of the human hand, proposing a unique synthesis of physical and psychological characteristics. Employing a didactic style that mirrors the scientific inquiries of the 19th century, this work examines how the shapes and lines of the hand correspond to various personality traits and potentialities, reflecting the era's fascination with determinism and the burgeoning interest in pseudo-scientific explorations. The author utilizes a blend of anecdotal evidence and empirical observation to provide a compelling narrative that prompts readers to contemplate the intersections of biology and behavior. The author's anonymity adds a layer of intrigue, suggesting a deliberate desire to focus on the ideas rather than personal identity. Emerging within the broader context of 19th-century scientific thought, the work reflects a tumultuous period marked by excitement over psychological and physiological theories. This unseen scholar's engagement with contemporary discourses on phrenology and hand analysis speaks to the intellectual climate that sought to understand humanity through quantifiable means. "The Hand Phrenologically Considered" is a must-read for enthusiasts of esoteric sciences, providing a thought-provoking examination of how the human form intertwines with individuality. Ideal for scholars, historians, and curious minds alike, this book invites readers to ponder the deeper implications of physicality on the fabric of identity, encouraging a reflective exploration of self and society.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022
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The Hand Phrenologically Considered
Table of Contents
PREFACE.
Since the time of John Indagine, who published his “Art of Chiromancy” in 1563, but little progress has been made in the study of the hand as an indication of the physical and mental peculiarities of the individual. In our time, by the publication of the classical work of Sir C. Bell “On the Hand,” public attention has been once more directed to the form, structure, and uses of this important organ.
The varieties in the structure and conformation of the human hand which are met with in different individuals have recently been investigated with much success, both in France and Germany.
It is to D’Arpentigny, a translation of whose work1 is now in course of publication in the “Medical Times,” that we are indebted for much of the information we possess as to the mutual relation existing between particular mental tendencies and certain definite forms of hand. By Professor Carus, of Dresden,2 the views of D’Arpentigny have been in part verified, and at the same time considerably extended. He has corrected much that was erroneous, and endeavoured to establish a science of Chirology, founded upon the anatomy and physiology of the hand.
I have availed myself freely of the materials collected by D’Arpentigny and Carus, and have modified, corrected, or omitted their theories and statements when not in accordance with my own experience. Much new matter has been added, and the whole arranged in a form which it is hoped may tend somewhat to contribute either to the amusement or instruction of the Reader.
June 1848.
THE HANDPHRENOLOGICALLY CONSIDERED,&c. &c.
CHAPTER I.
“The form and posture of the human body, and its various organs of perception, have an obvious reference to man’s rational nature; and are beautifully fitted to encourage and facilitate his intellectual improvement.”—Dugald Stewart, Moral Philosophy.
THE BRAIN THE ORGAN OF MIND.
From the time of Thales and Pythagoras to our own day the opinions of metaphysicians have been divided with respect to the mode in which ideas take their origin. Some, with Descartes and Leibnitz, have contended that the faculties of the mind are innate—that is, that they originate solely from within; while others, with Locke and Condillac, affirm that they are acquired, and in all cases derived, from impressions received through the medium of the senses,—“Nihil est in intellectu quod non prius fuerit in sensu.”
However it may be with respect to this controverted point, whether ideas originate from without or from within, it is at least certain that the manifestations of the mind, far from being independent of, are, on the contrary, closely linked and connected with, the conditions of matter. Hippocrates, when sent for by the Abderites to cure Democritus of his supposed madness, found him busily engaged in dissecting the brains of animals for the purpose of ascertaining the organs and causes of thought. That the brain is the organ through which the manifestations of mind are made known to us, was therefore suspected by Democritus; and the accumulated experience of centuries has rendered that a certainty which with him was but a mere conjecture. In the language of an eloquent modern writer, “Where shall we find proofs of the mind’s independence of the bodily structure,—of that mind which, like the corporeal frame, is infantile in the child, manly in the adult, sick and debilitated in disease, frenzied or melancholy in the madman, enfeebled in the decline of life, doting in decrepitude, and annihilated by death?”
