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The relationship between the senses has been of interest to philosophers for centuries: with Empiricists such as Berkley and Locke focusing on how the individual sensory (e.g., visual and tactile) experiences contribute to people’s knowledge about the world around them. And in contrast, Phenomenologists such as Merleau-Ponty arguing that there is no visual and no tactile experience, but rather a total sensory experience from which it is impossible to single out individual visual and/or tactile contributions. Essential to the first philosophers was the understanding of extremes in sensory perception, comparing “the blind” with “the sighted”.
I have invited Reader Simon Hayhoe, University of Bath to write this very first blog post.Simon Hayhoe has written numerous books and articles on visual impairment and the arts, public spaces, and the philosophy of social research.
The study of the relationship between the senses is central to our understanding of a philosophy of mind. This relationship is essential not just to our understanding of the physical interface between human consciousness and our external reality, but also to topics such as scientific methodology, communication, language, creativity and imagination. At the centre of this philosophical understanding of the relationship between the senses is the philosophical conjecture on blindness as a means of unbalancing or changing our comprehension of this relationship. And, at the root of this conjecture is the belief that studying what “the blind” can or cannot do in comparison to the sighted will help philosophy recognise what are the most significant extremes of our conceptualisation of an existent or non-existent outside world to sensory perception.
Philosophical conjectures on lacking sensory perception began in the ancient world, when blind figures often became linked to a heightened spiritual ability and a potentially heightened sense of intellect or morality, or with a lack of understanding and an implicit immorality. For instance, in Ancient Egypt the figure of the blind harpist and in ancient Greece the mythological figure of the blind seer were felt to have superior inner vision as a result of their “outer blindness.” By contrast, the Old Testament often presented people who were blind as sinners and incapable of worshipping God as a person with perfect vision would do. Unfortunately, research has shown that a belief in the deficit of people who are blind can often be traced back to these negative religious beliefs. As a result, children who were born blind or those who became blind in early childhood in particular were raised with a belief in their own intellectual and moral inadequacy for hundreds of years.
Philosophical conjecture on the blind was elevated to another level during the renaissance and then became central the enlightenment, when a new curious and fictious figure appeared in the literature. In histories of Western blindness this philosophy was described variously as the cult of the man born blind (by me) or the figure became the mythological born totally blind man (by the writer Georgina Kleege). This philosophical cult or mythology became so influential in the philosophy of mind that a single question by William Molyneux to John Locke on the ability of a fictional born blind man was described by the historian Michel Foucault as the founding myth of the enlightenment. Unfortunately, this fictional figure and the literature that followed his birth subsequently reinforced traditional notions of the intellectual and moral deficit of blindness in the public consciousness under the guise of liberal intellect.
It was not until the twentieth century when empirical studies were able to correct this notion of the relationship between the senses and blindness. In particular, work such as John Kennedy’s theory that all humans have the ability to interpret and create images and Richard Gregory’s study of cross modal transfer, which is the ability of the mind to recognise an object through one sense via another sense that was alluded to in Molyneux’s question, showed what was possible through the quality of perception and language. As a result, we now have the power to change the narrative on blindness, as well consciousness, language, perception and imagination – and even of scientific methodology. We can now also stand back and possibly reappraise the harm that has been done by some philosophies on the lives of the many.
Simon has also very kindly suggested some very interesting books for us to read:
Hayhoe, S. (2015). Philosophy as Disability & Exclusion: The development of theories on blindness, touch and the arts in England, 1688-2010. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Hull, J. (1991). Touching the Rock: An Experience of Blindness. London: Arrow Books.
Magee, B., & Milligan, M. (1996). On Blindness: Letters between Bryan Magee and Martin Milligan. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Sacks, O. (1995). An Anthropologist on Mars: seven paradoxical tales. London: Picador.
1) If you are introduced to a person who has a sensory disability, what are your first three thoughts if this person is:
– Blind or partially sighted
– Hard of hearing
– Missing the sense of taste and smell
– Missing the sense of touch
2) Ask a friend to give you an object (but don’t look at it just now). Use only one sense at a time, describe anything you:
– Hear
– Smell
– Taste
– Touch
– See
Did you describe the same or different object features? What about the words you used – same or different?
3) Using all the senses together. Ask a friend to give you and object. Then describe the object (and record your description). Listen back on your recording, did you describe the object:
– As a whole, not thinking of which of the senses you used
– As a whole, using two or more senses and, if so, which ones
– Referring mainly to visual features (e.g., colour)
– Referring mainly to tactile features (e.g., temperature)
– Referring mainly to auditory features (e.g., a specific sound)
4) Choose two or three objects – just any ones – and place them on a table straight in front of you. Now close your eyes and explore the first object you find by touch.
– What is it?
– If unsure, do you recognise parts of it?
– What confuses you?
– Does the object make a sound? Does it have a smell?
– How big is the object?
5) Close your eyes. Now choose an object with your hands and explore it.
– What texture does it have; what temperature; what shape, and what size?
– Does it make a sound? Does it have a smell?
– Is there anything in particular that fascinates you?
Now open your eyes. Does the object look like you thought it would – why/why not?
6) Close your eyes and get a friend to give you an object. Using touch only, explore the shape – and only the shape – of this object.
– What is the global shape?
– Are there any shapes within the global shape?
– Are there any distinctive lines or edges in the shape(s)?
Now open your eyes and explore the same object by vision only.
– What is the global shape?
– Are there any shapes within the global shape?
– Are there any distinctive lines or edges in the shape(s)?
For a two-dimensional version of this activity, please explore something embroidered. Or get a friend to make a shape (outlined; filled) using a thin steel wire or play dough.
7) Now, let’s taste the word. You have two words “Bouba” and “Kiki”. Say them out loud, so you know what they sound like. Then, serve yourself some fruit and chocolate and decide if they taste like “Bouba” or “Kiki”:
– Lemon or grapefruit
– Banana
– Strawberry
– White chocolate
– Dark chocolate
– Tomato
If you served yourself the fruit and chocolate from a round place, try repeating the “Bouba/Kiki-tasting” from an angular plate (square or triangle), and vice versa.
8) Smell one of your perfumes or soaps. Describe the scent. Do you associate anything with the scent – what? Talk to a friend and hear if they have the same association.
9) Close your eyes and block your nose (e.g., with a nose clip). Then, ask a friend to serve you some fruit, chocolate, biscuits, and sparkling water (separately, one piece at a time).
– What do they taste like?
– What is the texture?
– If you have to associate them with something, what would that be?
10) Open the doors to your wardrobe and close your eyes. Use touch only and explore your tops.
– What do they feel like? Describe the texture(s) on one of them.
– What is it made of?
– Compare the texture(s) to those of a different item, and describe the difference.
– What do the items smell like?
– With your eyes still closed, what is their colour(s)?
Now, open your eyes and describe the texture. Which sense – touch or vision gives the most information?
11) Find a set of keys and a doormat/rug. Stand on a hard floor (e.g., wood, stone, tiles, or linoleum) and drop the keys.
– What does it sound like? Describe the sound.
Next, drop the keys on the doormat/rug.
– What does it sound like? Describe the sound.
Try again, dropping other objects and varying the surfaces.
Get a friend to drop the items somewhere, point to where you heard them falling. How did you do?
12) Find two cups or glasses of different materials and sizes. Close your eyes and pour cold water into them, for example, from the tap – one cup/glass at a time.
– What does it sound like? Describe the sound(s).
– Does the material change the sound(s)? If so, how?
– Does the size change the sound(s)? If so, how?
Try again with juice or milk. Does it sound different than the cold water? And try changing the speed too – any difference in sound?
13) Together with three friends, visit a place you all find interesting, for example, a museum, a shopping centre, or the seaside. When you get there, decide who is going to wear a blindfold, who is going to wear noise-cancelling earphones (or earphones with loud white noise or music), who is going to wear both, and who is not going to wear either. Make sure everybody can record themselves. Record from the same place (together, standing at least one metre apart or, individually, one after the other). Try recording for two to three minutes each.
– While recording, describe everything you hear and/or see.
– Play the recordings with your friends, and discuss what was different and what was similar.
Alternatively, do this activity using the recordings in our blog post on sensory mismatch.
14) Together with three friends, visit a flower shop, bakery, or coffee shop, When you get there, decide who is going to wear a blindfold, who is going to wear noise-cancelling earphones (or earphones with loud white noise or music), who is going to wear both, and who is not going to wear either. Make sure everybody can record themselves. Record from the same place (together, standing at least one metre apart or, individually, one after the other). Try recording for two to three minutes each.
– While recording, describe everything you perceive; including the scents.
– Play the recordings with your friends, and discuss what was different and what was similar.
Alternatively, do this activity while eating or drinking something.
15) Together with three friends, decide on five places you all know very well and, next, who is going to wear a blindfold, who is going to wear noise-cancelling earphones (or earphones with loud white noise or music), who is going to wear both, and who is not going to wear either. Make sure everybody can record themselves. Also, decide on different time slots (to make sure you do not bump into each other while recording). Then, without telling anybody which place, visit one of the five places in the time slot you were given and make two recordings: one without you describing the environment and one with you describing it – two to three minutes per recording.
– Play the recording without descriptions and ask the others which place this is.
– Do not let them know if they were correct or not.
– Play the recording again, now with the descriptions and ask them which place.
– Tell them if they were correct or not. And, if they were wrong, ask them what information they would have needed to be able to recognise it.
16) Close your eyes and get a friend to give you an object. Using only your hands (no vision), explore the object. Once you have a picture of the object in your mind’s eye, give it back to your friend (eyes still closed) and ask them to hide it. When your friend has confirmed the object is hidden, open your eyes. Now, with your eye open, draw the object from memory.
– Which object features did you draw – the global outline, only specific parts, textures, etc.?
– Which tactile features were easy to draw?
– Were there any tactile features that you were not able to draw? If so, which?
– Ask your friend to show you the object. Does your drawing resemble the object? Why/why not?
17) Play a piece of music or ask a friend to say the word “bouba” or “kiki” out loud without telling you in advance which one. Draw the first thing you associate with the sound.
– What did you draw – long lines, curves, angles, rhythms, colours, textures, etc.?
For a tactile version of this activity, use a tactile drawing kit, thin steel wire, or play dough.
18) Close your eyes and think of an object, a scene from nature, or a pet. Without vision, using only your hands, create a drawing or model of your object, scene, or pet using a tactile drawing kit, thin steel wire, play dough, or something similar. Then, open your eyes.
– Does your drawing/model resemble your memory of the object, scene, or pet? Why/why not?
– Ask a friend to explore your drawing/model using only their hands (no vision). What do they enjoy touching? Do they recognise the object, scene, or pet in your drawing/model? Do you have to explain anything? If so, what?
– Ask a different or the same friend to explore your drawing/model using only vision (no hands). What do they enjoy looking at? Do they recognise the object, scene, or pet in your drawing/model? Do you have to explain anything? If so, what?
– Ask a different or the same friend(s) to explore your drawing/model using both their hands and their eyes. What do they enjoy exploring? Do they recognise the object, scene, or pet in your drawing/model? Did you have to explain anything? If so, what?
– What do you enjoy and not enjoy touching, and why?
– What can you not make full sense of through vision, and why?
Turn away from the piece.
– What do you remember paying attention to, and why?
Using vision.
– Find the features you enjoyed and did not enjoy touching. How do they appear to vision?
– Find the features you could not make full sense of by touch. Do you get any help from vision? Why/why not?
– What parts do you enjoy and not enjoy seeing, and why? How do they appear to touch?
– What can you not make full sense of through vision, and why? Do you get any help from touch? Why/why not?
Turn away from the piece.
– What do you remember paying attention to, and why?
21) Get a friend to find a sculpture, tapestry, painting, or something similar that you are allowed to touch (any size). Ask your friend to describe the piece and, at the same time, explore it by touch alone (no vision). Do not interrupt your friend during their (audio-)description.
– Did you find everything your friend described? Why/why not?
– Did you need different or more descriptions? Why/why not?
Now, get your friend to find a different sculpture, tapestry, painting, or something similar that you are allowed to touch (any size). Ask your friend to describe the piece and, at the same time, explore it by touch alone (no vision). You may stop your friend whenever you like to ask questions or to give you more time to explore.
– Did you find everything your friend described? Why/why not?
– Did you need different or more descriptions? Why/why not?
Get your friend to find yet another sculpture, tapestry, painting, or something similar that you are allowed to touch (any size). Ask your friend to describe the piece and, at the same time, explore it by touch alone (no vision). Also, ask your friend to take your hands and guide them to everything they describe. Do not interrupt your friend during their (audio-)description and hand-guiding.
– Did you enjoy having your hands guided? Why/why not?
– Did you need different or more descriptions? Why/why not?
– What would you have wanted differently, and why?
22) Ask a friend to snap their fingers – sometimes one hand and sometimes both; sometimes standing still and sometimes moving around. Close your eyes and listen to the snapping fingers.
– Where is your friend – to the left, right, behind, or in front of you?
– Is your friend standing still or moving?
– Is your friend moving towards or away from you?
– What hand(s) does the snapping sound come from?
– At what height is your friend snapping their fingers – in line with, above, or below your ears?
23) Go to a busy parking lot or intersection. Close your eyes and listen (no vision).
– Who or what is moving – cars, bikes, passersby, leaves blowing in the wind, etc.?
– Where are they moving to and from?
– How far away are they?
– What size are they?
– What texture are they?
Now open your eyes and block your ears. Repeat the activity.
– Who or what is moving – cars, bikes, passersby, leaves blowing in the wind, etc.?
– Where are they moving to and from?
– How far away are they?
– What size are they?
– What texture are they?
Finally, repeat the activity using both hearing and vision.
– Who or what is moving – cars, bikes, passersby, leaves blowing in the wind, etc.?
– Where are they moving to and from?
– How far away are they?
– What size are they?
– What texture are they?
– What did you experience when using hearing alone, vision alone, and the two senses together?
24) Close your eyes and ask a friend to remove all soft furnishing from a room, for example, all towels and mats from a bathroom with tiled floor and/or walls. Then, enter the room (no vision). Make a sound (e.g., snapping your fingers) if necessary.
– How big is the room?
Still keeping your eyes closed, ask your friend to put the soft furnishing back in its place.
– What happened to the size of the room?
Next, blur your vision (e.g., by wearing a pair of glasses wrapped in layers of cling film, adding steam, or something similar) and ask your friend to remove all the soft furnishing from a different room with hard surfaces.
– How big is the room?
Still keeping your vision blurred, ask your friend to put the soft furnishing back in its place.
– What happened to the size of the room?
Finally, enter the two rooms again with full vision (and hearing). Again, ask your friend to remove all the soft furnishing.
– How big is the room?
Ask your friend to put the soft furnishing back in its place.
