Sensing Through Objects

Griffiths, F. A.; Starkey, Kathryn

doi:10.1515/9783110563443-001

Cited by 15 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…In contrast to this, it has been observed that in medieval culture, sculptures were “far more publicly accessible” (Jung, 2010, p. 215). One may even say that sculptures were meant to be touched: “[M]edieval people stroked, held, and cradled sculptural representations” (Griffiths and Starkey, 2018, p. 9). Note, that remnants of these haptic worshipping traditions have survived until today: The right foot of the bronze statue of St. Peter in the St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome is worn down by pilgrims who have touched and kissed it for centuries, for instance (for a description of similar rituals, see Frijhoff, 1993).…”

Section: Alternative Explanationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Is There So Much More Research on Vision Than on Any Other Sensory Modality?

2019

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Why is there so much more research on vision than on any other sensory modality? There is a seemingly easy answer to this question: It is because vision is our most important and most complex sense. Although there are arguments in favor of this explanation, it can be challenged in two ways: by showing that the arguments regarding the importance and complexity of vision are debatable and by demonstrating that there are other aspects that need to be taken into account. Here, I argue that the explanation is debatable, as there are various ways of defining “importance” and “complexity” and, as there is no clear consensus that vision is indeed the most important and most complex of our senses. Hence, I propose two additional explanations: According to the methodological-structural explanation, there is more research on vision because the available, present-day technology is better suited for studying vision than for studying other modalities – an advantage which most likely is the result of an initial bias toward vision, which reinforces itself. Possible reasons for such an initial bias are discussed. The cultural explanation emphasizes that the dominance of the visual is not an unchangeable constant, but rather the result of the way our societies are designed and thus heavily influenced by human decision-making. As it turns out, there is no universal hierarchy of the senses, but great historical and cross-cultural variation. Realizing that the dominance of the visual is socially and culturally reinforced and not simply a law of nature, gives us the opportunity to take a step back and to think about the kind of sensory environments we want to create and about the kinds of theories that need to be developed in research.

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Section: Alternative Explanationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Is There So Much More Research on Vision Than on Any Other Sensory Modality?

2019

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“…The handling of books, especially old and historic volumes, constitutes a genuinely multisensory experience, one that connects as much on an emotional/nostalgic as on a rational level (Borland, 2018;Griffiths and Starkey, 2018;cf. Neff, 2000).…”

Section: The Emotional/nostalgic Response To Handling Booksmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…That is, certain tactile attributes of objects, even when not directly relevant to a given judgement, can nevertheless still affect people's perception and behaviour. At the same time, however, there would also appear to be a link between micro-books and devotional experience (Send, 2018), perhaps because at times of persecution such works can more easily be hidden and/or kept close to the body.…”

Section: Handling: the Feel Of Booksmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Multisensory Experience of Handling and Reading Books

Spence

2020

Multisens. Res.

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The failure of e-books to take over from the traditional print format, as was so confidently predicted would happen only a few years ago, highlights how there is more to reading than merely the content of what we see. In fact, like any other object, the experience of interacting with a book, especially an old or historic volume, offers the reader the potential for a multisensory encounter. One that involves not only what the book looks and feels like, both the weight of the volume and the feel of the pages, but also the distinctive smell. In fact, one might also want to consider the particular sound made by the pages as they are turned over. However, it is the smell of older, and seemingly more olfactorily-redolent, works that appears to be especially effective at triggering nostalgic associations amongst readers. It is therefore only by understanding the multisensory nature of handling books, as stressed by this review, that one can really hope to fully appreciate the enduring appeal of the traditional format in the modern digital era. Several recent exhibitions that have attempted to engage their visitors by means of exploring the multisensory appeal of historic books or manuscripts in their collections are briefly discussed. While the multisensory mental imagery that is typically evoked by reading is unlikely to differ much between the print and e-book formats, there is nevertheless still some evidence to suggest that physical books can occasionally convey information more effectively than their digital counterparts.

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Anthologizing the medieval senses: a methodological overview

Newhauser

2021

Postmedieval

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Sensology has grown to be an indispensable element in the cultural analysis of all aspects of the Middle Ages. As it has expanded in importance and range, its methodological concerns and range of subject matter have developed as well, something that can be elucidated particularly well by examining collections of essays on the medieval senses. One can trace this development from the early interest in the sense of sight in art historical anthologies; to pansensorial collections intent on all five external senses, perhaps limited by geography or discipline; to anthologies including aspects of the global Middle Ages; and to collections focused on the interface of sensory experience and objects. In these collections (and looking ahead to the future), phenomenology combined with anthropological forms of analysis is essential to uncovering the way the senses are integral to the cultural production of meaning that lies at the heart of sensology.

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Sensing Through Objects

Cited by 15 publications

References 0 publications

Why Is There So Much More Research on Vision Than on Any Other Sensory Modality?

Why Is There So Much More Research on Vision Than on Any Other Sensory Modality?

The Multisensory Experience of Handling and Reading Books

Anthologizing the medieval senses: a methodological overview

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