TEST “NON-EXISTENT ANIMAL”

From the experience of a practical psychologist

Igor ZHUKOVSKY,
justice institution psychologist,
Kaluga

These practical recommendations for a psychologist are based on a comparison of data obtained from examining representative groups using a set of psychodiagnostic techniques, including the method of objective observation. The “Non-existent animal” test was not the basis of diagnosis - the study was carried out using the M. Luscher test, the Szondi eight drive test and its modification, and other tests.
The experimental group included students from a vocational school, conscripts, and clients of private psychological practice.
The examination was mainly carried out in the daytime, before lunch, under normal lighting.
Each subject was tested individually and was monitored.
The test results are confirmed by the client’s behavior in society.
Testing material: sheet of A4 paper (you can use a double notebook sheet, close in size to A4 paper); a simple pencil (colored pencils) or a ballpoint (capillary) pen.

You can ask the subject to position the sheet of paper as it suits him - vertically or horizontally. It is best not to mention it at all, but to purposefully observe the test being performed.

It must be remembered that this test is more effective when used individually.

Instructions

You are invited to come up with and draw a non-existent animal, that is, one that has never existed anywhere before and does not exist (you cannot use fairy tale and cartoon characters). And also call him by a non-existent name.

You can offer to determine the sex of the animal at the end of testing: “Write what gender your animal is - male, female or average?”

Stages of interpretation

General impression.

Semantic interpretation.

Graphological features.

GENERAL IMPRESSION

By portraying a non-existent animal, the subject expresses himself, his image. Accordingly, a characteristic is given to the person. Typically, a drawing leaves one of three impressions: either the person is an aggressor, or he is offended and threatened, or he is neutral. This is the first impression. Its results are used during the initial introductory examination.

The ratio of the area occupied by the drawing to the total area of ​​the sheet reflects the degree of self-prevalence of the individual in society from the point of view of the subject.

A circle figure or an animal consisting of circles filled with almost nothing symbolizes the tendency to concealment, closedness of the inner world, reluctance to give information about oneself to others, and finally, reluctance to be tested.

The latter may have several reasons. Firstly, the subject’s reluctance to communicate with you: he sees you as a representative of the administration. The way out of the situation is very simple - explain who psychologists are and what they do. Secondly, in many cases this may be due to certain stereotypes (associations with the teacher, etc.). If this is so, then you should think about who made the subject think so. Thirdly, some serious problems of the client, including the presence of mental disorders. Then a consultation with a psychiatrist or a re-examination using another, non-verbal technique (for example, the Szondi Eight Drives Test) is necessary.

In the case where the client wants to avoid the examination, but after a little explanation still performs the test, the result is not very convincing. Examples of such a case would be Figures 1A and 1B.

Based on Figure 1A, the client was given a certain characteristic. It was confirmed during further examination.
A brief description of the client is as follows. Fears that he may be prevented from achieving his goals. These fears lead him to fussy, illusory and meaningless activity. Had three major violations of discipline at school. It is assumed that he is prone to drug use. Sources of stress: psychological trauma resulting from parental divorce.
Figure 1B is also an example of a client leaving the examination. The initial psychological characteristics were confirmed. Has several disorders, requires constant monitoring, and is prone to inappropriate behavior.
Representatives of this type (especially men) are often well versed in politics, they know and can talk about the shortcomings and advantages of any political system known to them. They remember how orders changed throughout their lives and can imagine how they will change in the future. The subject is no less confident in his ability to make a career than in his ability to make inferences, because a career is nothing more than a change in his position in the hierarchy that is so clear to him. Impeccable consistency and clear logic lead to methodology, perseverance in achieving goals, firmness and the ability to manage the situation.

SEMANTIC INTERPRETATION

Here the position of the drawing on the sheet, its direction, and general dynamics are analyzed.
Normally, the drawing is located in the center of the sheet or slightly to the left and above. However, it must be remembered that the norm is a relative concept.
If the picture is located at the top of the sheet, then the person is characterized by high self-esteem, dissatisfaction with his position in society, considers himself unrecognized by others, has a tendency to self-affirmation, claims for recognition, promotion, is predisposed to conflict behavior, aggression (violence, hooliganism, oppression, etc.) .P.).
If the picture is located at the bottom of the sheet, then the characteristic has the opposite indicators: self-dissatisfaction, low self-esteem, depression, indecisiveness, lack of interest in one’s social position, recognition, lack of tendency to self-affirmation, tendency to fixate on problems; often these are “outcasts”, “outcasts”.
On right- extroversion, focus on the future, emphasizing masculine character traits, desire to control the situation, focus on others, aggressive sexuality.
Far right- a tendency to insubordination, unpredictability, excessive conflict, and in extreme situations - self-aggressiveness.
As a result of the survey, it was revealed that people in whom such signs predominate are prone to leadership of a negative nature, as well as conflict in society (see Fig. 2).

If the drawing is located on the left side of the sheet, then the subject is characterized by introversion, an emphasis on the past, a pronounced sense of guilt, and shyness.
The subjects who exhibited this characteristic almost always avoided conflict situations.
Small picture in the upper left corner - high anxiety; often found in suicidal individuals (Fig. 3).

The client is a heavily alcoholic person. During the initial examination, a psychological diagnosis of suicidal tendencies was made. Upon further examination, the fact of committing a suicidal act in a family environment was confirmed. Preventive and corrective work was carried out. The main reason for suicidal behavior: fixation on a subconscious level of a stereotype about the aggressiveness of the father towards the mother and both parents towards him.

GRAPHOLOGICAL FEATURES

Ideomotor aspect

The discontinuity of lines and the degree of pressure are interpreted. Weak pressure (web-like lines) - asthenia. Strong (bold lines) - anxiety, impulsiveness.
You also need to pay attention to which detail, which symbol is more clearly drawn, and what anxiety is associated with.
The presence of shading is a sign of anxiety (Fig. 4)

.

Client: age 18 years. I came in with increased anxiety. During the appointment, it turned out that anxiety is situational in nature. The cause of situational anxiety is an aggressive family environment. After psychological corrective measures, situational anxiety stopped bothering the girl.
This characteristic can only be used for psychological work.

Spatial-symbolic aspect

The contour of the figure is interpreted as the boundaries of the “I” image in relation to the general space of the sheet. The direction of the lines is considered. From top to bottom - low energy, depression, asthenia.
When carrying out educational work, the nature of depressive behavior and its causes are clarified. If there are no subjective reasons, then transfer to another society is recommended. Work can be done to change the living conditions of the subject (Fig. 5).

It is also necessary to evaluate the number of details depicted: is only necessary depicted to give an idea of ​​the animal (body, head, limbs, etc.), with contours filled in without shading and additional lines, or is there a generous depiction of not only the necessary, but also additional parts complicating the design. Accordingly, the higher the energy of the subject, the more details, and, conversely, the absence of such - energy saving, asthenicity, organics: chronic somatic disease (Fig. 6).

The head (or parts replacing it) is the central semantic part of the figure. An increased size of the head in relation to the figure as a whole indicates that the client values ​​rationality, and possibly erudition in himself and those around him.
In practice, one often encounters drawings depicting only one head, or, more precisely, a skull, with an illustration of the attributes of a musical subculture.
Pay attention to the image in Fig. 7.

Client characteristics: he has been registered in the children's room since 1995 (he was born in 1981), has criminal experience. Aggressive, engaged in homosexual relationships, had a traumatic brain injury in 1989 (falling from a height of three meters onto bricks). Psychological diagnosis: he is in a state of post-traumatic stress due to a physical head injury against the background of conflicts in the family.

Interpretation of head direction

Right: a stable tendency to activity - almost everything that is conceived or planned is carried out or at least begins to be carried out, if not even completed (a person actively implements his plans).
Left: tendency towards reflection and reflection. The subject is “not a man of action.” Only a small part of the plans are being realized or are beginning to be realized. Indecision, fear, and fear of active action are common. There are no dominant character traits. Additional information is provided by a conversation with the client after the test, in which you can find out the motives of behavior, as well as phobic manifestations (Fig. 8).

The client is a girl, born in 1983, weak-willed, indecisive, afraid of everything new and unusual; the result is a low degree of adaptability. Psychological diagnosis: stress caused by psychological trauma resulting from fixation on the death of her parents, which occurred when the girl was still a small child (Fig. 9).

The front position (the head is directed towards the person drawing) is egocentrism. Directness and uncompromisingness are possible as a reaction to the internal insecurity of the individual, touchiness, and a tendency to break rules (predisposition to criminal behavior).
As a rule, such subjects are prone to aggressive behavior and negative leadership (Fig. 10).
Figure 10 has all the signs listed above. The client belongs to the group of so-called outcasts, outcasts.

Interpretation of details

Eyes- a symbol of inherent fear in humans. Its presence is especially emphasized by the sharp underdrawing of the iris. Eyelashes are an indicator of hysterical and demonstrative manners; interest in admiring others for external beauty and manner of dressing, attaching great importance to this. The drawing of eyelashes on male test subjects indicates the presence of feminine features (Fig. 11).

Most of the subjects who exhibit these signs have this characteristic feature - excessive talkativeness. Communication skills and high level intelligence create many difficulties for the client when adapting to society. Often this group of clients is characterized by a playful form of behavior (clown, playful).

Ears- interest in information, the importance of others’ opinions about oneself. Additionally, based on other indicators, their combination determines whether the subject is doing anything to positively evaluate himself to those around him (Fig. 12).

Clients with this characteristic can usually exert a positive influence on the group. They intelligently evaluate the information they receive and easily gain confidence in their interlocutor.

Mouth- slightly open mouth combined with tongue (no teeth) - talkativeness; in combination with lip painting - sensuality, possibly the presence of sexual problems. An open mouth without drawing on the lips and tongue, especially a blackened (shaded) one, means the ease of fears and apprehensions, mistrust. Mouth with teeth - verbal aggression, in most cases defensive: snaps, defends itself, is rude in response to condemnation or reproach (Fig. 13).

Brief psychological characteristics of the client in this group. Wants to make a good impression. He wants to be seen as an extraordinary person, so he is always on the alert, he needs to see how successful he is in this and how others react to him. This gives him a sense of self-control. To achieve influence and recognition, he resorts to various techniques. Sensitive to the aesthetic or original. Sensitive and responsive, but there is some tension in him. Needs peace, which can only be found in the company of a loved one. Able to derive satisfaction from sexual activity. Alert, very emotional. Tears appear easily, which indicates neuropsychic instability. Prone to conflict behavior, aggressive.
Additional details are often located on the head: horns - protection, aggression (determined in combination with other signs of aggression - claws, bristles, needles). The nature of this aggression is spontaneous or defensive-response (Fig. 14).

Feathers- a tendency towards self-decoration, self-justification and demonstrativeness, a predominance of feminine traits, a tendency towards homosexual behavior.

This client (Figure 15) had a traumatic brain injury at age ten. During the preventive work, it became clear that his sexual orientation was seriously disturbed. Among his equals, he demonstrates leadership qualities. He is acutely receptive, needs an aesthetic environment and an understanding partner with whom he could enter into an intimate relationship.

Mane, wool, similarity of hairstyle - sensuality, emphasizing one's gender, sometimes orientation towards one's sexual role (Fig. 16).

Various kinds of accessories (bows, jewelry, bells) speak of demonstrativeness, femininity, desire to please, mannerism.
When interpreting test results, you need to pay attention to the presence or absence of protrusions (such as spines, shell, needles), drawing or darkening of contour lines. This is protection from others:

a) sharp thorns (corners, needles) - aggressive defense;
b) shields, double lines - suspicion, distrust;
c) darkening of the contour line, protrusions - fear, anxiety.

Direction of protection:

a) up - against people who actually have the opportunity to impose a ban, that is, against elders, parents, bosses, managers, leaders;
b) down - against ridicule, non-recognition, lack of authority among subordinates, fear of discussions;
c) to the side - undifferentiated caution, readiness for defense and self-defense of any order in various situations. The same thing - protective elements located not along the contour, but inside the contour, on the animal’s body itself;
d) to the right - protection in the process of real activity;
e) to the left - defense of one’s opinions, beliefs, tastes.

Aggression is also indicated by the presence of instruments of aggression (weapons, horns, spikes, fangs, claws).
The client (born in 1981) has a criminal history, there is stress caused by improper upbringing on the part of his stepfather, as well as a somatic illness. The family is financially secure, the client’s intellectual level is high (Fig. 17).

In Fig. 18B shows an animal with two heads. In the process of working with the subjects, clients were identified who portrayed an animal with this trait.
This may mean that people of this type are at a crossroads between two problems that they cannot solve themselves.
In Fig. 18And this situation is further aggravated by the client’s self-centeredness and the fact that he does not recognize the existence of a problem at all.

General characteristics of this type. Insists that his hopes and plans are real, but needs reassurance and encouragement, is self-centered and therefore touchy. Believes that in all situations it is necessary to cooperate with others. But the lack of understanding and recognition makes the subject think that no real union with other people is possible. Dissatisfaction makes him hypersensitive. He wants to feel free and confident. He wants to free himself from what now seems like a burden to him and regain his individuality.
He believes that he can establish himself as an individual only through constant self-control, and that only this will allow him, despite real difficulties, to maintain his position.
The reason for this psychological state may be poor family relationships, namely relationships with the father and half-brother. He is afraid of active actions, there is a distinct feeling of fear, and there is a tendency to self-decoration. The decisions made are thoughtful. There are creative abilities, a high level of anxiety, and rationality. Prone to self-aggressive behavior in cases of improper educational influence. Easily suggestible, easily influenced by other people.
Supporting part (legs, paws, pedestals) - a feeling of stability or instability. The solidity of this part of the figure is considered in relation to the size of the entire figure and to the shape.
Solid support - thoroughness, satisfaction with the situation, thoughtfulness of decisions and rationality of their adoption, reliance on essential and significant information.
Otherwise - superficiality of judgment, frivolity of conclusions, dissatisfaction with the situation. In the absence or almost absence of legs - sometimes impulsive decision-making.
Uniformity, one-pointedness, repetition of legs (“centipede”) - conformity of judgments and attitudes, standardization and banality when making decisions.
Various shapes and positions of the legs - originality of attitudes and judgments, independence, non-conformism, creativity in the norm or dissent (closer to pathology).
Pay attention to the nature of the connection of the legs under the body: connected precisely, carefully or carelessly, weakly, or not connected at all. This is the nature of control over your reasoning, conclusions, decisions.
Clients who create such drawings (Fig. 19) usually have somatic diseases (head injuries, mental retardation, etc.).
Figure 19 belongs to a boy whose father is raising him alone; his mother does not live with them. Such children are prone to inappropriate behavior, have mental disorders, can become the target of violence, are easily suggestible and susceptible to the influence of other people.

Hands- communicative sphere of personality. If they are drawn, the person is characterized as an extrovert. If the hands are not drawn, then there are problems in the field of communication. Hands can be replaced by wings.

Wings- self-prevalence of a person with possible infringement of the interests of other people. High energy potential, interest in various areas of human activity, self-confidence, curiosity, “participation” in as many events as possible, winning one’s “place in the sun”, passion for one’s activities, courage in events.
The client (Fig. 20) is deprived of contacts with peers, lacks initiative, and is lonely. Likes monotonous work that requires accuracy and thoroughness.

Tentacles may have a functional meaning of the symbol of legs and arms (it is clarified in a conversation), then the corresponding interpretation is given.

Tail- expresses the client’s attitude to actions, deeds, decisions, verbal products (that is, to internal and external forms of activity). If the tail is directed to the right, this is an attitude towards external manifestations (actions, deeds); to the left - to internal (thoughts, decisions). If the tail is directed upward, the attitude is positive; down - negative.
Particular attention should be paid to tails consisting of several, sometimes repeating links, especially lush, long, branched ones (Fig. 21).

Subjects of this type are characterized by activity, endurance, the ability to inspire trust, sociability, resourcefulness in unusual and stressful situations, and a willingness to take responsibility. They often explode with anger, their aggressiveness is directed outward, towards people or things around them; their protest is always effective (they act, not say). Running away from home, illegal behavior in a group, alcoholism - the subject commits all this in a company where he prefers to be a leader.
If the subject draws an animal, likening it to a person (placing the animal in an upright position, imagining it in human clothes, making the muzzle look like a face, the legs and paws like hands), then this indicates his infantilism and emotional immaturity (Fig. 22).

General characteristics of subjects of this type: in case of failures, they blame everyone, but not themselves; They promise readily, but never keep their word. Their protest is unconscious, they just do like everyone else (meaning members of the company). They know how not to overwork and get strong and vivid impressions from life every day. Trusting, loyal to society.
The installation of mechanical parts into living tissue (placing an animal on a pedestal, tractor or tank tracks, a tripod, a screw attached to the head, electric lamps mounted in the eyes, handles, keys, antennas in the body and limbs) is observed in schizoid individuals (Fig. 23).

In this case, the psychologist’s actions consist of an expert assessment of the condition (in a school setting). The remaining activities are carried out by a psychiatrist.
Usually the depicted non-existent animal is the same sex as the subject. At least that's what is implied. If this is not the case, the client may have problems in the sexual sphere. To clarify the sex of an animal, you can ask how the animal reproduces or where its genitals are located. Drawing of the reproductive organs (genital organs, udder, nipples, breasts) indicates sexual problems (Fig. 24).

The client repeatedly violated discipline during his studies, but these violations cannot be considered as a manifestation of his desires, since all violations occurred under pressure from other schoolchildren. He is registered as suicidal. A detailed examination revealed that the client is predisposed to auto-aggression. Frequent mood swings, disruption of the logical flow of mental processes, excessive cheerfulness.

INTERPRETING THE ESSENCE OF THE DRAWING

Pets. The choice of pets to represent oneself indicates a tendency to “tame” one’s vital energy.
Dog- tendency towards dependence, subordination. Often identified on an everyday level with fidelity and service.
Cat- need for tactile contact, self-isolation, preference for non-verbal interaction over verbal.
Birds in cages and fish in aquariums(or animals similar to them) - a tendency to suppress the signals of one’s body, self-suppression, the desire to subjugate one’s life manifestations to oneself, narcissism is often present.
Cow and other useful animals that serve as a source of nutrition - identifying oneself with the “breadwinner” or “nurse”, the desire to give more than to receive, leaving others in the role of debtors (often unconsciously).
Beast of burden- negative attitude towards the character (“everyone rides me”). The tendency to blame others, masking the inability to take responsibility for one’s life, giving others the right to decide for themselves, followed by making claims. With a positive attitude towards the character - the perception of one’s life and bodily manifestations as a source of energy and strength.
Wild animals. Their images may be chosen for various reasons.
Choosing a conformal image, for example, a dove - a “symbol of peace”, the subject wants to express that he is a very kind person. It can be assumed that this indicates his refusal to study the problems associated with his own life manifestations.
A selection of despised, underground and nocturnal animals(mice, rats, worms, spiders, etc.) - the idea of ​​life manifestations as the focus of everything negative and denied in oneself.
Dangerous animals(scorpions, wolves, etc.) symbolize a threat to human life, the perception of one’s life manifestations as unpredictable and threatening. Tendency towards self-suppression.
Animals symbolizing strength, power and special abilities(elephants, lions, eagles, etc.) - perception of one’s life manifestations as a source of positive energy, special resources and strength.
Animals - fairy-tale heroes(clients sometimes ignore instructions) are interpreted in accordance with the role of a particular character.
Stylized and fantastic animals - book and cartoon characters(Winnie the Pooh, Cheburashka, Mickey Mouse, etc.) - refusal to analyze one’s problems.
Images of specific human animals. They are interpreted in accordance with the needs of a person that he satisfies in contact with a given animal. It should be remembered that a person who gets a pet satisfies in communication with it those needs that, from his point of view, cannot be satisfied in contact with other people.

INTERPRETATION OF ANIMAL NAME

Cheburashka - real - concrete thinking, focus on real problems.
Flying cat - functional - pragmatism, realism.
Homosapiens - Latin (book-scientific) elements - demonstrativeness (of reason, erudition), emphasis on details.
Little imp - ironic-jocular, diminutive - an appropriate attitude towards the environment.
Potatoes - banal and repetitive - infantilism.
Clusterspider - long - abstractness of thinking, tendency to fantasize.
Bozol - superficial sound - frivolity.

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CONCLUSION

A careful study of the “Nonexistent Animal” test convinces us that it is easy to master, that its interpretation is original and not replete with psychoanalytic concepts. However, this test reveals the teenager's personality problems.

The study addresses deep-seated personality problems that are beyond conscious control. Some interpretations may hurt the client's pride. Therefore, the psychologist must conduct the post-test conversation in such a way as not to harm the subject or cause a negative reaction in him.

The use of this test in combination with other psychodiagnostic techniques in the context of the information available about the subject and in his specific situation provides additional opportunities for revealing the unique human individuality.

Pictured world

Let's start with the properties of the depicted world. By the depicted world in a work of art we mean that picture of reality that is conventionally similar to the real world, which the writer draws: people, things, nature, actions, experiences, etc. In a work of art, a model of the real world is created, as it were. This model is unique in the works of each writer; The depicted worlds in different works of art are extremely diverse and can be more or less similar to the real world. But in any case, we should remember that before us is an artistic reality created by the writer, which is not identical to the primary reality.

Artistic details

The picture of the depicted world consists of individual artistic details. By artistic detail we will understand the smallest pictorial or expressive artistic detail: an element of a landscape or portrait, a separate thing, an action, a psychological movement, etc. Being an element of the artistic whole, the detail itself is the smallest image, a micro-image. At the same time a detail is almost always part of a larger image; it is formed by details that form “blocks”: for example, the habit of not swinging your arms when walking, dark eyebrows and mustaches with light hair, eyes that did not laugh - all these micro-images form a “block” "of a larger image - a portrait of Pechorin, which, in turn, merges into an even larger image - a holistic image of a person.

For ease of analysis, artistic details can be divided into several groups. Details come first external And psychological. External details, as you can easily guess from their name, depict to us the external, objective existence of people, their appearance and habitat. External details, in turn, are divided into portrait, landscape and material. Psychological details depict to us the inner world of a person; these are individual mental movements: thoughts, feelings, experiences, desires, etc.

External and psychological details are not separated by an impassable border. Thus, an external detail becomes psychological if it conveys, expresses certain mental movements (in this case we are talking about a psychological portrait) or is included in the course of the hero’s thoughts and experiences (for example, a real ax and the image of this ax in Raskolnikov’s mental life).

The nature of artistic influence varies details-details And symbol details. Details act en masse, describing an object or phenomenon from all conceivable sides; a symbolic detail is singular, trying to capture the essence of the phenomenon at once, highlighting the main thing in it. In this regard, modern literary critic E. Dobin suggests separating details from details, believing that detail is artistically superior to detail. However, this is unlikely to be the case. Both principles of using artistic details are equivalent, each of them is good in its place. Here, for example, is the use of detail in the description of the interior in Plyushkin’s house: “On the bureau... there was a lot of all sorts of things: a bunch of finely written pieces of paper, covered with a green marble press with an egg on top, some kind of old book bound in leather with a red edge, a lemon , all dried up, no more than a hazelnut tall, a broken armchair, a glass with some liquid and three flies, covered with a letter, a piece of sealing wax, a piece of a rag picked up somewhere, two feathers stained with ink, dried out, as if in consumption, a toothpick , completely yellowed.” Here Gogol needs exactly a lot of details in order to strengthen the impression of the meaningless stinginess, pettiness and wretchedness of the hero’s life. Detail-detail also creates special persuasiveness in descriptions of the objective world. Complex psychological states are also conveyed with the help of details; here this principle of using details is indispensable. A symbolic detail has its advantages; it is convenient to express the general impression of an object or phenomenon, and with its help the general psychological tone is well captured. A symbolic detail often conveys with great clarity the author’s attitude towards what is depicted - such, for example, is Oblomov’s robe in Goncharov’s novel.

Let us now move on to a specific consideration of the varieties of artistic details.

A literary portrait is understood as the depiction in a work of art of a person’s entire appearance, including the face, physique, clothing, demeanor, gestures, and facial expressions. The reader’s acquaintance with the character usually begins with a portrait. Every portrait is characterological to one degree or another - this means that by external features we can at least briefly and approximately judge the character of a person. In this case, the portrait can be provided with an author’s commentary that reveals the connections between the portrait and character (for example, a commentary on the portrait of Pechorin), or it can act on its own (the portrait of Bazarov in “Fathers and Sons”). In this case, the author seems to rely on the reader to draw conclusions about the person’s character himself. This portrait requires closer attention. In general, a full perception of a portrait requires somewhat enhanced work of the imagination, since the reader must imagine a visible image based on the verbal description. This is impossible to do when reading quickly, so it is necessary to teach beginning readers to take a short pause after the portrait; Perhaps re-read the description again. As an example, let’s take a portrait from Turgenev’s “Date”: “... he was wearing a short bronze-colored coat... a pink tie with purple tips and a velvet black cap with gold braid. The round collars of his white shirt mercilessly propped up his ears and cut his cheeks, and his starched sleeves covered his entire hand right down to his red and crooked fingers, decorated with silver and gold rings with turquoise forget-me-nots.” Here it is extremely important to pay attention to the color scheme of the portrait, to visually imagine its diversity and bad taste in order to appreciate not only the portrait itself, but also the emotional and evaluative meaning that stands behind it. This, naturally, requires slow reading and additional work of imagination.

The correspondence of portrait features to character traits is a rather conditional and relative thing; it depends on the views and beliefs accepted in a given culture, on the nature of artistic convention. In the early stages of cultural development, it was assumed that spiritual beauty corresponded to a beautiful external appearance; positive characters were often portrayed as beautiful in appearance, negative ones as ugly and disgusting. Subsequently, the connections between the external and the internal in a literary portrait become significantly more complicated. In particular, already in the 19th century. a completely inverse relationship between portrait and character becomes possible: a positive hero can be ugly, and a negative one can be beautiful. Example - Quasimodo V. Hugo and Milady from “The Three Musketeers” by A. Dumas. Thus, we see that a portrait in literature has always performed not only a depictive, but also an evaluative function.

If we consider the history of literary portraiture, we can see that this form of literary depiction moved from a generalized abstract portraiture to increasingly individualization. In the early stages of literary development, heroes are often endowed with a conventionally symbolic appearance; Thus, we almost cannot distinguish between the portraits of the heroes of Homer’s poems or Russian military stories. Such a portrait carried only very general information about the hero; This happened because literature had not yet learned at that time to individualize the characters themselves. Often, literature of the early stages of development generally dispensed with portrait characteristics (“The Tale of Igor’s Campaign”), assuming that the reader had a good idea of ​​the appearance of the prince, warrior or princely wife; individual ones: the differences in the portrait, as was said, were not perceived as significant. The portrait symbolized, first of all, a social role, social status, and also performed an evaluative function.

Over time, the portrait became more and more individualized, that is, it was filled with those unique features and traits that no longer allowed us to confuse one hero with another and at the same time indicated not the social or other status of the hero, but individual differences in characters. The literature of the Renaissance already knew a very developed individualization of the literary portrait (an excellent example is Don Quixote and Sancho Panza), which later intensified in literature. True, in the future there were returns to the stereotypical, template portrait, but they were already perceived as an aesthetic defect; Thus, Pushkin, speaking in “Eugene Onegin” about Olga’s appearance, ironically refers the reader to popular novels:

Eyes like the sky are blue,

Smile, flaxen curls,

Everything in Olga... but any novel

Take it and you will find it, right,

Her portrait: he is very cute,

I used to love him myself,

But he bored me immensely.

An individualized detail, assigned to a character, can become his permanent feature, a sign by which this character is identified; such, for example, are Helen’s shining shoulders or the radiant eyes of Princess Marya in War and Peace.

The simplest and at the same time the most frequently used form of portrait characterization is portrait description. It consistently, with varying degrees of completeness, gives a kind of list of portrait details, sometimes with a general conclusion or author's commentary on the character of the character revealed in the portrait; sometimes with special emphasis on one or two leading details. Such, for example, is the portrait of Bazarov in “Fathers and Sons”, the portrait of Natasha in “War and Peace”, the portrait of Captain Lebyadkin in Dostoevsky’s “Demons”.

Another, more complex type of portrait characteristic is comparison portrait. It is important not only to help the reader more clearly imagine the hero’s appearance, but also to create in him a certain impression of the person and his appearance. Thus, Chekhov, drawing a portrait of one of his heroines, uses the technique of comparison: “And in those unblinking eyes, and in the small head on a long neck, and in her slenderness, there was something serpentine; green, with a yellow chest, with a smile, she watched how in the spring a viper, stretched out and raising its head, looks out of the young rye at a passerby” (“In the Ravine”).

Finally, the most difficult type of portrait is impression portrait. Its originality lies in the fact that there are no portrait features or details here at all; all that remains is the impression made by the hero’s appearance on an outside observer or on one of the characters in the work. So, for example, the same Chekhov characterizes the appearance of one of his heroes as follows: “His face seems to be pinched by a door or nailed down with a wet rag” (“Two in One”). It is almost impossible to draw an illustration based on such a portrait characteristic, but Chekhov does not need the reader to visually imagine all the portrait features of the hero; it is important that a certain emotional impression is achieved from his appearance and it is quite easy to draw a conclusion about his character. It should be noted that this technique was known in literature long before our time. Suffice it to say that Homer used it. In his “Iliad” he does not give a portrait of Helen, realizing that it is still impossible to convey all her perfect beauty in words. He evokes in the reader a feeling of this beauty, conveying the impression that Helen made on the Trojan elders: they said that because of such a woman they could wage war.

Special mention should be made about the psychological portrait, while dispelling one terminological misunderstanding. Often in educational and scientific literature, any portrait is called psychological on the grounds that it reveals character traits. But in this case, we should talk about a characteristic portrait, and the actual psychological portrait appears in literature when it begins to express one or another psychological state that the character is experiencing at the moment, or a change in such states. A psychological portrait feature is, for example, Raskolnikov’s trembling lip in Crime and Punishment, or this portrait of Pierre from War and Peace: “His haggard face was yellow. He apparently didn’t sleep that night.” Very often the author comments on one or another facial movement that has a psychological meaning, as, for example, in the following passage from Anna Karenina: “She could not possibly express the train of thought that made her smile; but the final conclusion was that her husband, who admired his brother and destroyed himself in front of him, was insincere. Kitty knew that this insincerity of his came from love for his brother, from a feeling of conscience for the fact that he was too happy, and especially from his never-ending desire to be better - she loved this in him and that’s why she smiled.”

Landscape in literature is the image of living and inanimate nature in a work. Not in every literary work we come across landscape sketches, but when they appear, they, as a rule, perform essential functions. The first and simplest function of a landscape is to indicate the scene of action. However, no matter how simple this function may be at first glance, its aesthetic impact on the reader should not be underestimated. Often the location of the action is of fundamental importance for a given work. For example, many Russian and foreign romantics used the exotic nature of the East as a setting: bright, colorful, unusual, it created a romantic atmosphere of the exceptional in the work, which was necessary. Equally important are the landscapes of Ukraine in Gogol’s “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka” and in “Taras Bulba.” And vice versa, in Lermontov’s “Motherland,” for example, the author had to emphasize the ordinariness of the normal, typical landscape of central Russia - with the help of the landscape, Lermontov creates here the image of a “small motherland”, contrasted with the official nationality.

The landscape as a setting is also important because it has an imperceptible, but nevertheless very important educational influence on the formation of character. A classic example of this kind is Pushkin’s Tatyana, “Russian in soul,” largely due to constant and deep communication with Russian nature.

Often, the attitude towards nature shows us some significant aspects of the character's character or worldview. Thus, Onegin’s indifference to the landscape shows us the extreme degree of disappointment of this hero. The discussion about nature, taking place against the backdrop of a beautiful, aesthetically significant landscape in Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons,” reveals differences in the characters and worldviews of Arkady and Bazarov. For the latter, the attitude towards nature is unambiguous (“Nature is not a temple, but a workshop, and man is a worker in it”), and Arkady, who thoughtfully looks at the landscape spread out in front of him, reveals a suppressed, but meaningful love for nature, the ability to perceive it aesthetically.

The setting in modern literature is often the city. Moreover, recently nature as a place of action is increasingly inferior to the city in this quality, in full accordance with what is happening in real life. The city as a setting has the same functions as the landscape; Even an inaccurate and oxymoronic term appeared in the literature: “urban landscape.” Just like the natural environment, the city has the ability to influence the character and psyche of people. In addition, the city in any work has its own unique appearance, and this is not surprising, since each writer not only creates a topographical setting, but in accordance with his artistic goals builds a certain image cities. Thus, Petersburg in Pushkin’s “Eugene Onegin” is, first of all, “restless,” vain, secular. But at the same time, it is a complete, aesthetically valuable whole city that can be admired. And finally, St. Petersburg is a repository of high noble culture, primarily spiritual. In "The Bronze Horseman" Petersburg personifies the strength and power of statehood, the greatness of Peter's cause, and at the same time it is hostile " little man" For Gogol, Petersburg, firstly, is a city of bureaucracy, and secondly, a kind of almost mystical place in which the most incredible things can happen, turning reality inside out (“The Nose”, “Portrait”). For Dostoevsky, Petersburg is a city hostile to primordial human and divine nature. He shows it not from the side of its ceremonial splendor, but primarily from the side of the slums, corners, courtyards, wells, alleys, etc. This is a city that crushes a person, oppressing his psyche. The image of St. Petersburg is almost always accompanied by such features as stench, dirt, heat, stuffiness, and an irritating yellow color. For Tolstoy, Petersburg is an official city, where unnaturalness and soullessness reign, where the cult of form reigns, where high society with all its vices is concentrated. Petersburg in Tolstoy's novel is contrasted with Moscow as a primordially Russian city, where people are softer, kinder, more natural - it is not for nothing that the Rostov family lives in Moscow, it is not without reason that the great Battle of Borodino is fought for Moscow. But Chekhov, for example, fundamentally transfers the action of his stories and plays from the capitals to the average Russian city, district or provincial, and its environs. He has practically no image of St. Petersburg, and the image of Moscow acts as the cherished dream of many heroes about a new, bright, interesting, cultural life, etc. Finally, Yesenin’s city is a city in general, without topographical specifics (it is not even in “Moscow” tavern"). The city is something “stone”, “steel”, in a word, inanimate, opposed to the living life of a village, tree, foal, etc. As we see, each writer, and sometimes in each work, has his own image of the city, which must be carefully analyzed. since this is extremely important for understanding the general meaning and figurative system of the work.

Returning to the literary depiction of nature itself, we must say about one more function of the landscape, which can be called psychological. It has long been noticed that certain states of nature are somehow correlated with certain human feelings and experiences: the sun - with joy, rain - with sadness; Wed also expressions like “mental storm”. Therefore, landscape details from the earliest stages of the development of literature were successfully used to create a certain emotional atmosphere in a work (for example, in “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign” a joyful ending is created using the image of the sun) and as a form of indirect psychological image, when the mental state of the characters is not directly described , but as if conveyed to the nature surrounding them, and often this technique is accompanied by psychological parallelism or comparison (“It’s not the wind that bends the branch, It’s not the oak tree that makes noise. It’s my heart that groans. Like an autumn leaf trembles”), B further development literature, this technique became more and more sophisticated, it becomes possible not directly, but indirectly to correlate mental movements with one or another state of nature. At the same time, the character’s mood can correspond to him, or vice versa - contrast with him. So, for example, in Chapter XI of “Fathers and Sons,” nature seems to accompany the dreamy-sad mood of Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov - and he “was unable to part with the darkness, with the garden, with the feeling of fresh air on his face and with this sadness, with this anxiety...” And for Pavel Petrovich’s state of mind, the same poetic nature appears as a contrast: “Pavel Petrovich reached the end of the garden, and also became thoughtful, and also raised his eyes to the sky. But his beautiful dark eyes reflected nothing but the light of the stars. He was not born a romantic, and his foppishly dry and passionate, misanthropic soul, in the French way, did not know how to dream.”

Special mention should be made of the rare case when nature becomes, as it were, a character in a work of art. This does not mean fables and fairy tales, because the animal characters taking part in them are essentially just masks of human characters. But in some cases, animals become actual characters in the work, with their own psychology and character. Most famous works This kind of story is the story of Tolstoy “Kholstomer” and Chekhov’s “Kashtanka” and “White-fronted”.

world of things

The further, the more people lives not surrounded by nature, but surrounded by man-made, man-made objects, the totality of which is sometimes called “second nature.” Naturally, the world of things is reflected in literature, and over time it becomes increasingly important.

In the early stages of development, the world of things was not widely reflected, and the material details themselves were little individualized. A thing was depicted only insofar as it turned out to be a sign of a person’s belonging to a certain profession or a sign of social status. The indispensable attributes of the king's office were a throne, a crown and a scepter, the things of a warrior are, first of all, his weapons, the things of a farmer are a plow, a harrow, etc. This kind of thing, which we will call accessory, has not yet correlated in any way with the character of a particular character, that is here the same process took place as in portrait detailing: the individuality of the person is not yet; was mastered by literature, and therefore there was no need to individualize the thing itself. Over time, although an accessory item remains in literature, it loses its meaning and does not carry any significant artistic information.

Another function of a material detail develops later, starting around the Renaissance, but it becomes the leading one for this type of detail. The detail becomes a way of characterizing a person, an expression of his individuality.

This function of material details received particular development in the realistic literature of the 19th century. Thus, in Pushkin’s novel “Eugene Onegin”, the characterization of the hero through the things that belong to him becomes almost the most important. The thing even becomes an indicator of a change in character: let’s compare, for example, Onegin’s two offices - St. Petersburg and village. In the first -

Amber on the pipes of Constantinople,

Porcelain and bronze on the table,

And, a joy to pampered feelings,

Perfume in cut crystal...

In another place in the first chapter it is said that Onegin “covered the shelf with books with mourning taffeta.” Before us is a “material portrait” of a rich socialite, not particularly concerned with philosophical questions of the meaning of life. There are completely different things in Onegin’s village office: a portrait of “Lord Byron”, a figurine of Napoleon, books with Onegin’s notes in the margins. This is, first of all, the office of a thinking man, and Onegin’s love for such extraordinary and controversial figures as Byron and Napoleon speaks volumes to the thoughtful reader.

There is also a description in the novel of the third “office”, Uncle Onegin:

Onegin opened the cabinets:

In one I found an expense notebook,

In another there is a whole line of liqueurs,

Jugs of apple water

Yes, the eighth year calendar.

We know practically nothing about Onegin’s uncle, except for a description of the world of things in which he lived, but this is enough to fully imagine the character, habits, inclinations and lifestyle of an ordinary village landowner, who, in fact, does not need an office .

A material detail can sometimes convey the psychological state of a character extremely expressively; Chekhov especially loved to use this method of psychologism. Here is how, for example, psychosis, the logical state of the hero in the story “Three Years” is depicted using a simple and ordinary material detail: “At home, he saw an umbrella on a chair, forgotten by Yulia Sergeevna, grabbed it and greedily kissed it. The umbrella was silk, no longer new, secured with an old elastic band; the handle was made of simple, white bone, cheap. Laptev opened it above him, and it seemed to him that there was even a smell of happiness around him.”

A material detail has the ability to simultaneously characterize a person and express the author’s attitude towards the character. Here, for example, is a material detail in Turgenev’s novel “Fathers and Sons” - an ashtray in the shape of a silver bast shoe, standing on the table of Pavel Petrovich, who lives abroad. This detail not only characterizes the character’s ostentatious love of the people, but also expresses a negative assessment of Turgenev. The irony of the detail is that the roughest and at the same time perhaps the most essential object of peasant life here is made of silver and serves as an ashtray.

Completely new possibilities in the use of material details, one might even say their new function, opened up in Gogol’s work. Under his pen, the world of things became a relatively independent object of depiction. The mystery of Gogol's work is that it not completely is subordinated to the task of more vividly and convincingly recreating the character of the hero or the social environment. Gogol's thing outgrows its usual functions. Of course, the situation in Sobakevich’s house is a classic example - it is an indirect characteristic of a person. But not only. Even in this case, the part still has the opportunity to live its own life, independent of humans, and have its own character. “The owner, being a healthy and strong man himself, seemed to want his room to be decorated by people who were also strong and healthy,” but - an unexpected and inexplicable dissonance “between the strong Greeks, no one knows how and for what, Bagration, skinny, thin, fit in , with small banners and cannons below and in the narrowest frames.” The same kind of detail is Korobochka's watch or Nozdryov's barrel organ: at least it would be naive to see in the character of these things a direct parallel to the character of their owners.

Things are interesting to Gogol in themselves, largely regardless of their connections with a specific person. For the first time in world literature, Gogol realized that by studying the world of things as such, the material environment of a person, one can understand a lot - not about the life of this or that person, but about way of life in general.

Hence the inexplicable redundancy of Gogol's detail. Any description of Gogol is as similar as possible; he is in no hurry to move on to action, lovingly and tastefully dwelling, for example, on the image of a set table on which stood “mushrooms, pies, quick-witted cookies, shanizhki, spinners, pancakes, flat cakes with all sorts of toppings: toppings with onions , baked with poppy seeds, baked with cottage cheese, baked with smelts.” And here is another remarkable description: “The room was hung with old striped wallpaper, paintings with some birds, between the windows there were old small mirrors with dark frames in the form of curled leaves, behind each mirror there was either a letter, or an old deck of cards, or a stocking; wall clock with painted flowers on the dial... I couldn’t bear to notice anything else.”(italics mine. - A.E.). This addition to the description seems to contain the main effect: much more “more”! But no, having outlined every little detail in great detail, Gogol complains that there is nothing more to describe, he regretfully breaks away from the description, as if from his favorite pastime...

Gogol's detail seems redundant because he continues the description, enumeration, even exaggeration of small details after the detail has already fulfilled its usual auxiliary function. For example, the narrator envies “the appetite and stomach of middle-class gentlemen, that at one station they will demand ham, at another a pig, at a third a piece of sturgeon or some kind of baked sausage with onions (“with onions” is no longer a necessary clarification: what kind do we really want? in fact, the difference - with or without onions? - A.E.) and then, as if nothing had happened, they sit down at the table at any time you want (it seems that we can stop here: we have already very clearly understood what “the appetite and stomach of middle-class gentlemen” are. But Gogol continues. - A.E.) and sterlet fish soup with burbot and milk (again optional clarification - A.E.) hisses and grumbles between their teeth (is that enough? Gogol doesn’t. - A.E.), eaten with pie or kulebyak (all? not yet. - A.E.) with a catfish reach."

Let us recall in general Gogol’s most detailed descriptions and lists: of Ivan Ivanovich’s goods, and of what Ivan Nikiforovich’s woman hung out for airing, and of the arrangement of Chichikov’s box, and even the list of characters and performers that Chichikov reads on the poster, and something like this, for example: “What chaises?” and there were no carts there! One has a wide back and a narrow front, the other has a narrow back and a wide front. One was both a chaise and a cart together, the other was neither a chaise nor a cart, another looked like a huge haystack or a fat merchant's wife, another looked like a disheveled Jew or a skeleton not yet completely freed from its skin, another had a perfect pipe with a chibouk in profile, the other was unlike anything, representing some strange creature... something like a carriage with a room window crossed by a thick frame.”

With all the ironic intonation of the story, you very soon begin to catch yourself thinking that the irony here is only one side of the matter, and the other is that all this is really terribly interesting. The world of things under Gogol’s pen appears not as an auxiliary means for characterizing the world of people, but rather as a special hypostasis of this world.

Psychologism

When analyzing psychological details, you should definitely keep in mind that in different works they can play a fundamentally different role. In one case, the psychological details are few in number and are of a service, auxiliary nature - then we are talking about elements of a psychological image; their analysis can, as a rule, be neglected. In another case, the psychological image occupies a significant volume in the text, acquires relative independence and becomes extremely important for understanding the content of the work. In this case, a special artistic quality appears in the work, called psychologism. Psychologism is the development and depiction of the hero’s inner world through the means of fiction: his thoughts, experiences, desires, emotional states, etc., and the depiction is distinguished by detail and depth.

There are three main forms of psychological imagery, to which all specific techniques for reproducing the inner world ultimately come down. Two of these three forms were theoretically identified by I.V. Strakhov: “The main forms of psychological analysis can be divided into the depiction of characters “from the inside,” that is, through artistic knowledge of the inner world of the characters, expressed through inner speech, images of memory and imagination; to psychological analysis “from the outside,” expressed in the writer’s psychological interpretation of the expressive features of speech, speech behavior, facial expressions and other means of external manifestation of the psyche.”

Let’s call the first form of psychological depiction direct, and the second indirect, since in it we learn about the hero’s inner world not directly, but through external symptoms of a psychological state. We will talk about the first form a little lower, but for now we will give an example of the second, indirect form of psychological image, which was especially widely used in literature at the early stages of development:

A gloomy cloud of sorrow covered Achilles' face.

He filled both handfuls with ashes and sprinkled them on his head:

The young man's face turned black, his clothes turned black, and he himself

With a great body covering the great space, in the dust

He was stretched out, tearing out his hair, and beating himself on the ground.

Homer. "Iliad". Per V.A. Zhukovsky

Before us is a typical example of an indirect form of psychological depiction, in which the author depicts only the external symptoms of a feeling, without ever invading directly into the consciousness and psyche of the hero.

But the writer has another opportunity, another way to inform the reader about the thoughts and feelings of the character - with the help of naming, an extremely brief designation of those processes that take place in the inner world. We will call this method summative designating. A.P. Skaftymov wrote about this technique, comparing the features of psychological depiction in Stendhal and Tolstoy: “Stendhal mainly follows the path of verbal designation of feelings. Feelings are named, but not shown,” and Tolstoy traces in detail the process of feeling through time and thereby recreates it with greater vividness and artistic power.

So, the same psychological state can be reproduced using different forms of psychological image. You can, for example, say: “I was offended by Karl Ivanovich because he woke me up,” this will be summative-designating form. You can depict external signs of resentment: tears, frowning eyebrows, stubborn silence, etc. - this indirect form. But you can, as Tolstoy did, reveal your inner state with the help of straight forms of psychological image: “Suppose,” I thought, “I am small, but why does he bother me? Why doesn’t he kill flies near Volodya’s bed? How many are there? No, Volodya is older than me, and I am smaller than everyone else: that’s why he torments me. “That’s all he thinks about all his life,” I whispered, “how I can make trouble.” He sees very well that he woke me up and scared me, but he acts as if he doesn’t notice... he’s a disgusting man! And the robe, and the cap, and the tassel - how disgusting!”

Naturally, each form of psychological image has different cognitive, visual and expressive capabilities. In the works of writers whom we usually call psychologists - Lermontov, Tolstoy, Flaubert, Maupassant, Faulkner and others - as a rule, all three forms are used to embody mental movements. But the leading role in the system of psychologism is, of course, played by the direct form - the direct reconstruction of the processes of a person’s inner life.

Let us now briefly get acquainted with the main techniques psychologism, with the help of which the image of the inner world is achieved. Firstly, the narrative about a person’s inner life can be told from either the first or third person, with the first form being historically earlier. These forms have different capabilities. First-person narration creates a greater illusion of credibility of the psychological picture, since the person talks about himself. In a number of cases, the psychological narration in the first person takes on the character of a confession, which enhances the impression. This narrative form is used mainly when the work has one main character, whose consciousness and psyche is followed by the author and the reader, and the other characters are secondary, and their inner world is practically not depicted (“Confession” by Rousseau, “Childhood”, “Adolescence” " and "Youth" by Tolstoy, etc.).

Third person narration has its advantages in terms of depicting the inner world. This is precisely the artistic form that allows the author, without any restrictions, to introduce the reader into the inner world of the character and show it in the most detail and depth. For the author, there are no secrets in the hero’s soul - he knows everything about him, can trace in detail the internal processes, explain the cause-and-effect relationship between impressions, thoughts, and experiences. The narrator can comment on the hero’s self-analysis, talk about those mental movements that the hero himself cannot notice or which he does not want to admit to himself, as, for example, in the following episode from “War and Peace”: “Natasha, with her sensitivity, also instantly noticed the state of her brother She noticed him, but she herself was so happy at that moment, she was so far from grief, sadness, reproaches, that she “...” deliberately deceived herself. “No, I’m having too much fun now to spoil my fun by sympathizing with someone else’s grief,” she felt and said to herself: “No, I’m probably mistaken, he should be as cheerful as I am.”

At the same time, the narrator can psychologically interpret the external behavior of the hero, his facial expressions and plasticity, etc., as discussed above in connection with psychological external details.

Third-person narration provides ample opportunities for incorporating a variety of psychological depiction techniques into the work: internal monologues, public confessions, excerpts from diaries, letters, dreams, visions, etc. easily and freely flow into such a narrative element.

Third-person narration deals most freely with artistic time; it can dwell for a long time on the analysis of fleeting psychological states and very briefly inform about long periods that have, for example, the nature of plot connections in a work. This makes it possible to increase the relative weight of the psychological image in the overall narrative system, to switch the reader’s interest from the details of events to the details of feelings. In addition, the psychological image in these conditions can reach maximum detail and exhaustiveness: a psychological state that lasts minutes, or even seconds, can stretch out over several pages in the narrative; Perhaps the most striking example of this is noted by N.G. Chernyshevsky's episode of the death of Praskukhin in Tolstoy's Sevastopol Stories.

Finally, third-person narration makes it possible to depict the inner world of not one, but many characters, which is much more difficult to do with another method of narration.

Techniques of psychological depiction include psychological analysis And introspection. The essence of both techniques is that complex mental states are decomposed into components and thereby explained and become clear to the reader. Psychological analysis is used in third-person narration, while introspection is used in both first- and third-person narration. Here, for example, is a psychological analysis of Pierre’s condition from War and Peace:

“... he realized that this woman could belong to him.

“But she is stupid, I myself said that she is stupid,” he thought. “There is something disgusting in the feeling that she aroused in me, something forbidden “...” - he thought; and at the same time, as he reasoned like this (these reasonings still remained unfinished), he found himself smiling and realized that another series of reasoning was emerging from behind the first, that he was at the same time thinking about her insignificance and dreaming about how she would be his wife "..." And he again saw her not as some daughter of Prince Vasily, but saw her whole body, only covered with a gray dress. “But no, why didn’t this thought occur to me before?” And again he said to himself, that this is impossible, that something disgusting, unnatural, as it seemed to him, dishonest would be in this marriage “...” He remembered the words and looks of Anna Pavlovna when she told him about the house, he remembered thousands of such hints from Prince Vasily and others , and horror came over him, whether he had already tied himself in some way in the performance of such a thing, which, obviously, was not good and which he should not do. But at the same time, as he expressed this decision to himself, on the other side of his soul her image emerged with all its feminine beauty.”

Here, the complex psychological state of mental confusion is analytically divided into components: first of all, two directions of reasoning are highlighted, which, alternating, are repeated in thoughts and in images. The accompanying emotions, memories, desires are recreated in as much detail as possible. What is experienced simultaneously unfolds in Tolstoy in time, is depicted in sequence, the analysis of the psychological world of the individual proceeds, as it were, in stages. At the same time, the feeling of simultaneity, the unity of all components of inner life, is preserved, as indicated by the words “at the same time.” As a result, one gets the impression that the hero’s inner world is presented with exhaustive completeness, that there is simply nothing to add to the psychological analysis; analysis of the components of mental life makes it extremely clear to the reader.

And here is an example of psychological introspection from “A Hero of Our Time”:

“I often ask myself why I am so persistent in seeking the love of a young girl whom I do not want to seduce and whom I will never marry? Why this female coquetry? Vera loves me more than Princess Mary will ever love me; if she seemed to me an invincible beauty, then perhaps I would have been attracted by the difficulty of the enterprise “...”

But nothing happened! Consequently, this is not the restless need for love that torments us in the first years of youth “...”

Why am I bothering? Out of envy of Grushnitsky? Poor thing! He doesn't deserve her at all. Or is this a consequence of that nasty, but invincible feeling that makes us destroy the sweet delusions of our neighbor “...”

But there is immense pleasure in possessing a young, barely blossoming soul!.. I feel in myself this insatiable greed, absorbing everything that comes along the way; I look at the sufferings and joys of others only in relation to myself, as food that supports my spiritual strength. I myself am no longer capable of going mad under the influence of passion; My ambition was suppressed by circumstances, but it manifested itself in a different form, for ambition is nothing more than a thirst for power, and my first pleasure is to subordinate to my will everything that surrounds me.”

Let us pay attention to how analytical the above passage is: this is an almost scientific examination of a psychological problem, both in terms of methods for solving it and in terms of results. First, the question is posed with all possible clarity and logical clarity. Then obviously untenable explanations are discarded (“I don’t want to seduce and I will never marry”). Next, a discussion begins about deeper and more complex reasons: the need for love, envy and “sports interest” are rejected as such. From here a purely logical conclusion is drawn: “Therefore...”. Finally, analytical thought comes to the right way, addressing those positive emotions, which Pechorin receives from his plan and the premonition of its implementation: “But there is immense pleasure...”. The analysis goes, as it were, in a second circle: where does this pleasure come from, what is its nature? And here is the result: the reason for the reasons, something indisputable and obvious (“My first pleasure…”).

An important and frequently encountered technique of psychologism is internal monologue - direct recording and reproduction of the hero’s thoughts, more or less imitating the real psychological patterns of inner speech. Using this technique, the author seems to “overhear” the hero’s thoughts in all their naturalness, unintentionality and rawness. The psychological process has its own logic, it is whimsical, and its development is largely subject to intuition, irrational associations, seemingly unmotivated convergence of ideas, etc. All this is reflected in internal monologues. In addition, the internal monologue usually reproduces the speech style of a given character, and therefore his manner of thinking. Here, as an example, is an excerpt from Vera Pavlovna’s internal monologue in Chernyshevsky’s novel “What is to be done?”:

“Did I do a good job of forcing him to come in?...

And what a difficult position I put him in!..

My God, what will happen to me, poor thing?

There is one remedy, he says - no, my dear, there is no remedy.

No, there is a remedy; here it is: a window. When it becomes too hard, I will throw myself out of it.

How funny I am: “when it’s too hard” - and now?

And when you throw yourself out the window, how quickly, quickly will you fly “…” No, that’s good “…”

Yes, and then? Everyone will look: the head is broken, the face is broken, covered in blood, covered in dirt “...”

And in Paris, poor girls are suffocated with child. This is good, this is very, very good. But throwing yourself out of a window is not good. And that’s good.”

An internal monologue, taken to its logical limit, gives a slightly different technique of psychologism, rarely used in literature and called "stream of consciousness". This technique creates the illusion of an absolutely chaotic, disordered movement of thoughts and experiences. Here is an example of this technique from Tolstoy’s novel “War and Peace”:

““The snow must be a spot; a spot - une tach,” thought Rostov. - “That’s not good for you...”

“Natasha, sister, black eyes. On... Tashka... (she’ll be surprised when I tell her how I saw the sovereign!) Natasha... take Tashka... Yes, I mean, what was I thinking? - don’t forget. How will I talk to the sovereign? No, that's not it, it's tomorrow. Yes, yes! Step on the car... to stupid us - who? Gusarov. And the hussars and mustaches... This hussar with a mustache was riding along Tverskaya, I still thought about him, opposite Guryev's house itself... Old man Guryev... Eh, nice little Denisov! Yes, all this is nonsense. The main thing now is the sovereign here. The way he looked at me, and I wanted to say something to him, but he didn’t dare... No, I didn’t dare. Yes, this is nonsense, and the main thing is - that I was thinking something necessary, yes. Forget us, yes, yes, yes. This is good."

Another technique of psychologism is the so-called dialectic of the soul. The term belongs to Chernyshevsky, who describes this technique as follows: “Count Tolstoy’s attention is most of all drawn to how some feelings and thoughts develop from others, as a feeling that directly follows from a given situation or impression, subject to the influence of memories and the power of combinations represented by the imagination, passes into other feelings, returns again to the previous starting point and wanders again and again, changing along the entire chain of memories; how a thought, born of the first sensation, leads to other thoughts, is carried further and further, merges dreams with actual sensations, dreams of the future with reflection on the present.”

To pass this test and find out everything about yourself, you don’t have to add, subtract or painfully remember anything. All you have to do is take a pen and paper and a piece of pencil and start drawing.

Boleslav Guppka

It's been a while since you did any soul-searching with us. Therefore, we have found for you a psychological test that is simple to perform, but very effective in terms of the results obtained. Go through it - and such secrets of your “I” will be revealed to you that you will want to destroy all our servers out of harm’s way.

So, first of all, you have to run away and hit your head against the wall (preferably on the corner) as hard as you can. Now let's count the points. Stop! We're a little confused. This is a completely different test.

For today's test you will need a pencil and an A4 sheet of paper.

Got it?

Now draw an animal that definitely does not exist anywhere in the world, even in Australia and Pripyat.

The main condition: avoid ready-made templates, your animal must be absolutely unprecedented. You cannot draw either incredible characters already invented by someone else (Cheburashka), or those creatures that you have loved to draw since school (the five-armed sparrow). Draw an animal that is completely new to our world.

And don’t forget to call her by the same new name for this dimension.

Draw in silence, without witnesses.

Draw! What are you waiting for? For the purity of the experiment, you should not know any more details about this test. To make it easier for you to stop reading and start drawing, we'll fill the next couple of lines with some nonsense. Pew-pew-pew! Smoke-smoke! Woo-woo! Zhzhzhzhzhzh. Bloop-blup-blup! Let's draw already! Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Plop plop plop!

Projection spotlight

It's time to explain what you just did.

The psychodiagnostic test “Drawing of a non-existent animal” belongs to a very large group of projective techniques (“Rorschach Blots”, for example, from the same opera). Perhaps you will feel some pride if you find out that the author of the “animal” test was not some Viennese psychoanalyst, but psychologist Maja Dukarevich, who developed this technique in the last century in the wilds of the Institute of Forensic Psychiatry. Serbian.

“The projective technique assumes that the features of your personality are projected onto everything you do, say or, as in this case, draw,” explains consulting psychologist, self-attitude specialist, candidate of psychological sciences Tatyana Sviridova.

When you draw without relying on ready-made templates (that’s what you did, right?), your personal characteristics begin to crawl out of you onto the paper and leave traces in every squiggle.

The brain follows the path of least resistance, and it is easiest for it to project itself onto the sheet.

This is (very, very briefly) the theory.

Now, when we begin to analyze the drawing point by point, looking for your conscious and unconscious ideas about yourself in it, you will either agree (“Yes, that’s exactly who I am!”), or go into deep unconsciousness (“Bullshit!”). Both are indicators that the test is working. In the second case, rejection is the result of the work of defense mechanisms, since, while drawing, you tried to hide a lot from yourself. (Alas, nothing can be done: you are just a platypus raised by a human family.) This, of course, does not mean the infallibility of the technique. “Many factors can affect the result, from fatigue to the length and sharpness of the pencil.” Be that as it may, possible deviations are not critical and, in general, the test gives a fairly accurate indication of your personal characteristics.

Let's get started!

Position of the picture on the page

In an ideal world, an ideal person who accepts himself for who he is would draw his unknown animal in the center along the middle line of the sheet.

Congratulate yourself if you are just such an ideal individual.

“The closer the animal is to the top edge, the higher your self-esteem,” our consultant is quick to please you. Perhaps you really are that good, but it also shows dissatisfaction with your current situation. In addition, you lack the recognition of others, and, having climbed higher, you have betrayed your desire to please everyone (for this, you strive with all your might to meet the norms accepted in your circle).

If your drawing is located at the bottom, you are not too confident and indecisive. It looks like you've already accepted your fate. However, perhaps it’s all about ordinary fatigue or the handcuffs with which you are fastened to the radiator in this dark basement.

Having dealt with the top and bottom, let's move on to other coordinates. According to Carl Jung and the collective unconscious:

the left side of the sheet means the past; right - future; and the middle is the present.

Left? You are prone to introspection and reflection. You tend to replay an old conversation in your head for a long time and come up with new witty remarks that you didn’t think of right away (“How come I didn’t think of telling the hooligans that they shouldn’t hit me?!”). You are a man not of action, but of intention.

Is your amoeba's head pointing to the right? Good sign! You not only plan something, but you always begin to implement your plan.

The animal that you depicted full-face, not taking its eyes off you, speaks of egocentrism. This can also be interpreted in such a way that you are a contact person who easily makes acquaintances.

“You should also pay attention to which direction the entire figure is more shifted,” says Tatyana.

In a picture of a cheerful, healthy, successful person (such people usually live in bank advertisements), the animal should be evenly located in all three times and directed from the past to the future.

If the pattern is pressed to the left side- perhaps this is due to a negative experience gained in childhood that still comes back to haunt you (your parents’ divorce or the meatball that your singing teacher threw at your collar in the second grade). Or maybe recent events have again reminded you of an old experience and moved the beast to the left.

A strong move to the right can be interpreted as a defensive reaction. You are running from the present (or the same past) to the future. You live in hope for tomorrow. However, if tomorrow is Saturday, you can understand.

General impression

Non-existent animals, like those existing on the Animal Planet channel, are divided into those who:

threatens others(for example, something toothy); who everyone threatens(something hare-like); who hasn't decided yet(saber-toothed hippopotamus).

Whoever you choose as your totem is a reflection of how you see yourself in this world. Are you a bug or an elephant - draw your own conclusion.

If your specimen wears human clothing or is too anthropomorphic(at the same time, she doesn’t have to resemble a humanoid, just being upright is enough), then you, baby, are emotionally immature and infantile.

Our expert is almost one hundred percent sure that genitals to your beast you, being normal person, you can't draw(“This is typical only for young children who are not yet sufficiently aware of the norms”). Otherwise, you are not completely healthy, your control functions are weakened. Even the banal udder (the image of a woman’s breast) on your owl reveals your unhealthy fixation on sex.

Dimensions and proportions

Medium size drawing, looking harmonious on the page (it may be clumsy, but organically inscribed on the sheet), indicates a positive attitude towards the world and oneself.

Too big animal- narcissism. Alternatively, the hefty creature may appear as a personal defense mechanism. “Very large animals are most often drawn by preschoolers. Children invest their high self-esteem in drawings of huge animals,” explains Tatyana. Your gigantomania may also be caused by a reaction to recent stress.

Little critter at the bottom of the page- a sign of mental problems. This is unlikely to apply to you, but keep in mind: nanoanimals are usually drawn by schizophrenics and other people with an interesting brain structure. So that tiny winged booger* that Carlson once drew, alas, makes one look at his actions in a new light.

* Note Phacochoerus "a Funtik: « A Very Lonely Rooster,” watercolor, 1955. Exhibited at the Stockholm Museum of Modern Art »

“In addition, mentally ill people tend to be sketchy and sophisticated in their interpretation of drawings,” added our consultant. To our question about how a drawing can be schematic and sophisticated at the same time, Tatyana gave an example: “A man draws a stick with legs and says that this is Emperor Paul.” Hm, but the stick with legs really looks like Pavel!

Quills, horns, shell - in general, everything that serves as protection for the animal can be replaced in the drawing simply by a careful outline drawn several times.

Therefore, immediately note for yourself: even if your creation at first glance is defenseless in front of the world, this is not at all true if some lines and protrusions are thicker than others.

The most important thing is which side of your animal the armor is on.

If the shell covers the animal from above, you protect yourself with it from those in relation to whom you are in a subordinate position. This could be management, government agencies, or just parents.

If the animal's bottom is closed, you are afraid of those whom you consider your equal, or those who are even weaker than you. That is, you fear for your authority.

Armor on the sides shows your readiness for self-defense in any life situation. “At the same time,” Tatyana emphasizes, “drawing the lines on the right indicates that you value your taste, preferences and beliefs very much and are ready to fight for them.” (By the way, although we disagree with your beliefs, we are ready to sign somewhere in a collective letter for your right to express them.)

If any of the details stand out due to careful drawing or stronger pencil pressure (lines are noticeable on the back of the sheet), this signals your alarm.
Unfortunately, you can only give an explanation for why you drew something more thoroughly than anything else.
There can be any number of interpretations.
For example, in an animal, anxiety is localized in the legs. If you rely on the interpretation of the images of the collective unconscious, it turns out that you are not confident in yourself. But maybe you just walked a lot today. So we leave you alone to struggle with the interpretation of the riddle of why you tore through the paper while drawing a hump for a marsupial partridge.

Feet are another mirror of the soul. Drawn legs show self-confidence and thoughtful decisions. If the animal has no legs at all or they are very frail, this emphasizes the impulsiveness of the character of the artist and his frivolity. (NB! The powerful pedestal painted under the seemingly weak legs plays the role of the missing strong legs. After all, it is this pedestal that serves as a support for the figure.)

It is also important how the legs are connected to the body. As is this connection, so is your control over words and decisions. The legs are poorly or not at all attached to the body - you are not very careful about the accuracy of your words, you do not attach much importance to your own speeches. The legs are well attached to the body - your judgments are balanced and, at least for you, convincing.

Now study the shape of your legs. If both legs are the same (exactly repeated lines, size, bend), you are a conformist, and your creative solutions do not sparkle with novelty and invention. But if the lower limbs of your animal are different (one leg is raised for a kick, and your other animal is scratching the third), you are our person. You are independent in your judgments and generally have a creative nature. Hand, comrade!

By the way, if we are talking about creativity: people with clichéd thinking use ready-made templates (fish, pig, bird). A cow with wings is not original, it is just a formal connection of two blanks - a cow and a bird. And in general, this is not a non-existent animal, but an ordinary Skliss!
The more elements and the more unexpected their combinations, the higher your creative potential and vital energy in general.

If you drew a headless pendelpop, skip this step. But if your creation has any kind of face, you will have to analyze it.

Big head shows that the artist attaches special importance to erudition and, in general, to the rational principle both in himself and in those around him.

Prominent ears- a sign that it is important for you to know how others treat you. Plus, this is an indicator of your interest in the world, in the information that you draw from it.

Mouth. Open, and with a tongue, it screams about your talkativeness. The drawn lips convey sensuality (sorry if this sounds like a quote from an astrology manual). A toothy mouth is drawn by people prone to verbal aggression. Moreover, this aggression is often defensive in nature (you snap, scold everyone and everything). If the mouth in the picture is open, but neither the tongue, nor the teeth, nor the tari bird is visible there, there is an opinion that you are suspicious and always afraid of something.

Although the nose is a phallic symbol, in the drawings of men it does not carry any special meaning. additional information. But if you analyze a drawing of a girl in which the animal has a particularly long or overly drawn snout, feel free to assume that she is not sexually satisfied.

Eyes. An emphasis on the pupil (for example, strong shading) indicates that you are now in anxiety. You're clearly afraid of something. Did you draw eyelashes? Oh no no no! You attach too much importance to your appearance. It is generally not appropriate for men to draw eyelashes.

In the drawings made by girls, eyelashes in many cases signify a hysterical and demonstrative manner of behavior.
“This is the manipulation of other people’s feelings for one’s own purposes,” Ms. Sviridova translates the dark term into understandable language. Don't be so quick to gloat. Hysterical-demonstrative behavior is also found in men. We hope this is not your case, but if... In short, here's a gun - you know what to do with it. (A shot muffled by the door is heard, and then the sound of a falling body.)

Well, we've reached the top. Hair (mane, dreadlocks, bald patches) most often simply corresponds to the gender of the person drawing. Although in some cases, a distinctive hairstyle may indicate sexual orientation. Horns and other piercing growths indicate aggression. But whether it serves as protection from others or for attacking them, you yourself can say more precisely. A harmless feather or crest is interpreted as a desire to stand out.

Any non-functional, but purely decorative details that go beyond the boundaries of the drawn figure - such as lush feathers, tassels on tails and curls - indicate some unnatural behavior and a desire to attract attention.

We wouldn't be surprised if your car, tattooed on the back, has an airbrushed drawing of a tiger that was swallowed by a dragon.

The presence of seemingly extra, but still practical limbs(tentacles, spare legs, wings, proboscis) - an indicator that you want to cover (and maybe cover) many areas of activity at once. All these shoots are your many hobbies or simply your multi-tasking at work. Or it means the same thing, but with a minus sign: you often meddle in your own affairs, disturbing others with your know-it-all attitude.

The tail is what trails behind you. Your deeds, your intentions, your words. Here again the timeline will come in handy (if you go to the left, you will go back in time, etc.). Follow where the tail points. To the right - you have some important plans for the future, to the left - you are still remembering and analyzing past actions. To figure out whether your future or past deeds cause positive or negative feelings, pay attention to whether your tail is pointing up or down. The tail sticks out - you are either proud of something you have done, or you are looking forward to future victories. A fallen tail means fear of the future and regret about the past.

Among other things, the tail, who would doubt it, is a phallic symbol.
Therefore, the direction (up and down) may simply be a momentary indicator of your potency. Nothing, nothing, this happens to every man.

In rare cases, an inquisitive eye will discover inanimate parts in the body of an animal(wheels, batteries, propellers, USB inputs). Such additions appear either from a great mind (the draftsman uses all his imagination, trying to invent a non-existent animal), or, conversely, from a damaged mind - in patients with schizophrenia.

Those details that your animal does not have are also important.
No legs - you are not confident in yourself (see the meaning of the lower extremities). There are no hands or tentacles - you do not influence the world, but prefer to passively wait for something to happen.

Name

If you carefully read the task and gave your non-existent animal an unprecedented name, and did not just call it, as usual, Vitaly Sergeevich, you will probably find among these options a name somewhat similar to yours.

A rational combination of two or more semantic parts: elephant, creeping horse, dog eater. Shows practicality, rational thinking, strict adherence to the assigned task, and the desire to comply with norms.

Pseudo-scientific name: Latinomenius, Eastern European burdock goat eater. It shows that you are proud of your erudition and erudition. And in general, you don’t consider yourself a fool.

A meaningless set of sounds: vomit, hivoramira, vomit. Characteristic of a frivolous person who does not think about the consequences of his actions. In addition, such a kulyuvlya may emphasize that for the person who came up with this name, the aesthetic element is more important than the rational one.

Funny name: chuchuchka, popencia. An indicator of your ironic and condescending attitude towards the pitiful people around you.

Repetitive sounds: flu-flu, viz-viz, zhum-zhum. Infantility. Sorry, but we didn't come up with this.

Title too long: zelofukiropoestoral, colibarnofurucase. Typical for someone who likes to fantasize and have their head in the clouds.

Finishing touch

Now that you have found out all the ins and outs about yourself and are sitting over a drawing dripping with tears, try to take it out on your friends. Of course, practice is necessary to improve your skill.

“The more of your own drawings you analyze, the easier it will be to analyze the drawings of others,”- our expert promised, and then she spoke in the sense that you should beware of an unambiguous approach to the interpretation of fictional animals. All of the above is just the basics and cannot explain all the cheek pouches and tentacles. Trust your intuition. If you think the Hitler mustache on your girlfriend's drawing of the mountain penguin signifies her secret desire for a threesome, then it probably is.

When seeing a person for the first time, people involuntarily pay attention to his appearance.

“Clothes make up ninety percent of what people see when they look at you,” says Debra Guy Cox, image consultant. Clothes affect others because, regardless of a person’s consciousness, they are instantly recorded by his senses. Therefore, it is not in vain that they say that a person is first judged by his appearance, then by his conversation, and then by the interior of his office.

Appearance, as a rule, reflects the inner, moral content of a person. “People make judgments about us—that is, who we are, where we live, and where we’ve been—based on just one look at what we wear,” Cox says.

A person's culture is emphasized by his clothing. It is, in a way, a person’s calling card. Clothes convey information to communication partners about a person, his tastes, and his membership in a particular social or professional class.

Tastefully selected clothes, accessories, and a neat appearance make him confident, collected, and energetic. It was not for nothing that Rockefeller started his business by buying himself an expensive suit with his last money and becoming a member of the golf club.

“The ability to dress is more important than the ability to enter a room or the ability to bow. “Nothing catches the eye more than a person’s clothes,” they taught in the old days.

Looking at an entrepreneur for the first time, one immediately gets an impression of him and his well-being.

The color of clothing is of great importance. The influence of color is a powerful psychological irritant: it can calm down, put partners in a “businesslike mood”, and in a certain situation can cause hostility or, on the contrary, positive emotions. Color signals are perceived by partners on a subconscious level. This explains the “secret” power of their influence.

According to M. Luscher, the creator of the color test, widely known in modern psychodiagnostics, each color has its own psychological meaning. This is confirmed by domestic psychologists.

Clothing must correspond to the place, time, and nature of the event. You need to know how to wear it correctly. The lighter the suit, the better quality it should be.

Clothes for men

Clothes shape the appearance of a business person. It attracts the attention of people concerned with interpersonal relationships. In the words of Alison Lurie, author of The Language of Clothes: “...sociologists tell us that fashion...is a language of signs, a nonverbal system of communication.”

The main thing in men's clothing is a suit. The most common styles of men's suits are:

English;

European;

modified European;

American "bag"

Common colors of suits: blue - from dark blue to medium blue; gray - from medium saturation to the color of dark gravel; Brown colors are allowed - from medium saturation - to beige, with small checkered patterns. Light colors demonstrate a minimum of authority. For special occasions, black is preferred.

Patch pockets on the jacket enhance the hips.

Jackets that button below the waist lengthen the torso and, accordingly, visually shorten the legs.

Men with short legs do not wear long jackets.

In a formal setting, a man's jacket should be buttoned. In a buttoned jacket, they enter the office for a meeting, sit on the podium or give a report, and also enter a reception or theater auditorium. But at the same time, the bottom button is never fastened, of course, if there is more than one. This emphasizes the waist.

You can unbutton your jacket while sitting in a chair or at a table, during breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

In winter, modern business men prefer sweaters instead of shirts. In this case, while working, the jacket may not always be buttoned, and it is not forbidden to keep your hands in your pockets. At the same time, the man feels more relaxed and at the same time businesslike.

A business man for various events must have at least three suits and 12 cotton shirts of various colors, mostly pastel. They should match the suits in tone. You definitely need to have white shirts, but an icy white color. Thin stripes or checkered patterns are allowed. The sleeve is long.

The shirt collar is classic. However, the choice of collar is important for

men with non-standard necks and face shapes. For slender men with long, thin necks, tapered collars (with close corners) or long, sharp collars emphasize features that need to be subdued. Wide collars suit them better. They seem to widen the neck. Men with a full face and a short neck look more impressive in shirts with narrow collars. Loop collars with a high neckline are good for men with medium necks.

On a shirt, as well as on a jacket, elements of a sports or military style are also not allowed - shoulder straps, patch pockets with folds or yokes. Let's say one patch pocket. Usually the pocket has a logo (word trademark) of the manufacturer.

John T. Molloy, in Dressing for Success, writes: “If you intend to take everything I write in this book seriously... you will never, in your entire life, wear a short sleeve shirt to a business meeting, regardless depending on whether you have recently worked as a simple courier or whether you are the president of a company. A short sleeve is a symbol of the lower social stratum of the middle class and therefore cannot purely psychologically evoke feelings of respect and power.”

Elegant shirts should have no pockets, but if they do, it is not customary to put anything in them.

When a tie is tied, the corners of the collar should not lag behind, as in cheap shirts.

Shirts have simple cuffs, fastened with a button, and double (French) cuffs, fastened with cufflinks. Double - add gloss to the image. Due to the width and details of these cuffs, the arms do not seem long.

Cufflinks should be gold, silver, mother-of-pearl, perhaps with natural stones of delicate color such as “Onyx”. Artificial materials are not acceptable.

Part of men's daytime clothing is a tie. It reflects individuality.

A tie is the only thing in a man's wardrobe that serves solely for decoration.

The width and length of the tie, the shape and size of its knot are subject to fashion. The color and pattern depend on the suit, place and time of day. In winter, ties are tied in deep and dark colors, in summer - light and bright. Each season dictates its own style of color.

Ties convey important information about men to other people.

Color and pattern speak about the mood in which its owner is. Ties look sophisticated when they are not conspicuous.

Molloy calls the tie "the heraldic shield of 20th-century America."

The ideal one is a grosgrain tie with diagonal stripes. This is followed by a tie with dots (small: the smaller, the more sophistication and sophistication), then a foulard tie (with small geometric shapes); “club” - with a repeating pattern of animals, emblems and badges. Ties with patterns of animals and people are appropriate on vacation.

Not only a tie, but also shoes indicate a man’s social status and luck. The suit is elegantly complemented by light lace-up low shoes made of genuine leather (top, bottom, insoles). Boots are worn with outerwear.

Moccasins are possible as long as they are made from premium quality leather and are simple in style. Do not wear high-heeled or patent leather shoes.

A business man does not wear velor leather shoes. They are not acceptable in business. Patent leather shoes only match tailcoats and tuxedos.

Shoes should always be immaculately clean, both inside and out. The leg produces 200 ml of sweat per day.

A business man wears thin woolen socks. By absorbing sweat, these socks remain dry to the touch.

Socks should be long. In this case, crossing your legs, your naked body (erogenous zones) is not visible from under your trousers.

Socks with patterns are not recommended.

The color of the socks creates a transition from the color of the suit to the color of the shoes and matches them. Dark plain socks are preferred. White socks are not acceptable. They are worn mainly by athletes. We read about this in one of the commandments on how a novice businessman should dress at a business school in Frankfurt am Main: “A gentleman does not wear white socks! A businessman, if he is a gentleman, too.”

Men wear a felt hat with a solid coat. The cap matches the suit.

A hat made of leather or fabric is worn with a raincoat or a sports jacket. Knitted hats are intended for sportswear.

A beret as a headdress in business attire is unacceptable.

Men's gloves should be black or dark and must match the coat or raincoat.

Outerwear should match the color and texture of the fabric of the suit, so that at the moment when a business person takes off his coat or coat, there is no disharmony in clothing. The preferred color for outerwear is gray, black, blue.

Men's umbrella – black.

Clothes for women

A woman’s desire to be noticeable is her deepest need. The color of a suit can increase or decrease a woman’s aura of power and charm.

The requirements for the clothing of a business woman are, in principle, not much different from the requirements for the clothing of a business man. However, business etiquette allows a woman to deviate from strict male standards.

A women's business suit can be in traditional colors (red, yellow, brown, green, blue, white, black). almost any color, except bright shades and sharp contrasting combinations.

The best colors for a business dress are dark blue, tan, beige, dark brown, gray, medium blue, light blue, etc.

The black business suit has recently been replaced. It is suitable for conferences, board meetings and other events that are more formal in nature than ordinary work activities.

A woman’s clothing should correspond to the place, time, and nature of the event. You need to know how to wear it correctly. For example, it is not customary to receive guests or visit people in evening dresses during the daytime. For this occasion, an elegant dress or dress-suit is suitable, but not a jacket and skirt.

Good taste requires the ability to combine existing clothes. The set can be supplemented with a new skirt, jumper, scarf, shawl.

The skirt is worn with a leather belt, matching the color of the suit. If a woman has a high waist, then the color of the belt is matched to the color of the blouse, if it is low – to match the color of the skirt.

A businesswoman should not wear a cheap or ill-fitting jacket. Sloping, shapeless shoulders at work look sluggish and helpless. Therefore, small hangers are used. But at the same time remember that the shoulders narrow the sides.

A buttoned jacket should be comfortable and fit properly. Its optimal length is not below the hips. For women with a high waist, long jackets are recommended, and for women with a low waist, short ones. Don't forget about fashion trends.

Blouses should be simple, elegant and look expensive. A complex blouse design does not harmonize with a business jacket. Ruffles and lace add femininity. Transparent or tight-fitting blouses are only suitable under a jacket.

Summer clothing should be made from natural materials or with a small amount of synthetic or acetate fibers.

Ladies with bare shoulders and a large neckline at work look unprofessional and defenseless. They say about the neckline of a dress: “The more you reveal, the less authority you will gain.”

Tight clothes and tight skirts are undesirable in a work environment.

Knitted jumpers, vests, etc. are excluded from business clothing.

A plump person looks even plumper in a suit or dress made of cross-striped fabric, with a large pattern, very light. A-shape skirts will flatter any figure. Tall women do not look businesslike in wide, fluffy skirts. It is better to wear a long skirt cut along an oblique line.

For women, shoes are the most important part of the toilet. The most elegant are pumps with closed toes and heels. In business, white shoes are unacceptable. They look cheap and are not a symbol of success. Ivory, beige, beige-gray, etc. shoes are desirable. Dark shoes go with dark dresses.

Shoes with colored details, metallic colors, or decorations are unacceptable in business. Shoes with flared heels, as well as closed shoes, are worn only with trousers.

Patent leather shoes are preferable in the evening.

In summer, sandals with an open heel but a closed toe are acceptable.

As a rule, stockings and tights are combined with the color of shoes. They should not have a pattern.

Shoes and dark-colored stockings visually make the feet smaller.

A woman's headdress is a means of self-expression. The style of the hat must match the outfit and the place where this outfit will be shown. According to M. Dietrich: “Hats can bring a lot of joy and put a woman in a good mood. Anyone who chuckles ironically has no idea of ​​the importance of this little thing.” WITH

No hat is worn in evening dress.

It is not customary for a hostess to wear a hat to either daytime or evening receptions.

For outerwear, coats, raincoats, and fur coats are preferred. The scarf must only be factory-made, not hand-knitted. Jackets as a type of sportswear are excluded.

Accessories

A business person always has the highest quality accessories that he can afford.

A woman’s handbag or case should be made of the best grades of genuine leather, just like a man’s briefcase, folder, purse (wallet).

A portfolio is necessary for every successful person.

Folders are used only for internal use (meetings, sessions, etc.).

In business, a woman must wear a watch, otherwise she makes it clear to others that she does not value time. She prefers watches with a clear dial and a classic design. They are selected according to the fullness of the wrist. Small watches are small, large ones are heavy and inconvenient. Electronic watches, as well as those with a pointer, are inelegant.

A watch is the most important, expensive and prestigious accessory of a business man. In classic business style, preference is given to elegant mechanical watches with hands. Quartz ones are more practical and easier to use, but mechanical ones are more prestigious.

The image of a man is distorted by watches made of plastic, rubber, with various decorations, emitting ringing, squeaking, and an unclear dial. Watches with glass on the same level as the case are convenient. The convex glass is subject to the greatest friction, darkening the dial. A strap made of calfskin or imitation crocodile leather is recommended, as well as a metal bracelet. A pocket watch is worn with a tailcoat.

In the business world, it is customary to wear jewelry made of gold, silver, pearls, or combinations thereof. Jewelry with precious stones is worn only in the evening.

The rings should be in harmony with the owner’s toilet and appearance. They are usually worn on the ring finger. It is undesirable to wear small rings, as they cut into the finger, leaving a deep mark that remains for a long time, even if such rings are no longer worn.

A ring worn on the little finger shortens and widens the hand. Small, elegant rings significantly emphasize the width of the hand.

A ring on the index finger is a sign of bad taste.

The grace of the hand is emphasized by a small stone in a thin frame, while a large one always emphasizes only its own beauty.

Any rings look good on a narrow hand with long fingers. On such a hand, a ring with a stone in a convex setting looks beautiful even on the middle finger.

Rings with stones of rich colors are suitable for all hands, and dim, transparent ones are suitable for dark-skinned hands.

Jewelry on men has a deterrent effect on clients. You are allowed to wear two rings: a wedding ring and a signet ring. Preference is given to jewelry made from the most “masculine” precious metal – platinum. It is advisable that the cufflinks be combined with a tie clip.

The frame of glasses should not exactly copy the shape of the face, but only maintain its line. The top of the frame should be in line with the eyebrows, and the eyes should be located in the middle of the glasses.

The frame should not be wider than the face and below the middle of the cheeks, that is, below the level of the nostrils, so as not to distort the shape of the face.

It’s good when the frames of your glasses are in harmony with the color of your hair, eyebrows, and clothes. Choose a dark frame for dark hair and dark eyebrows. But remember that heavy dark frames make the nose appear larger.

Metal or softly tinted plastic frames suit light hair.

Business men and women pay no less attention to the pen than to other accessories. Along with Swiss watches and elegant glasses, a good pen belongs to the category of things that can reveal the true social status of its owner. Among the prestigious companies that produce expensive fountain pens, the most popular in Russia are Parker, Sheatter, Mont Blanc and Cross.

Surely the first manifestations of human creativity were drawings, not writing. Today, while talking on the phone, being at a meeting, discussing a new hobby with a friend, we often draw. These designs can be abstract, consisting of individual lines and geometric shapes. What are we drawing and what does such modern “rock painting” mean?

While studying a fairly extensive scientific and popular literature, I noticed that often, when analyzing drawings, some scientists do not consider some of the factors that are interesting from a diagnostic point of view.Firstly , for example, not everyone studies the question of whetherwhen and under what conditions was the drawing made? , what happened at the same time. It’s one thing when the image was “born” in a relaxed atmosphere, and quite another if at the same time you had to listen, for example, to instructions from your boss. This situational mood will certainly be reflected in the theme of the drawing, the force of pressure on the surface of the sheet, the sharpness of some lines, and much more.Secondly , we must take into accountwas the topic predetermined? drawing: whether something specific was depicted or simply what the subconscious dictated.

While studying psychology, I obliged myself not to use vulgar popular publications for my work. The latter may entertain the reader, but at the same time they give a clearly erroneous interpretation of the psychological characteristics of the individual. This disappoints some and pleases the morbid ambition of others. Therefore, in this article I tried to present something that is both scientifically proven and may be of interest to those interested in studying other people.

Features of “unconscious drawings”

Unconscious drawing should be consideredas a psychophysiological act , defined by a conditioned reflex system of movements, and not as an image of a specific semantic object.

Forming the skill of fairly fast, clear and at the same time harmonious drawing movements (as well as writing) is associated with the formation of a certain image in the brain. Until this motor image of movement and the drawing itself are thought out and composed, carrying out the movement will be impossible. On this occasion, the famous psychophysiologist Nikolai Bernstein noted that when training any movement, it is not the hands that are trained first, but the brain. Those who are interested in psychophysiology know thatthe formation of an imaginary image of movement entails changes in the somatic, autonomic and psychological systems of the body .

Each movement is closely related to the corresponding processes in the psyche through the levels of construction of movements of the central nervous system(so named by N. Bernstein -approx. author). These levels provide individual movements during the drawing process. The individuality of such movements determines the specificity of the image of the drawing, which, in turn, depends on the same individuality of individual character traits.

Without delving into the scientific details of the theory of the levels of structure of the nervous system, we note the following. The areas of the brain and other organs of the body assigned to these levels provide the general tonic background of the writing limb. They support what is needed working position body, fine motor skills of the forearm muscles contribute to the gradual transition of tension from some muscles involved in drawing to others. In addition to these, at first glance, purely mechanical moments that help to draw, there is an analysis and semantic assessment of what will be drawn, because the image is not only a graphic configuration, but has a certain symbolic or concrete meaning. Since this is due to the psychophysiological characteristics of the body, the drawings, being a projection of our internal experiences, show purely personal interests, problems and much more. Thus, our drawings must be considered taking into account individual psychophysiological characteristics. According to scientists Lyudmila Lebedeva, Yulia Nikonorova and Natalya Tarakanova, the psychological principle of projection is found at the basis of all types of artistic creativity. A person who creates displays or projects in this way his unconscious or hidden complexes, experiences and motives. The main mechanism of visual activity is projection. That is, what we draw consciously or automatically, while doing other work along the way, is a reflection of our individual psychological properties and worldview.

Principles for interpreting drawings

When interpreting drawings, the author’s previous emotional experience, his individuality, and possible neurotic reactions are assessed. For example, if in a simple conversation many people behave quite constrained, then in a drawing they can manifest themselves much more widely. Let us dwell on the consideration of drawings or scribbles made involuntarily during conversations with other people on the phone, at meetings in the process of thinking, etc. Such drawings, first of all, reflect the background emotional state of their author while drawing, and, consequently, the attitude to what was happening to him at that very moment or shortly before that.

Stages of interpretation

Images must be interpreted according to a certain scheme: from assessing the general appearance of the drawing to studying the details and features of the lines. Let's look at this scheme in more detail.

Evaluation of the drawing as a whole. First, the entire drawing is assessed for its integrity, harmony, aesthetic completeness, unusualness or ordinaryness. Such componentsdetermine the degree of a person’s giftedness, the development of mental abilities, the presence of taste, the level of internal culture .

Aesthetic completeness is evidence of the level volitional development, the supply of neuropsychic energy, a person’s ability to work and the state of his nervous system as a whole. Strict adherence to the accepted canons of drawing does not demonstrate personal characteristics or indicates “average” abilities for everything. And in some cases, this indicates excessive pedantry, reluctance, and sometimes fear of change, and the manifestation of initiative.

The non-standard nature of the drawing shows the level of identity of the individual. The more noticeable the unusualness of the drawing, the more original the personality in different spheres of life. But everything is fine to a certain extent. Too unusual drawings, “encrypted” abstractions may indicate accentuation (overly pronounced mental qualities of one direction), a mental state close to pathology. Suffice it to recall the bright, incomprehensible paintings of Van Gogh, who suffered from psychopathology, Salvador Dali and some other famous artists whom society admires to this day.

Location of the drawing. The option of placing an image on a sheet of paper is psychologically associated with self-esteem and self-realization, the subjective perception of integration into the world around us.

When placing a picturein the central part of the sheet one can judge the desire and a certain ability to find a balance between one’s egoistic needs and the desires of others, the ability to find compromises, and defend one’s interests. In addition, this arrangement of the picture is evidence of a subjective feeling of security. If the drawing located in the center occupies almost the entire sheet of paper, then this indicates pronounced egocentrism, possibly aggressiveness and inflated self-esteem. The same can be said about a person posting his drawing.at the top of the sheet . This placement of the image indicates a desire to dominate and meet a high social standard. According to the above-mentioned scientists, drawings arranged in this way, related in theme to the depiction of people, often indicate a tendency to escape reality and the presence of defense mechanisms such as fantasy.

From the left sidePictures are posted by those who connect everything good in life with the past. For such people, the emotional sphere dominates. Most of them are dreamy introverts prone to inactivity.

Drawings on the right side of the sheet for the most part belong to those who have a predominant expression of the intellectual sphere, aspirations are directed towards the future. Such people are active and active. If the drawing is located in the upper right corner of the sheet, we can talk about the author’s tendency towards insubordination, unpredictability, and excessive conflict. Some scientists (Lyudmila Lebedeva, Yulia Nikonorova, Natalya Tarakanova) say that such people in extreme situations can direct aggression towards themselves. In my opinion, they may have injuries while operating in extreme conditions, for example, when skydiving, performing work related to urban mountaineering.

Posted at the bottom of the sheet the image shows a person with low self-esteem, who is constantly dissatisfied with himself and his life, feels dependent, oppressed and depressed. Such individuals often have depressive moods, feelings of insecurity, and sometimes increased levels of anxiety.

Emotional background of the drawing. Regardless of your own experiences, you should give it an objective assessment. For example, a smiling kind animal or a calm sea will indicate a similar state of the artist, and the wind tilting the trees to the ground, the toothy mouth of a shark, the crying sun will in no way be a sign of a peaceful attitude towards the process or event during which the drawing was created.

Drawings that express our emotions are a reflection of our internal state or situational attitude towards the time during which they were created. We can talk about a cheerful little devil as a projection of a good emotional background, a perky mood, a desire to “do something special.” A crying sun will be a sign of internal hidden or obvious frustration or resentment. In principle, it is not difficult to assess the emotional coloring of a drawing.

Analysis of individual parts of the image. If the drawing consists of multiple details, then this indicates the author’s energy, activity, and initiative. Hands or paws characterize the communicative sphere of the individual. They are typically portrayed as extroverts. The absence of arms or paws expresses problems in the sphere of communication, or simply the author’s inability to draw these parts of the body. For example, tentacles indicate courage and, possibly, enterprise, ears indicate the desire to receive and possess information. Horns express aggressive defensive aspirations. Paws, if they are stable and clear, show an attentive attitude to the basics of activity and the validity of decision-making. Weak, unconnected with the body, on the contrary, thoughtlessness of decisions, inability to be consistent. Eyes are the mirror of the soul. In a drawing of an adult, empty eye sockets drawn in the form of identical circles may indicate internal emotional emptiness, dullness, sometimes degradation, asociality and fear. Beautiful and well-drawn - a symbol of the desire to please others, to be attractive. “Dots” or “dashes” instead of eyes indicate an internal prohibition on showing emotions, possibly paranoid traits. Blackening the eyes and depicting them in dark glasses are associated with the fears of the author of the drawing, Lyudmila Lebedeva, Yulia Nikonorova, Natalya Tarakanova talk about this in the book “Encyclopedia of signs and interpretations in projective drawing and art therapy.”

Analysis of drawing lines. Next, the lines of the drawn image are evaluated: broken, sharp-angled or smooth, rounded, individual clear and neat, or multiple, randomly intersecting each other. As a rule, the features of drawing lines reflect such properties of the nervous system as its strength or weakness, inertia, dynamism. Some psychologists, analyzing the lines, associate them with the properties of a person’s temperament and say that the sharpness of the lines is evidence of a choleric temperament, and excessive smoothness - a phlegmatic one. In my opinion, such an assessment “works” when interpreting the characteristics of handwriting, but not always when studying a drawing.

In general, when depicting something, we, without realizing it, are drawing either ourselves or our inner state, or rather both. As a result, the outer lines (contours) of the central or only figure in the drawing are initially a symbolic boundary between us and the world around us, and the nature of these lines often reflects our attitude to this world, its subjective perception. For example,confident, bright and light lines indicate self-confidence to the point of self-confidence.

Uneven, unclear lines indicate fearfulness and timidity, especially clearlyunderlined and highlighted - a sign of increased self-control, the desire to hide one’s problems and experiences from others.Darkening, "smudging" - expresses increased levels of fear and anxiety.Clear, framing the image of lines drawn as if in one movement is an indicator of self-isolation from society, or the subjective perception of one’s state as isolated.Unfinishedlines, as if the author did not have enough strength to complete them - a frequent sign of an asthenic* state. Unconscious tendencies towards extreme economy of strength, the desire to conserve the remainder of psychic energy.

Pressure force.I always additionally consider such a feature of the drawing as pressure. With the help of pressure, you can evaluate the nature of the author’s external emotional and volitional manifestations. Both in handwriting and in drawingstrong pressureis characteristic of people who are emotionally active, mobile, distinguished by bright gestures and articulation. Those who draw withlight pressure, are in an emotionally depressed mood, do not like to speak in front of an audience, and are “pale” in emotional manifestations. Such weak pressure characterizes an anxious person. If these lines can be called “web-like,” then there is an asthenic, weakened state both physically and mentally, depression. A tree trunk drawn with the help of such lines indicates a person’s fear of self-affirmation and avoidance of independent actions. Foliage depicted in this way speaks of developed sensitivity, impressionability, and susceptibility to outside influence.

Impulsive, fickle In terms of force, the pressure of the drawing is the most undesirable. After all, constant, sustained pressure is evidence of a balanced character, the ability to think through your decisions. And fickle indicates nervousness, impulsiveness, excessive emotionality when making vital decisions, impetuosity, and often an inability to work systematically. If the pressure in the lines of the drawing is weak and at the same time uneven, then this may indicate uncertainty, sometimes neurasthenicness and, possibly, mental masochism. The last statement is usually confirmed if the picture as a whole is emotionally “sad” and expresses negative moods or tendencies.

Strong, but not very differentiated pressure is observed in individuals who are characterized by fixation on a problem, some experience, and a difficult transition from one type of activity to another. But such people successfully get to the bottom of certain ideas and almost never give up what they have started.

Very strong pressure on the drawing indicates that a person has a sharp rise in anxiety, probably attempts to aggressively suppress the source of fear, and great emotional tension. Broken and shaky lines drawn slowly indicate indecisiveness, self-doubt, increased levels of anxiety or even pronounced worry. Howeverthin and graceful lines drawn quickly and energetically are proof of the author’s confidence in what he is doing, the absence of embarrassment, and the desire to achieve the goal.

Thick lines framing the central figure of the picture indicate a tendency to impulsive behavior, sometimes thoughtlessness of actions and deeds, and some aggressiveness, including verbal. In part, this may be a desire to maintain independence from the environment, as if to preserve one’s integrity and originality. But sometimes, the desire to draw with very thick, bold lines has not entirely socially acceptable forms.

Thick lines, without strong pressure, can be found in those who like to eat delicious food and get some physical pleasures from life.

In many drawings, their authors not only depict the contours of a figure or a drawing as a whole, but also hatch, highlight some parts by blackening, in this way indicating shadows, etc. Dark tones that predominate in shading, tracing the internal space with broken lines of different lengths and directions indicate the presence of internal conflict and an increased level of anxiety. If such shading is done with strong pressure, then the author may be in a state of forced aggression towards someone.

Color drawings. A separate topic is the color of the drawing, lines or sketches, if any. As a rule, drawings that “came to light” during a telephone conversation or meeting are made in one color, whatever is at hand. Therefore, the appearance of color is in itself evidence that a person wanted to especially emphasize something. Preference for the color black indicates compensatory behavior, a desire to reject (for example, what is being discussed at the time of drawing), to show aggression, and active opposition.

White color is a symbol of purity and openness. If you mix all the colors of the rainbow, you get white. It is important to know that the attitude towards these, and some other colors, is different, for example, among Europeans and the peoples of the East. In China, white is the color of mourning, and black, on the contrary, is the color of joy and celebration. Therefore, studying the drawings of representatives of other nations requires knowledge about their archetypal and national attitude to color.

Red is the color of aggressiveness, offensive activity and sexuality, sensual passion, but also anger and violence. Sometimes the choice of this color indicates the presence of a “burning” problem, emotional tension, reaction to danger,

According to I. Goethe, the orange color of the picture creates the impression of warmth and satisfaction, as it is a shade of fire, characteristic of the setting sun.

Blue color is a projection of depth, the desire to withdraw into oneself, peace and quiet, reliability, harmony and hope. It is also the color of introspection and self-deepening.

All the same authors express the idea of ​​the association of yellow with warmth and light, the sun, which feeds life with energy. This is the color of clarity, joy and fun, openness, determination and the desire for active creation, as well as pleasure from the results of this activity. Commenting on the drawings with a predominance of yellow color, we can say that their author is an inquisitive, active person, sometimes fickle in his secondary attachments, striving for new interesting activities and hobbies. Such people easily establish contacts with others and often try to take relationships into a relaxed direction. It can also be assumed that the author has a visual-figurative, artistic type of thinking. It is quite possible that those selected by the author sent to the competitionFigures 6–9the background and color of the paper indirectly indicate the presence of the mentioned qualities and aspirations.

The same I. Goethe associated his idea of ​​harmony with the color green, believing that in it there is a reconciliation of opposites, male and female, black and white, soul and body.

When talking about the use of color, it is necessary to pay attention to the fact that green grass, red or yellow sun are natural uses of color. It’s another matter when a person with normal color perception (not colorblind) draws a black sea with a blue pencil, brown grass, etc.

Theme of the drawing.And the last thing that is evaluated and interpreted is the theme of the drawing, what is depicted in it. What we draw directly reflects our inner world and its state.

We have already talked about lines. However, I would like to add that drawing straight lines with sufficient pressure shows a certain degree of irritation towards the subject of the conversation or the person with whom it is being conducted. This is especially noticeable when the lines cross each other. A typical example isFigure 6. Such drawings are created by people who endure long enough and try to avoid conflicts, but experience them inside and sooner or later throw out all their emotions on the offender. Such an offender can be either a specific person or a job. On the other hand, such drawings are a reaction to aggression, a kind of protective, psycho-corrective technique that promotes relaxation.

Wavy lines are evidence of peace, calm, diplomacy, and the ability to find reasonable compromises in the current situation.

Drawing of the sun with kind expression face indicates that you are in a good mood, full of energy, communication at the moment brings pleasure or promises good prospects.

Let's pay attention tofigure 7. It shows two faces from the front. Such an image reveals a person who knows how to communicate, who easily finds common ground with other people; a similar interpretation is outlined by Alina Lanskaya in the book “The Language of Drawing. A person’s character is in full view.” But the faces are clearly distorted, which indicates an interpersonal conflict with a loved one, dissatisfaction with oneself. The specificity of the image of eyes (glasses) is a sign of the author’s awareness of his wrongness in this conflict. Either the author is tired of frequent discussions of common mistakes in relationships, stupidity that can ruin them. The drawing also expresses a certain degree of internal anxiety and tension. Other drawings by this author speak of conflict not only interpersonal, but also within oneself.

Author Figures 1–5clearly loves to depict polygons, complementing them with ornate lines that decorate the picture. Polygons are drawn by people who are quite demanding of themselves and others, who achieve success in life not only thanks to patronage, but also to their own strength. When polygons have five, six or more angles, and are connected with decorations, then we can say that they were drawn by an emotional person who sometimes makes intuitive decisions. If such people are not raised correctly in childhood, they can be conflicting, uncompromising, and picky. Analyzing the drawings of our contestant, painted in color, we can assume that she is active and cheerful, sometimes she is overwhelmed with energy, but there is not always a person nearby who can understand and accept her wishes and aspirations.

Figures 10–11They give off as a sociable, interesting person, inquisitive, who loves to travel. Such people know how to give gifts, not only material ones, but also emotional ones. In combination with the chosen color of the drawing, we can talk about a large supply of neuropsychic energy and the sexuality of the author.

Our drawings are a treasure trove of information. Having studied unconsciously made drawings, you can “read a person” like an open book, understanding his problems and joys, states and hidden desires.

Judging by the nature of the lines and arrows (which contain numbers) in the figure, their direction in different directions from the same center, we can say that the author of this figure (rice. 1) person is sufficient, proactive and decisive . But in life prefers second roles , wanting to stay “behind the scenes.” Sketches in the form of rectangles with smoothed edges are one of the evidencesresponsible attitude to business , in particular to the one shown in numbers and letters in the figure. However, for the author, this work is already boring, or is associated with communication with unpleasant people, or insufficient appreciation of her contribution. However, there may be many reasons, but the essence is the same - something in this process causes negative emotions. A small, carefully hidden and sometimes unconscious anxiety arises, which haunts from all sides, both from leaders and from the environment. In the drawing this is manifested in careful shading, darkening with straight lines and broken lines almost all corners and sides of rectangles. The author seems to be hiding in these rectangles, closing himself off from everyone. Small “spiny” hedgehogs or stars from many lines are another confirmation of this.

Despite the above, the authoran optimistic and lively person, active and attentive to work, down to the smallest detail, eager for changes that will help harmonize relationships, first of all, with himself .

The unusual configuration of the various components of the picture indicatescreativity, good level of intelligence . But the ability to create is not used for various reasons, full self-realization does not occur, which may be the cause of the already mentioned anxiety. The girl who drew this drawing is quite stubborn, always strives to finish the job she has started and achieve her goal, putting a lot of effort into achieving it. But, often, she hides her desires, grievances, and sorrows, while others take it for granted, regardless of her.

A drawing depicting a flower reaching towards the sun (rice. 2) - harmonious and holistic. It contains not only a form depicting flowers, the sun, grass, but also a unique, visually perceptible movement. Such kinesthetic features of drawings are rare. A person who is able to express them is distinguished by artistic taste, imagination, and often lives in a world of abstract ideas, as the famous German psychologist Hermann Rorschach believes. Most likely this is expresseddesire to pay more attention to the spiritual side of life, originality in relationships and at work . Based on the general assessment of the nature of the drawing, we can say thatthe creator of the drawing wants more warmth, intimacy, something that will touch the delicate strings of the soul, and not everyday routine . This warmth and attention is lacking primarily from a figure that is stronger, in the author’s subjective understanding. Perhaps this person or organization is not attentive to the artist and is to a certain extent authoritarian. If we consider the drawn sun as a source of heat, then in most cultures close to us, primarily Slavic ones, the sun personifies the male, strong, energetic half. In our case, the sun can just be a symbolic image of a person, whose warmth and understanding helps to find psychological peace and balance. For such complete balancethe author lacks emotionally warm communication, sincere understanding of emotions .

It can be said with a reasonable degree of certainty that the author is goodcopes with work that requires creativity, the ability to use associative thinking, see well and highlight the main thing . The girl probably needs it more oftenlisten to your intuition and to your dreams, peculiar clues from the unconscious. She can be receptive to inner experiences and contemplations, without which both scientific discoveries and deep feelings are impossible.

Well crafted shapes and patternsFigure 3 They say about the desire for harmony, about a calm and organized life , which does not at all indicate a desire to do nothing and sit with arms folded. But some people like constant travel, noisy entertainment and big companies, but our author would probably preferlook at the sea, the sunset and the fire in a group of close friends . She's got enoughhigh level of intelligence , but it is not fully used in everyday work. She alsocapable of long concentration of attention, has good performance, prefers quiet work , where thoughtfulness and attentiveness of activities with simple results are required. The author is a personsociable, romantic .

Figure 4, depicting a clown with wings, is interesting because its author actually painted herself and her inner state. It can be assumed, thatthe artist has a high supply of neuropsychic energy, is interested in many areas of human activity, tries to take part in as many different activities and events as possible . All this is aimed at winning a place in the sun, explainspassion for your activities .

The author expresses wellcommunication skills , communication for her means work, rest, development, and much more. Whereinshe is interested in all aspects of communication , be it a meeting with friends or a discussion of the latest interesting films and exhibitions, a one-on-one conversation. Such communication also performs a kind of protective function. The shading of the picture indicatesconstant fear . It's quite possible thisassociated with the fear of not being accepted, misunderstood or abandoned by a psychologically significant person . Therefore, in order to establish and maintain the contacts she needs,Both light coquetry and childish whims are used . Multifaceted communication gives self-confidence, and the main way she uses to maintain relationships is to be an interesting interlocutor with a lot of knowledge,the ability to present oneself , just be an interesting person.The author has a very well developed active imagination, her curiosity “fuels” the intellect, makes it possible to generate ideas, be inspired and inspire others, and be interesting to the interlocutor.

Based on the nature of the drawing and its theme, we can say that the artist still, when making vital decisions, subconsciously turns to a psychologically stronger female figure for approval. For example, to your mother, grandmother, sister, friend. On the one hand, there is nothing wrong with this, but on the other, the author finds herself in a situation of a kind of psychological prison, from which she is not allowed to leave, or she herself does not want to,afraid of responsibility for decisions made , the likelihood of a conflict occurring. Perhaps you need to win, and not beg, the respect of this person, stop being afraid of being misunderstood or not accepted, becoming yourself, stop suppressing those wonderful impulses that prevent you from living the way you want.

An artist at heart, positivelyambitious and ambitious , with desire achieve and possess . For this she is ready to work hard and well, to grow upward like her flower (rice. 5).