1998
Discovering Richer Patterns of Comprehension to Reframe Polarization
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[2-phase] [4-phase]
[8-phase] [16-phase] [32-phase]
[64-phase] [Notes] [References]
2-phase comprehension
| Possession
(of). Ownership. "Mine -- it belongs to me; it is known thru me". Others
have no ownership rights. Unification, order, integration, focus, agreement,
defined, aligned. Right. |
___ |
Linear
time. Scheduling. "My time and agenda". Certainty, impatience, consistency,
constraint, imposition. |
| Non-possession.
Possession (by). Non-ownership. "Not mine -- I am identified thru it; I
belong to it". Possessed or owned by another. Diversity, fragmentation,
disagreement, enrichment, adulteration, unbound, non-aligned. Obligation. |
_ _ |
Poly-time;
diversity of times. Shared (permeable) time and agendas. Uncertainty,
patience, inconsistency, acceptance, unconstrained, adaptive. |
4-phase comprehension
| Total
possession. "Mine in body and soul" (as with slave ownership, and certain
understandings of marital relationship). Traditional citizen -- loyal in
body and spirit. "My land" -- wholly owned. Meaning what is said. Affirmation
[K]. Homogenistic, hierarchical, classificational [H].
Thinking-Sensing [C] |
___
___
|
Scheduled
(predictable) in principle and in practice. Rail-roading. "My time and
and agenda". Anglo-Saxon rendez-vous. Living for the future. |
| Possession
"of the body", but "not of the spirit" (as with attitude of employees concerning
relationships with their employers). Tax payer, but having no other allegiance
to the country (as with some immigrants). Right of use of (rented) land
-- owned by another. Ambiguity of what is said. Neither affirmation nor
negation [K]. Heterogenistic, interactive, morphogenetic
[G]. Feeling-Sensing [C] |
_
_
___
|
Scheduled
(predictable) in practice, but not in principle. Work slavery whilst the
elites do play. Emerging organization. |
| Owned
"in spirit", though not "in body". Spiritual affiliation, but no material
rights or involvement (as with the allegiance of some disenfranchised Commonwealth
citizens). "My land" -- rented or occupied by another. Contrasting expressions
of a common meaning. Both affirmation and negation [K].
Heterogenistic, interactive, homeostatic [S]. Thinking-Intuition
[C] |
___
_ _
|
Scheduled
(principle) in principle, but not in practice. "When the cat's away, the
mice do play". Latin rendez-vous. Scheduled recreation. Flexi-time, time-sharing,
taking turns. |
| Owned,
neither "in body", nor "in spirit". Stateless, disaffected, free spirits,
citizens of convenience. Neither "mine", nor "mine to use". De-linking
of what is said from what is meant. Negation [K]. Heterogenistic,
individualistic, random [ I ]. Feeling-Intuition [C] |
_
_
_ _
|
Unscheduled
(unpredictable) in principle and in practice. Spontaneity. Hanging-out.
Shared agendas and times. Living the moment. |
8-phase comprehension
| Full
and unchallenged possession -- physical, emotional and intellectual.
Citizen (voter), loyal sympathizer,
resident (taxpayer, owner, employee). Identity (in meaning, pronunciation,
spelling) |
___
___
___
|
Scheduled
life -- physically, emotionally and intellectually (ideologically). Directed,
goal committed. Established pattern. |
Physical
possession, but no freedom of use. A
waiting room chair, a borrowed
object that can only be used in pre-determined ways. "You can hold it for
a while". Right of way, transient. Tourism -- beholding -- strip tease
show. Occupancy of institutions: refugee camp, prison, many work environments.
Occupancy of the land to which others are attached and claim. Non-citizen
(non-voter), no allegiance, resident (taxpayer, owner, employee). Heterophonic
homonym (different meanings and pronunciation, same spelling: "rows") |
_
_
_ _
___
|
Physical
routine (predictability), but exploring (open to) alternative emotional
and intellectual (ideological) foci. Ideologically and emotionally "free"
(adventuresome, "promiscuous"). |
| Neither
"mine", nor can I possess it physically -- but my emotional bond to it
overrides such concerns: an old tree in
my village square; a favourite painting (in a gallery); a daily-encountered
favoured person, a bond to historic sites or viewscapes, unrequited love;
or coveted object. Non-citizen (non-voter), loyal sympathizer, non-resident
(taxpayer, owner, employee). Homophonic homonym (different meanings and
spellings, same pronunciation: "peace" and "piece") |
_
_
___
_ _
|
Emotionally
committed (predictable), but exploring (open to) intellectual (ideological)
and physical alternatives. Ideologically and physically free ("promiscuous") |
| Property
that is "mine" by right, to which I have no emotional attachment, and which
is held or used by others. The perspective of many absentee landlords --
"do with it what you will, but pay the rent". Citizen (voter), non-sympathizer,
non-resident (taxpayer, owner, employee). Synonym (same meaning, different
spelling and pronunciation: "rows" and "tiers") |
___
_ _
_ _
|
Intellectually
(ideologically) committed (predictable), but exploring (open to) physical
and emotional alternatives. Physically and emotionally free ( "promiscuous"),
within an unchanging set of values |
| Not
"mine" in any respect. Something held and controlled in every respect by
others. Non-citizen (non-voter), non sympathizer, non-resident (taxpayer,
owner, employee). Heterolog (different meanings, pronunciations and spellings:
"rows" and "frogs") |
_
_
_ _
_ _
|
Uncommitted
(unpredictable) -- exploring (open to) physical, emotional and intellectual
(ideological) alternatives. Undirected. "Dilettante". Sustained by ("at
the mercy of") the world. |
| "My"
property, to which I am sentimentally attached -- but used by another (whether
rented or occupied). Citizen (voter), loyal sympathizer, non-resident (taxpayer,
owner, employee). Homophonic synonym (same meaning, different pronunciation
and spellings: "gray" and "grey") |
___
___
_ _
|
Intellectually
(ideologically) and emotionally committed, but exploring (open to) physical
alternatives. Physically unpredictable ( "promiscuous"). Conventional adventure
tourist. |
| "My"
property, which I currently occupy, but to which I have no sentimental
attachment (as with some disaffected hereditary landowners obliged to remain
residents). Property which I am obliged to keep. Citizen (voter), non-sympathizer,
resident (taxpayer, owner, employee). Polyphone (same meaning and spelling,
different pronunciation: "the") |
___
_ _
___
|
Intellectual
(ideological) and physical routine, but exploring (open to) emotional
alternatives. Emotionally free ("promiscuous"). |
| Possessed
physically and sentimentally, but without
full right of ownership, as in the case of a long-term lease. No intellectual
copyright to reproduce a design. Final say is elsewhere, as with a Privy
Council (in the case of some Commonwealth countries). Non-citizen (non-voter),
loyal, resident (taxpayer, owner, employee). Homographic homonym (different
meanings, same pronunciation and spellings: "rose" and "rose") |
_
_
___
___
|
Established
physical and emotional routine, but exploring (open to) intellectual (ideological)
alternatives. "Conventional", but intellectually curious. Ideologically
free ("promiscuous"); open to shifts of paradigms (belief systems). |
16-phase comprehension
| Uncontested
possession and control without any openness to alternative challenges and
perspectives. |
___
___
___
___
|
. |
| Control
of territory and dominant paradigm, but without evoking any sympathy or
intellectual support. |
___
_ _
_ _
___
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm and evoking sympathetic support, but without intellectual
support or possession of territory. |
___
_ _
___
_ _
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm, with intellectual support, but without evoking sympathy
or possessing territory. |
___
___
_ _
_ _
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm, but without intellectual support, evoking sympathy
or controlling territory. |
___
_ _
_ _
_ _
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm, with intellectual support and evocation of sympathy,
but without possession of territory |
___
___
___
_ _
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm, with intellectual support and control of territory,
but without sympathetic support. |
___
___
_ _
___
|
. |
| Control
of dominant paradigm, with sympathetic appeal and control of territory,
but without intellectual support. As with the erosion of religious institutions
due to the rise of science. |
___
_ _
___
___
|
. |
| Intellectual
and sympathetic support, together with control of territory, but without
control of dominant paradigm. |
_
_
___
___
___
|
. |
| Possession
of territory, but without sympathetic appeal, intellectual support or control
of dominant paradigm. |
_
_
_ _
_ _
___
|
. |
| Sympathetic
support, but challenged (attracted) by alternative paradigms and intellectual
frameworks, and without control of territory. |
_
_
_ _
___
_ _
|
. |
| Challenged
(attracted) by alternative paradigms, appeals for sympathetic support and
lack of territory, but having intellectual support. |
_
_
___
_ _
_ _
|
. |
| Challenged
(attracted) by alternative paradigms, intellectual frameworks and appeals
for sympathy, and lacking any control of territory. |
_
_
_ _
_ _
_ _
|
. |
| Challenged
(attracted) by alternative paradigms, without any control of territory,
but having intellectual and sympathetic support. |
_
_
___
___
_ _
|
. |
| Challenged
(attracted) by alternative paradigms and appeals for support, but having
intellectual support and control of territory. |
_
_
___
_ _
___
|
. |
| Challenged
(attracted) by alternative paradigms and intellectual frameworks, but having
control of territory with sympathetic support. |
_
_
_ _
___
___
|
. |
Notes
1. The right hand column of examples focuses on time and how
processes are experienced and navigated -- the left on space, territory
and how objects are defined, possessed and used.
2. The symbols all function as active hyperlinks through which
each phase can be explored, especially to follow what happens if a condition
changes (from broken line to unbroken line, for example -- click
on the line you want changed)
3. Despite the apparent rigidity of the framework, an exercise such
as the above is necessarily tentative in its development and interpretation.
4. Any polarity may be projected onto the above framework as a means
of opening out richer patterns of interpretation of it.
5. Whether the assumed positively weighted pole of a polarity is associated
with the unbroken line or with the broken line, is a fundamental but arbitrary
choice (cf. the work of Xavier Sallantin), although -- once made -- should
be adhered to throughout the framework. Thus in projecting "positive" onto
the framework, it may either be associated with a single, unbroken line
(alignment), or with a broken line (perhaps derived from the two lines
making up the "plus" sign). Distinguishing "positive" and "negative" electricity
is also based on such an arbitrary convention. In the illustrative comments,
terms interpreted as having positive connotations could as well be accompanied
by their antonyms -- or be interpreted in terms of their negative connotations.
6. It is also arbitrary whether the line-structure elements are understood
as being built "upwards" from the more tangible dimensions (a common preference)
or "downwards".
7. The particular way that the projection is made onto the framework
is, in principle, already encoded within the framework. Imposition is one
style. Endeavouring to "grasp" the resulting significance is another. Apparently
"negative" values may also be understood in terms of "positive" attributes,
just as "positive" values may be interpreted as having "negative" attributes.
This is especially the case across cultures and gender-associated categories.
8. One key to further understanding is to play with the variants, rather
than endeavouring to prioritize them in a particular and definitive way.
It is how they play off against each other that is the carrier of richer
understanding. In this sense the framework is rather like a musical instrument
on which a player may become skilled. The higher patterns then offer more
complex chords to the player.
9. How others respond to the framework can usefully be understood within
the framework -- since it can be used to encode agreement and disagreement
and the many ways that they can be combined.
10. The simpler systems of the framework encode more profound insights
that are more difficult to fully comprehend.
11. The patterns indicate behaviours that are often extremely obvious
and concrete, and well known to many, whether or not such behaviours also
have more profound or wider implications.
12. The examples given are necessarily indicative and far from exhaustive
or definitive. It is for users to refine and extend the interpretations
according to their understanding.
13. Comprehending the relationships between the space and time interpretations
is to some degree constrained by a form of Heisenberg's uncertainty principle:
the clearer the spatial interpretation, the more elusive the time interpretation;
the clearer the time interpretation, the more elusive the spatial interpretation.
The work of Garrison Sposito (1969) on the operation of uncertainty in
the social sciences has been reviewed elsewhere.
14. Especially interesting is the use of the framework to explore polarization
across cultural perspectives, such as between Western and Eastern perspectives,
between contemporary and traditional perspectives, or between "mainstream"
(majority) or "marginalized" (minority) perspectives. The unbroken line,
for example, can then be used to signify Western (or contemporary) mindsets
and the broken line can be used to signify Eastern (or indigenous) mindsets.
Preferences for the "unbroken" over the "broken" may then become more apparent
than in contemporary Western dialogue -- raising the challenge of what
the other conditions can mean for those who recognize, or live by, them.
There is some irony to the fact that it these alternative perspectives
have in many respects been "broken" by contemporary Western paradigms.
15. As with the 64-phase
I Ching, although each condition can be explored through line-by-line
analysis (as with the notes making up a chord), the quality of meaning
carried by the condition as a whole is especially significant. Such a synthesis
is however elusive and frequently only susceptible to representation by
metaphor.
Relationship to other initiatives
1. Stephane Lupasco (1973), Archie Bahm (1977) and Solomon Marcus (1982)
have all explored the challenges of 2-phase comprehension (see review),
as has John Robinson (1979).
2. Kinhide Mushakoji (1988), from the perspective of
some Eastern cultures, has stressed the importance of the 4-phase pattern
to interparadigmatic dialogue by focusing on the tetra-lemma: affirmation,
negation, non-affirmation and non-negation, affirmation and negation (see
review). The second
two are unacceptable to formal logic.
3. Carl Jung's work on psychological functions distinguished
four types: Thinking (T), Intuition (I), Feeling (F) and Sensing (S) which
may be organized into polarities -- notably as later developed as part
of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Adding these two
polarities, a third (Introversion (I) - Extroversion (E)) on which he commented
extensively gives 8 line-structures characteristic of the 8-phase pattern.
The third polarity may be added above the other two from the 4-phase pattern.
Jungians argue (thanks to a comment by Johne Beebe) against a conflation
of feeling with emotion, since they are differently symbolized in the unconscious:
feeling is a function of consciousness, emotion an expression of the unconscious.
As with any isolation into four, the four psychological functions are not
perceived as existing by themselves, but only as modified by their "introverted"
or "extraverted" deployment -- i.e. there is no feeling as such, only introverted
feeling and extraverted feeling. This means there are really eight
functions rather than four.
4. Magoroh Maruyama (1974-1980) distinguishes four types of epistemological
mindscape (see review: part
1 and part 2):
-
H-mindscape: homogenistic, hierarchical, classificational:
Parts are subordinated to the whole, with subcategories neatly grouped
into supercategories. The strongest, or the majority, dominate at the expense
of the weak or of any minorities. Belief in existence of the one truth
applicable to all (whether values, policies, problems, priorities, etc).
Logic is deductive and axiomatic demanding sequential reasoning. Cause-effect
relations may be deterministic or probabilistic.
-
I-mindscape: heterogenistic, individualistic,
random: Only individuals are real, even when aggregated into society. Emphasis
on self-sufficiency, independence and individual values. Design favours
the random, the capricious and the unexpected. Scheduling and planning
are to be avoided. Non-random events are improbable. Each question has
its own answer; there are no universal principles.
-
S-mindscape: heterogenistic, interactive, homeostatic:
Society consists of heterogeneous individuals who interact non-hierarchically
to mutual advantage. Mutual dependency. Differences are desirable and contribute
to the harmony of the whole. Maintenance of the natural equilibrium. Values
are interrelated and cannot be rank-ordered. Avoidance of repetition. Causal
loops. Categories not mutually exclusive. Objectivity is less useful than
"cross-subjectivity" or multiple viewpoints. Meaning is context dependent.
-
G-mindscape: heterogenistic, interactive, morphogenetic:
Heterogeneous individuals interact non-hierarchically for mutual benefit,
generating new patterns and harmony. Nature is continually changing requiring
allowance for change. Values interact to generate new values and meanings.
Values of deliberate (anticipatory) incompleteness. Causal loops. Multiple
evolving meanings.
5. Antonio de Nicolas (1978) recognizes four complementary languages (see
review: part 1 and
part 2) as underlying
the structure of the Rig Veda:
-
Language of non-existence
-
Language of existence
-
Language of images and sacrifice
-
Language of embodied vision
In Habits of Mind (1989), he has applied these insights to the educational
challenge of training inner mental skills, instead of transferring accumulations
of facts, data and information. Referring to Plato, he sees education as
uniquely concerned with the quality of the inner acts. "Distinctions and
divisions leading to those acts are to be found in the quality itself of
the acts performed, not in the external property of objects and their external
relations. For it is in these internal acts, without intimation from the
outside, that human freedom resides." (p. 46)
6. Ken Wilber, in his magnum opus on Sex, Ecology and Spirituality
(1995), articulates a four-fold schema based on two dimensions or polarities
(exterior - interior; individual-social). Combined these give four "quadrants":
exterior-individual (behavioural), interior-individual (intentional), exterior-social
(social system), and interior-social (cultural worldspace). Any attempt
to relate these quadrants to the 4-phase pattern raises a fundamental issue
about the framework suggested above. The user is actively involved in the
choice of how to attribute meaning to the line codes and their position
(as noted in the cited work of Sallantin). For example:
-
Preference may therefore be given for unbroken to signify exterior
in the lower position of the 4-phase pattern, with the broken
line signifying interior in the same position. The unbroken
line in the upper position can then be used to signify social
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