THE GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE OF SPEED:
There are three main lines of reasoning to be considered:
- The speed of writing gives an indication of the natural speed of the writer in thought, action and reaction. Everyone has an optimum speed, at which they think and act most comfortably. Many of life's difficulties and frustrations derive from the results of a person being forced, sometimes for a long time, to go faster or slower than the tempo that suits him best.
- Speed is an indication of intelligence in that it is the result of clear mental conceptions and images, combined with quick nervous and physical reactions.
- Speed is also a sign of spontaneity, objectivity and topical interests, although its value in this connection should not be exaggerated. Caution, care and accuracy, which are indicated by slower writing, may be equally valuable.
Speed also tends to show if the writer is mainly concerned with the purpose or content of what he is writing, or, on the other hand, if he is strongly conscious of the writing itself as an achievement and of its appearance to the reader.
Quick writing: Speed is a sign of the spontaneity, intelligence, quickness of thought and naturalness present in most of the other features of the personality. For instance, a quick rhythmic, large, full and well-spaced handwriting shows genuine personality and intellectual gifts, with initiative and decision.
On the other hand, speed that results in neglected letter formations and lack of rhythm is a sign of haste, neglect of detail and restlessness. It may also be the result of subconscious fears and neuroses.
Slow writing: Slowness in a regular, rhythmic, disconnected, full, original handwriting may indicate accuracy, thoroughness and a sense of responsibility; it may also be taken as a sign of contemplation and appreciation of beauty.
As a general rule, too, slowness of writing makes one suspect low intelligence or a low standard of learning; but the suspicion must be confirmed by other indications before it can be treated as certainty. The slowness could result from a deficiency of skill due, perhaps to ill health or physical disability; or it could be caused by a slow-thinking though mentally normal person, or just by plain laziness.
Additional thoughts that may help As a general rule it will be found that centrifugal movements (upwards [from the baseline] and outwards [towards the right], i.e. towards the outside world and "others") make for speed, while centripetal (downwards, towards the baseline and leftward, i.e. away from others and back towards the "self") tend to be slow. This fact is sometimes useful in deciding whether certain types of flourishes or letter endings make for speed or slowness - whether in fact they are to be taken as right or as left tendencies, or as having little bearing on speed at all.
Mr Frank Hilliger, Founder of The British Institute of Graphologists, always stressed the importance of assessing speed in handwriting, before attempting to analyse further and certainly before writing the report. Today, no serious graphologist would consider producing a graphological report without having ascertained the speed, with attention to this factor often pinpointing the difference between the casual and the professional analyst.
Finally, Saudek's comments on speed would (and do) make up a book in themselves, but one of his theories is worth very careful study. He considered that the more dominant features in writing are executed with speed, and that the counter-dominant traits - i.e. those that hamper the natural expression of personality - are executed with more difficulty and against resistance, consequently more slowly.
This is a very broad statement, not easy to grasp in its entirety and open to argument in many matters of detail. But there is undoubtedly truth contained in it; the trouble is how to make practical use of that truth.
One way that has proved useful when in doubt about a script, is to look carefully at the assessment figures for speed (see table in Part 1 of these notes) and then to take particular note of any features that are marked either very high or very low compared with the average for the sample as a whole. For example, in the (imaginery) assessment in Part 1, the Width and the Form of Connection are out of balance on the quick side, while Regularity is out of balance on the slow side. It could be that this is a personality where there is an inner conflict between extravagant ideas and excessive sociability on the one hand, and strong conventional self-restraint on the other. Be that as it may, it is often the case that these conflicting features ("counter-dominants") can point to the seat of conflict within the personality and thus provide a partial clue to the personality puzzle. |
