Creativity : the magic synthesis

Creativity can be studied in many ways, all rewarding in various degrees. New dimensions are always found and added to the ones already known. Those who are interested only in a behavioristic or experimental approach will not find what they want in this book. My own interest in creativity follows different avenues of inquiry and understanding, and it has had a long history. It goes back to the preparation of an article on wit and the comic, published in 1950, in which I advanced my first ideas on the subject. My interest and my studies have grown in many directions in these intervening years. As a matter of fact, I consider this book the natural outcome of all my previous works. My work started at a clinical level, with my observations on and therapeutic dealings with the seriously mentally ill as well as with creative people. My research also extended to cognition in general, in both intrapsychic and interpersonal perspectives. When I later studied creative products in various fields, such as wit, poetry, art, and science, I was able to recognize specific cognitive mechanisms of the creative process that I had already encountered in my clinical approach and cognitive research. [From the Preface.] An Introductory Approach To Creativity -- The Creative Process -- The Major Theories Of Creativity: A Critical Review -- The Psychological Components Of Creativity -- Imagery -- Perception -- Amorphous Cognition: The Endocept -- Primitive Cognition -- The Altered Relation Between Word And Meaning -- Concretization And Perceptualization Of The Concept -- Conceptual Cognition -- The Three Modes Of Operation And Unifying Hypotheses -- The Creative Product -- Creativity In Wit -- Freud's Contributions To The Psychology Of Wit -- Paleologic And Faulty Logic In Wit -- Sociological Aspects Of Jokes -- The Comic, Playing Games, And Children's Play -- Puns, Proverbs, And Parables -- Poetry And The Aesthetic Process -- The Similar In The Dissimilar: The Metaphor -- As If And Adualism -- Painting (with A Note On Music) -- Fusion, Diffusion, And Misidentification -- Idealism In Art -- Religion And Mystical Experiences -- Insight Into The Supernatural -- Rite And Magic -- Science --^ The Contributions Of Poincaré And Others -- The Process Of Discovery -- Philosophy And General System Theory -- Creativity And The Sociocultural Environment -- Society, Culture, And Creativity -- The Occurrence Of Genius -- The Rapport Between The Creativogenic Culture And The Creative-to-be Person -- The Creativogenic Society -- The Phenomenon Of Creativity Among Jews In Modern Times -- The Individual And The Cultivation Of Creativity -- The Creative Person -- Creativity And Intelligence -- The Specific Personality Characteristics Of The Creative Individual -- The Personality Of The Scientist -- Multiple Creativity And The Renaissance Man -- Sickness And Creativity -- The Cultivation Of Creativity In The Individual Person -- Creativity And The Educational System -- Altering The Body's Chemistry -- Creativity In The Middle Years And In Advanced Age -- Creativity In The Larger Contexts Of Neurology, Biology, General System Theory, And The Spirit Of Man --^ The Neurology Of Creativity And Biological Creativity -- Some General Issues And Conclusions. Silvano Arieti. Includes Indexes. Bibliography: P. 415-429. Acknowledgements viii Preface ix PART ONE An Introductory Approach to Creativity Chapter 1 The Creative Process 3 Chapter 2 The Major Theories of Creativity: A Critical Review 14 PART TWO The Psychological Components od Creativity Chapter 3 Imagery 37 Chapter 4 Amorphous Cognition: The Endocept 53 Chapter 5 Primitive Cognition 66 Chapter 6 Conceptual Cognition 84 PART THREE The Creative Product Chapter 7 Creativity in Wit 101 Chapter 8 Poetry and the Aesthetic Process 135 Chapter 9 Painting (with a Note on Music) 192 Chapter 10 Religion and Mystical Experiences 242 Chapter 11 Science 267 Chapter 12 Philosophy and General Sustem Theory 283 PART FOUR Creativity and the Sociocultural Environment Chapter 13 Society, Culture, and Creativity 293 Chapter 14 The Creativogenic Society 312 PART FIVE The Individual and the Cultivation of Creativity Chapter 15 The Creative Person 339 Chapter 16 The Cultivation of Creativity in the Individual Person 360 PART SIX Creativity in the Larger Contexts of Neurology, Biology, General System Theory, and the Spirit of Man Chapter 17 The Neurology of Creativity and Biological Creativity 387 Chapter 18 Some General Issues and Conclusions 405 Bibliography 415 Index 431 A fascinating book on creativity (C) & its 'magic synthesis'. Shows that C is a gift, but that it cannot occur without effort & support. A convincing study of the psychodynamic & socio-dynamic factors that enter into the creative process. Chapters: the creative process; the major theories of C; imagery; amorphous cognition; primitive cognition; conceptual cognition; C in wit; poetry & the aesthetic process; painting & music; religion & mystical experiences; science; philosophy & general system theory; society, culture, & C; the creativogenic society; the creative person; the cultivation of C in the individual; & the neurology of C & biological C. An integration of the author's findings in social, psycho-structural, and general systems contexts; advanced suggestions about the promotion of creativity at individual and social levels.