Image by Jenny Woods
A hand is not four fingers and a thumb
A catalogue about hands
CONTENT: Introduction Evolution Gender Occupation Communication Conclusion Bibliography
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INTRODUCTION: From the beginning of cataloguing to it’s importance in today’s society,
this essay will analyse what is a catalogue within the idea of comparing the use and importance of hands. In order to write this essay I catalogued aspects of hands and how it developed similar aspects of cataloguing, starting from the first ideas of evolution. In commercial catalogues, the division of gender is strongly represented, not only as physical aspects, but also by social expectations. Strout 1956 highlighted different aspects between western and oriental ways of cataloguing in libraries - the first use the author while the second usually have an alphabetical order for titles – even when the basic idea of cataloguing is the same, the process can be reflected with hands of people from different occupations. Lastly, we will talk about the communication process and nature of using hands which is what catalogues try to do in transferring knowledge and information. This essay will provide understand of what is a catalogue showing examples of how and why hands can be catalogued.
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EVOLUTION:
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Despite Egyptian libraries being developed earlier than Babylonian
(probably because of the use of clays for recording at that time instead of the papyrus used by Babylonians, a material that was easily destroyed) according to the Dean of students in the Graduate Library School of the University of Chicago, Ruth Strout in “The development of the catalog and cataloguing codes” from 1956, provides evidence of the beginning of cataloguing from evidence of a list of books dated about 2000 BC at Nippur. However, a hundred of years before, the need to use tools led to the development of hands. As stated by PhD Richard Young in his book “Human Origins and Evolution” of 2002, during territorial battles; this was done to obtain advantage and to ensure their own and as well as their children’s safety. Primates used stones and sticks as weapons too. Those who developed those abilities furthest were the ones who could survive longer and provide better sources of food. In this way, generation after generation led to the development of hands the way we see them today. However, hundreds of years before, the need to use tools led to the development of hands.
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I will explore the cat-
aloguing of human hands in view of their demographic condition in a modern setting. As stated by Susman in 1979, the typical hand of a primate contains long curved fingers combined with a smaller thumb while the human thumb is longer, the palm and finger are shorter and the fingers have lost their curvature.
Thereby, we would begin to catalogue the evolution of the
hand through the selective improvement of primates than comparing the hand of a new-born who is starting to develop the same need of grabbing materials, until adulthood. This is when we have developed enough motor skills to produce our own materials. Ironically, the hands used to produce a catalogue are the ones trapped in the process of cataloguing, a similar process used to create the catalogues found in the Babylonian libraries, the first ideas of what is a catalogue was transformed to what it is today.
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GENDER: Male and female understand different ways of how to present their
body language to society; women’s idea of representing their image is through the lack of power whereas men associate bodily force with gaining power (Schubert, 2004). In instance, according to Amayeh et al from the University of Nevada in an article published in 2008, if we consider certain geometric features found on hands it is possible to analyse a more robust meaning than if we analyse faces, which is normally affected by personal expressions. A common way to find a catalogue division, especially in cases of clothing and toys, is by the premeditated role of genders. For this reason, I have included hands according to gender in this catalogue.
The difference between male and female hands is not only based on
physical aspects, but also in the way we have learnt how to present them to society according to gender roles. A woman’s hand is expected to be softer and more delicate than men. As stated by John-Paul Flintoff in an article of the March 2012 issue of Intelligent Life’s magazine, despite the fact of men’s jewellery - that are not signed or engaged rings – which were common in the past decades, it is still more usual, and expected, to find women spending more on different accessories, as well as giving importance to how their nails are presented to others.
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OCCUPATION: IMAGE 9
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Catalogue comes from the Greek phrase kata logos. Kata, means
“by” or according to”, however the meaning of logos is unknown, in some places can be understand as “word”, but it also can mean “order”, “reason” or “knowledge” (Strout, 1956). In the first weeks of the Introduction to Higher Education (ISHE) course, we have been to Harrods and Elephant & Castle market; the first is located in a wealthy neighbourhood and can be seen as a tourist place in London while Elephant & Castle is more local. The social difference between them is very noticeable not only in the way the shop itself is designed but also between the hands of people working in the two places.
The dress code at Harrods asks for well-manicured polished nails and
no more than one ring per hand with an exception of wedding and engaged rings (Davies, 2011) while in the Elephant and Castle market, workers don’t have a dress code to follow which allows more freedom to express their personality over jewellery and nails. Despite every hand being the same at the beginning of our lives, according to what we do, which risks we take as children and the profession we follow it will effect the way our hand as we grow old. As for example, the shape of a pianist moving his hands across the piano is different from the hands of a carpenter which is full of calluses and cracks as is those in a painter’s hand. In this case, another way of cataloguing hands is “according to acquired knowledge.”
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COMMUNICATION:
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It is important to observe cataloguing as a way of communication since
it can be understood as a way of transporting information one way to another (Luhmann, 2006). A catalogue needs to contain evolutional information of the “end-to-end” of what you are about to show whereas an exhibition, a product or an idea is created in order to facilitate people’s understanding (Rae, 2010). The same happens with the use of hands, where it can help to transport information and ideas. Often, people use gestures while talking, whereas in conversation partners can see it or not these gestures directly or indirectly and it can imply the thoughts of the person who is gesturing especially if seen. A study by Sassenberg from Germany Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, established a connection between hand gestures and brain development. The study made within three different high schools in Berlin proved that the use of hands helps to perform better tasks, and surprisingly understanding of an idea. Combining these aspects of the hand and cataloguing as a way of communication, it is impossible not to remember the language signs used as a deaf communication method. In linguistic terms it is complex as any other oral language as it simultaneously combines hand shapes, orientation and movement to provide fluid understanding. Different aspects and types of linguistics methods still embodies a “true language” (Disable World, 2014)
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CONCLUSION: To conclude, the aim of this project is to understand that a catalogue
can be more than a list but also a way of dividing according to background and function. There isn’t a right way of cataloguing. In fact, catalogue is the idea of organising in a way you can transport some information to facilitate to others understanding. I choose talk about hands on this project because it is not about four fingers and a thumb, and in similarity to catalogue, it can have different aspects around the world if deep study. In this essay, we talked about how hands have develop their principal aspects in terms of evolution, and how it can imply different forms between gender and occupation. It was also possible to analyse how hands are used as a way of communication. In terms of cataloguing, the division of how this is present makes it a catalogue about hands.
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“
A Hand
by Jane Hirshfield, 1953
A hand is not four fingers and a thumb.
Nor is it palm and knuckles, not ligaments or the fat’s yellow pillow, not tendons, star of the wristbone, meander of veins. A hand is not the thick thatch of its lines with their infinite dramas, nor what it has written, not on the page, not on the ecstatic body.
Nor is the hand its meadows of holding, of shaping— not sponge of rising yeast-bread, not rotor pin’s smoothness, not ink. The maple’s green hands do not cup the proliferant rain. What empties itself falls into the place that is open. A hand turned upward holds only a single, transparent question. Unanswerable, humming like bees, it rises, swarms, departs.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY: Davies, Caroline. Harrods ‘ladies’ code’ drives out sales assistant. London: The Guardian, 2011. Disable World. Sign Language and Deaf Communication Methods and Information. 2014. http://www.disabled-world.com/disability/types/hearing/communication/ (accessed 2014). Flintoff, John-Paul. When men wear jewellery. March 2012. http://moreintelligentlife.com/ content/lifestyle/men-wear-jewellery?page=full (accessed 10 November, 2014). Gholamreza Amayeh, George Bebis, Mircea Nicolescu. Gender Classification from Hand Shape. University of Nevada. 2008. http://www.cse.unr.edu/~bebis/biometrics08.pdf (accessed November 08, 2014). Luhmann, Niklas. Communication Theory. New Jersey: Princeton University, 2006. Rae, Barclay. Why bother with a service catalogue? Barclay Rae. 2010. http://barclayrae. com/Knowledge/Why%20Bother%20with%20a%20Service%20Catalogue-final.pdf (accessed 10 November 2014). Sassenberg, Uta. Thinking with your hands: A link between gesturing and intelligence. http:// atomiumculture.eu/node/303 (accessed 10 November 2014). Schubert, Thomas W. The Power In Your Hand: Gender Differences In Bodily Feedback From Making a Fist. Jena: University of Jena, 2004. Strout, Ruth French. The development of the catalog and acataloging codes. Library Quarterly 26 (1956): 254-276. Susman, R.L. Comparative and functional morphology of hominoid fingers. American Journal Of Physical Anthropology, 1979: 215-236. Young, Richard W. Evolution of the human hand: the role of throwing and clubbing. Journal of Anatomy, 2002: 165-74.
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Erenmemisoglu, G. (n/a) Ambachtelijk brood Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792893762/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 9 Hagemeyer, J. (1938) Jane Bouse Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792893780/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 18 Hopper, D. (2013) Trapped. Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792941672/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 2 Marsha (2008) Four generations Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792949800/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 6 Massooleh, S. (2011) Inspired by Richard Avedon Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792911910/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 14 Scianna, F. (1991) Travelling by train Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792941678/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 8 Toucido, R. (2011) Gali単ero Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792903524/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 12 Unknown (n/a) Shadow puppetry tutorial Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792911867/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 16 Walsh, K.A. (2014) Right where I belong. Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792949874/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 3 Watson, K. (2008) One handed alphabet Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792911869/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 15 Woods, J. (2013) The quite front. Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/ pin/23362491792941683/ (Accessed/downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Cover Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792949752/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 11 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792903488/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 4 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792893644/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 5 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792956321/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 7 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792903492/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 10 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792893811/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 13 Unknown (n/a) Available at: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/23362491792903490/ (Accessed/ downloaded: 10 November, 2014) Image 17
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Juliana Robilard EDM14435144 j.robilard1@arts.ac.uk julierobilard.wordpess.com BA Design Cultures - Year 1 14th November 2014 1500 words University of the Arts, London College of Communication Introduction to Study in Higher Education (ISHE) Tutor: Dr Mark Ingham and Andrew Slatter “What is a catalogue?�