We often judge people by their handwriting. It's been reported that many teachers systematically give better marks to students whose handwriting is neat and legible. When our friends write to us we judge their handwriting in the same way as we judge the way they dress. But should we be doing so?
21 
Can you match the following samples of handwriting with the thumbnail descriptions? When you are through, say why you think there is a link between the two.
A. Highly artistic, hyper-active, generous and cheerful bohemian
B. Colourless, quiet, agreeable and dependable student
C. Immature, self-assertive, extravagant, unstable student
D. Forceful, active, efficient businessman, but cautious and exact.
Kate Loewenthal, New Society.
22 Rummage in your papers to find a paragraph of somebody's handwriting for analysis. Go over the evaluation criteria below and match the characteristics. Do not draw definite conclusions. A professional graphologist would never do a partial analysis like this! Just make suggestions and give reasons for your argumentation in the course of class discussion.
| Size
| The size of person's handwriting symbolises the person's assessment of him or herself. The average or "normal" size of a small letter is 3 mm. Larger letters may indicate such positive characteristics as seriousness, pride in one's work and generosity, or they may indicate negative characteristics such as arrogance, conceit and boastfulness. The positive aspects of a small script are devotion, modesty and tolerance. Alternatively it can mean shyness, lack of self-confidence, faint-heartedness.
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| Slant
| Writing that slants to the right shows an extroverted and outward going personality, which, in its positive aspects, is active, friendly and sympathetic but might also be restless, hasty or even hysterical. An upright script indicates a self-sufficient and reserved nature; the head rules the heart, occasionally to such an extent that the writer may be accused of rigidity and coldness. A left-sloping script with an angle of less than 85 degrees can be interpreted to mean self-control. When the slope is less than 60 degrees, it can mean shyness, withdrawal or fear of the future.
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| Width and narrowness
| In normal writing the distance between the downstrokes of small letters is equal to the height. Wide writing indicates a warm and vivacious person, whereas narrow writing shows timidity and perhaps inhibition in personal relationships.
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| Connectedness
| When four or more letters are written with one stroke the writing is considered to be connected. Breaks for dotting "i"s and crossing "t"s do not count. It generally means a co-operative nature, but can mean over-adaptability and a tendency to follow the crowd.
In disconnected script, less than four letters are written with one stroke of the pen. It tends to mean an intuitive, self-reliant and individualistic personality. The negative aspects of such characteristics are egocentricity, inconsistency or loneliness.
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| Regularity and irregularity
| Regularity, both of size and slant, can be interpreted as resistance and moderation, but may simply be a sign of dullness, coldness and indifference. The positive aspects of irregularity are impulsiveness, warmth and creativity. Its negative aspects are moodiness, irritability and capriciousness.
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| Direction of lines
| If writing on unlined paper, does your writing slope upwards? This may mean you are an ambitious and optimistic person, or alternatively that you often loose your temper or are rather frivolous. If your writing slopes downwards over the page it indicates a pessimistic and over-sensitive nature. But take heart! The direction of the lines is one of the least permanent aspects of our writing and probably only reveals a passing mood.
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| Loops
| Full round loops in the upper zone of the writing ("f"s, "l"s, etc.) mean imagination and colourful speech. An absence of loops indicates an analytical mind and strong moral tendencies. Loops in the lower zone tend to indicate erotic fantasises and behaviour, sensuousness, materialism and country interests. Small loops – or no loops at all – show a business mind and realism, but sometimes also pessimism and an obsession with money.
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| Signatures
| Signatures are significant in as much as they differ in size from the rest of the text. A much larger signature shows a person who has an over-blown opinion of him or herself. A much smaller signature indicates a shy and retiring personality. Differences of size, angle and width between the Christian name and the family name symbolise the relationship between the writer and his or her family.
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23 Each of you take a small scrap of paper, write something nice on it for an imaginary friend, fold it up and drop all the messages into one bank (borrow somebody's hat). Jumble the mail and draw one note each for yourselves. Now imagine that it is love mail you have received on St. Valentine's Day. There are no names signed anywhere and all looks funny and mysterious. Brainstorm with your desk-mate to find out what kind of a secret fan stands behind the message, based on handwriting.
24 What social or industrial situations can prompt someone to be as in the chart below? How will you expect people to behave if they are referred to as:
| arrogant
| rigid and cold
| intuitive
| moody
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| conceited
| self-controlled
| over-adaptable
| irritable
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| boastful
| withdrawn
| self-reliant
| capricious
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| agreeable
| vivacious
| inconsistent
| frivolous
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| extravagant
| forceful
| moderate
| imaginative
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| self-assertive
| inhibited
| self-sufficient
| materialistic
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| faint-hearted
| co-operative
| impulsive
| money-obsessive
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25 Listen to a passage from a book review now. The piece mentions seven different characters. As you listen, spot the information for the chart below. This might be, to a large extent, a subjective opinion. Explain your notes when they are in place and support your opinions with the facts from the review.
| Name of Seafarer
| Most Marked Characteristic?
| Greatest Achievement?
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| Ellen MacArthur
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| Chay Blyth
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| Nigel Tetley
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| Robin Knox-Johnston
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| Bernard Moitessier
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| Donald Crowhurst
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| Peter Nichols
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