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October 12, 2005
Moving Gestures
As predicted, from the end of class onwards, I was noticing gestures when people talked! Yes, the same people I see and talk to practically every day - yet I saw something more!
In Biology class especially, our teacher really emphasized almost every phrase she was saying with her hands. Throughout the class period she seemed to use practically every type of gesture: cohesive, beat, iconic, metaphoric, and deictic. She was trying to explain a new idea, and not a simple one, so I would assume subconsciously the gestures were to "help" make everything more understandable and to help her get her point across. It is interesting when one stops and thinks about it, because really, how would moving your hand up and down four times in a row help one to understand glycolysis?
I know a girl who uses hand motions ALL the time EXCESSIVELY when she talks. She can be rather loud, and when she is, the gestures are even bigger. She uses big gestures to retell something, to even just have a coversation, to ask a question, to insult someone (she wasn't too nice really)... I also noticed that she never seemed to be able to sit or stand still. I wasn't with her too much, but always when I was, if she was standing she would be tapping or foot, or when she sat, either in class or on a bus, she would be wiggling her foot. Interesting; I wonder how the "can't sit still" habits relate to gestures being used for emphasis while communicating...
Posted by lcisthur at October 12, 2005 05:17 PM
Comments
Allie--I completely understand what you were trying to say about Biology. I even found myself more involved and being able to comprehend more when Dr. Chow was using her hands to mimic flow of glycolysis. It really is something you NEVER think about. Maybe if I move my hands more on our next test, it will help me to understand the concepts!!
Like you, I used to have a friend who was loud and boistrous. You would always see her hands moving every which way. She especially liked to nod her head with everything she said, like a beat, so I can definitely relate to your situation.
Great entry--Christina
Posted by: Christina at October 13, 2005 09:57 AM