The gestalt theory free essay sample

The Gestalt theory is a complex but rather interesting theory that I will be writing about in this essay. For this essay, I will be looking for the different parts of the Gestalt theory. Before that, I will find where the name â€Å"Gestalt† even means and originated from. I will also find out who discovered the theory. I will describe the theory and provide background information on the theory. I will describe how the theory is exhibited. I will also explain whether I agree with this theory. There are also plenty of examples of each kind of point in the Gestalt theory. Although these examples are for visual purposes, there are famous ones that I will be talking about which can be seen on the Internet. Each principle has its own pictures as examples. One way the Gestalt theory is in use is when us see the pictures that are made for the sole purpose of the gestalt theory. We will write a custom essay sample on The gestalt theory or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The Gestalt Theory has many principles to it and I am going to go over all of them, including definitions and how your brain perceives that message. There are major principles of the Gestalt theory, which make up what the theory means. The Gestalt theory â€Å"looks at the human mind and the behavior as a whole. † (Cherry, 2013). The Gestalt theory was originated by Max Wertheimer, but influenced by other thinkers such as Immanuel Kant, Ernest Mach and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (Cherry, 2013). Wertheimer said, There are wholes, the behavior of which is not determined by that of their individual elements, but where the part-processes are themselves determined by the intrinsic nature of the whole. It is the hope of Gestalt theory to determine the nature of such wholes (Wertheimer, 1924). This quote is explaining when you try to put a missing piece in its place and you know where it goes because you have seen the full figure before. The Gestalt theory got its name by definition. Gestalt in German means â€Å"whole† which is the definition of the theory. This is why the theory was named the â€Å"Gestalt theory. † Christian Von Ehrenfels was the one who originated the name Gestalt for the theory (Boeree, 2000). Christian was a teacher to the founder of the Gestalt theory, Max Wertheimer (Boeree, 2000). So the student became the teacher in the end because Christian was the one who originated the theory and Max is the one who ends up finishing the theory. Max started the beginning of his studies by studying law and going to law school (Boeree, 2000). He never was interested in it as much as he was in psychology (Boeree, 2000). â€Å"At Frankfurt, his former teacher Friedrich Schumann, now there as well, gave him the use of a tachistoscope to study the effect. His first subjects were two younger assistants, Wolfgang Kohler and Kurt Koffka. They would become his lifelong partners† (Boeree, 2000). Wolfgang and Koffka will play their parts into helping Max solve and explain this theory that he has been interested in. Max wrote his paper on the perception of movement, and then was offered a job as a lectureship at the University of Frankfurt (Boeree, 2000). He eventually became an assistant professor there and in a couple of years moved up and was a professor for his own class (Boeree, 2000). He taught Psychology at his years at Frankfurt and spread his knowledge to the young minds of Frankfurt. While Germany was going through its tough times in the war, Frankfurt escaped to the United States and began teaching for Social Research School in New York City (Boeree, 2000). He wrote a book called, â€Å"Productive Thinking† which was the most known book he has written (Boeree, 2000). Wolfgang and Max met through the University of Frankfurt in which they were assistants for a Psychological Institute for Frankfurt (Boeree, 2000). † In 1922, he became the chair and director of the psychology lab at the University of Berlin, where he stayed until 1935. During that time, in 1929, he wrote Gestalt Psychology† (Boeree, 2000). As the quote has it, Wolfgang had met and discussed the gestalt theories together and it resulted into Wolfgang publishing a book on the Gestalt Theory. The final founder of the Gestalt Theory is Kurt Koffka. Kurt â€Å"he wrote an article for Psychological Bulletin which introduced the Gestalt program to readers in the U. S† (Boeree, 2000). So after these three best friends met at the University of Frankfurt and discussed the Gestalt Theory. They went their separate ways to spread the theory to young and up and coming future of psychologists. The Gestalt theory has many different laws; the first one that I will be talking about is the Figure and Ground law. â€Å"The terms figure and ground explain how we use elements of the scene which are similar in appearance and shape and group them together as a whole. Similar elements (figure) are contrasted with dissimilar elements (ground) to give the impression of a whole† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). A good example of this is the Macintosh logo (Soegaard, 2005). A terrible example of this is when you see an animal that blends into the environment with the use of camouflage. If there is a chameleon on a brown branch, it will turn brown. If u can’t see the figure separated from the ground, then you see them as a whole. Second, is the law of Similarity. â€Å"The principle of similarity states that things which share visual characteristics such as shape, size, color, texture, value or orientation will be seen as belonging together† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). In the preferences window of a windows computer, the grey color background binds the first items together (Soegaard, 2005). The next law I would like to talk about is the law of Proximity. â€Å"The Gestalt law of proximity states that objects or shapes that are close to one another appear to form groups. Even if the shapes, sizes, and objects are radically different, they will appear as a group if they are close together† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). A great example of this law is the MTV sign (Soegaard, 2005). The TV part of the channel is part of the M which puts the law of Similarity in action. Another law I would want to explain is closure. â€Å"The satisfaction of a pattern encoded, as it were, into the brain, thus triggering recognition of the stimulus. This can involve the brains provision of missing details thought to be a part of a potential pattern, or, once closure is achieved, the elimination of details unnecessary to establish a pattern match† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). An example of this law is the IBM logo (Soegaard, 2005). The fifth law I would like to explain is the law of Continuity. â€Å"The edge of one shape will continue into the space and meet up with other shapes or the edge of the picture plane† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). An example of this would be, when you are making a graph in for math class and the lines of the graph are perpendicular and continuous (Soegaard, 2005). The last law I would like to talk about is the law of Symmetry. â€Å"Symmetry states that the viewer should not be given the impression that something is out of balance, or missing, or wrong† (â€Å"Gestalt Principles†, 1999). An example of this in action is when you look at the CSC Finland’s logo (Soegaard, 2005). I personally agree with this theory because it has many different laws that explain so much that happen in the world. Especially when there are many different real life examples that have been influenced by these laws. There are many real life examples of these laws that I have known but not actually put under the category of the Gestalt Theory. There are many things that I have seen which represent all these law when I was a kid and didn’t understand any of this. It blows my mind how I am just learning about this now during my young adult life. So with all the facts given here on this essay, I conclude that I agree with this theory.