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Social anatomy is unapologetically a stage toward a better understanding of ourselves, a stage in anatomy coming later that will be called "Dynamic anatomy" or something else implying movement as part of the state of being. The question it seeks to answer is simple. How are items observed on the cadaver related to significant events observed in everyday life? The principle fields are a)where does the circulatory system come close to the environment, b)how does the body provoke action in others, c)in what ways do artists mediate the perception of the body and the actions it provokes, d)how does the body react to the threat of physical harm and to friendship, e)how does the body react to changes in environmental design? Underlying all these issues are the meta-issues relating to perception and time. WHERE DOES THE CIRCULATORY SYSTEM COME CLOSE TO THE ENVIRONMENT Arteries and veins follow a simple rule in the body. Sandwhich yourself between the structures you nourish. They thus conserve materials and gain protection. The rule seemingly breaks down, however, in the places where a)the blood vessel runs very close to the skin, and b)good movement of the exposed vessel requires special kinks in other places on the vessel. The social implications of these exposed areas on the body are related to heat management, vulnerability to harm, exposure of the pulse, and exposure of the viscosity of the blood, which gains it value from the processes in the entire organism. In this social sphere the rule gets reinstated, because although in the exposed areas the blood vessel loses its physical, genetic protection, it gains it back in the social rules we create to address the above implications. HOW DOES THE BODY PROVOKE ACTION IN OTHERS? Notice the way the question is phrased. The implication of "action" rather than, say, "reaction" is the management the body places upon time to relate the body's needs back to its abilities. Our tools are our a)muscles, b)our sense organs, c)and our passive, structural designs. Our muscles are able to draw together oppositely positioned bands. A muscle cell is long and microscopic. It contracts on one dimension. In the body, muscle cells live in gigantic groups, contracting synergistically. The voice is the result of the work of a)the muscles which draw air into to the lungs, b)the muscles which push air out the lungs, c)the muscles in the voicebox and the mouth. Work is accomplished in synchrony with the skeletal system. The body interacts with consumption-oriented and with clerical objects. (And, no, stirring your coffee with a pen is not a hack). Our sense organs map the environment as well as our internal environment. Without the actions of the muscular system, their work would be useless. Our passive structural designs are many. Just to refer to one, our voice also depends on the resonance the atmosphere achieves in our sinuses and from the air storage system of the lungs. HOW DO ARTISTS PLAY THEIR ROLE Click to view Durer's Negro {Link without Title} So far, we've covered the ways our bodies relate our true intentions, and the way our intentions become realized. The art world is based on the heirarchical organization of our senses in the context of these two earlier subjects. A theoretical point to consider is why writing can elucidate the subject. My opintion is that the letters were designed to handle just such a splicing between the hierarchy of our senses and the debate over the way action happens. Anything which doesn't meet this criterion fails the definition of letter. Moving on, the artist's greatest challenge is transcending the gaze aspect of provoking action in others. They accomplish this goal by joining their own struggles with the struggles of their contemporaries in meeting the world. This is not the same approach which lesser artists take. These people will tend toward generalization, and although it sounds derogatory, we don't have a better word for it. Suffice it to say that a true artist will focus on the true nature of friction rather than on its achievements. This is all rather ironic because the artists who get the most effect ARE the ones who focus least on the subject. The reason for this is a very long struggle artists have maintained to create excellent signage in civilization, and people tend to shy away from this very sophisticated topic, until an artist makes a small advance and everyone jumps down the nape of their shirt. The friction is purely social, and the artist takes very little heed of it, unless they are creating a piece on the subject. Durer's Negro head is one such piece (click link above). There's a ton more theory here about the way artists maintain their health, but that's all that pertains to the topic of social anatomy. HOW DOES THE BODY REACT TO THE THREAT OF PHYSICAL HARM AND TO FRIENDSHIP Our bodies have a direct as well as encompassing relationship to information. Memory has an oscillatory property which demands such attention. It has been the bane of philosophers's existence for millenia, but if one remembers that motivation stems from the workings of the heart, the attention paid to this relationship to information will bear fruit. Witness this line of text I just copy and pasted from an e-mail re: Scarlett Johanson. "of the emotional inhibitors i can control her with and make." This line of text contains what many call "resonance" as it links together our oscillatory relationship to information with our hearts's commitments. Writers hone this skill and leave exactly the level of impression they wish. It is within this context our bodies perceive and react to danger and to friendship. |
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