A Killer Handwriting: What can Handwriting Reveal About the Owner?
Ever since men learned to write, there has been this growing quest to see if there is a connection between the handwriting and the personality of the writer. There are handwriting experts working in the forensic unit of the police who are often called upon to verify the accuracy of a document or signature in the course of an investigation.
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For instance, whether it was truly the deceased that penned the will or if it was altered after the original will was drafted. They also come in useful in the investigation of suicide, especially when the victim leaves a suicide note, to check for foul play especially when the suicide is murder and the murderer leaves a suicide note to cover his crime.
A Pseudoscience?
A pseudoscience is a set of ideas that presents itself as science, while it does not meet the criteria to be properly called such.
There is this branch of science (or pseudoscience) depending on some school of thoughts where the analysis of a writer's handwriting by examining the characteristics and pattern could be used to identify the person or identify the writer's psychological state or personality characteristics at the time the document was written.
This is not to be confused with the handwriting experts of the forensic examination.
Graphology is simply the practice of using handwriting to determine aptitude, skills, and personality traits. But science has not confirmed if it is a real thing so there are a lot of skeptics, which is probably because it has not been proved by science hence the term pseudoscience attached to such study.
Take a look at the handwriting below.
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The transcript of the article reads as shown below:
Your note made me very happy. You are sweet. It seems to stop me dead in my tracks this day. I admire it. But it seems dead. Brilliantly contrived. But bloodless. I can’t be (so far) swept off my feet. For whatever reason. But I am still struggling to see if it would somehow work for me & bring me to life.
and the other is this
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The transcript of the article reads as shown below:
We had six lovely hours together. Rosa has changed so much in the four weeks since I last saw her. The major difference is that she is really talking now. She won't stop. She's like a beautiful little parrot. All day it was "Daddy" this and "Daddy" that. She was very much into talking to me and generally trying to keep me to herself. "You stay here, Daddy". she'd say when I'd tell her to get back to Carole, Margot (Gamma) and Jamey. I was as pleased and delighted as I could be. Margot is enjoying herself, spending her days with Rosa, and evenings with Carole and her friends. She made Rosa a Raggedy Ann costume for Rosa for Halloween. She (Rosa) looked adorable. As much fun as she is having, I know in a week or so she'll be ready to get back to her house and garden.
Looking at the above two handwriting who do you pick as the mentally ill person?
One of the writing looks pretty neat showing someone that has a clear purpose that forces him or her to write as neatly as he possibly could, while the other person's handwriting is scrawly which may indicate a disconnected mind, or has Alzheimer's disease or someone unable to follow his or her thoughts through.
Graphologist or graphoanalyst believed our handwriting is an extension of our personality. They believe when writing is a reflection of the way we think. They prefer to think of it as the brain writing because we use our hand to write because that's the part of our body that is the most able to handle a pen. Graphologist read books which shows them how to identify a person's personality through writing.
The Results Are In
First handwritten letter belongs to Katherine Hoghton Hepburn an well-loved American American actress that died of natural causes at the age of 96 in 2003 and the other to Theodore Robert Cowell aka Ted Bundy a serial killer that killed over dozens of young women between the ages of 12-25 in the 1970s and possibly earlier and was killed when he was sentenced to death in 1989
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Image On Left : Actress Hepburn and Image On Right : Serial Killer Ted Bundy
It is very hard to just tell a person's character simply from the way they write. A good handwriting is never an indicator of some being psychotic. It may just be that the person has a good handwriting which is not a crime last time I checked. The same could also be said of people that have scrawly hard to decipher handwriting.
Various "researchers" have come up to show ways that people tend to put more pressure on paper when writing the truth and less pressure on paper why lying. These are unverifiable "facts" that are thrown by members of the pseudoscience community/fans.
In conclusion, you may be able to gain some insight into someone's psychological pattern by the way they write but you can't tell someone: “Hey, are you psychotic?” when you see that they have slanted writing.
What are your thoughts on this? Let's hear it below
Regards,
@greenrun
What on earth? I couldn't figure out much of the handwriting in the letter...thank goodness for the explanation below it.
Who would have ever guessed that something as simple as writing could have so many things attached to it. Wow.
Very interesting.
Thanks for sharing with us!
I tried to decipher the writing and I came up blank too; without the transcript I wonder how the people who got the letter were able decode the handwriting. Thank you for your kind comments. I do appreciate it.
I really think you can judge people by their handwriting. For example, in school, the people who had slim, long & neat handwritings had a similarity. They were neat freaks and always had their life together. I also think that people who write in cursive are very intelligent. Someone like Leonardo Da Vinci had such a great handwriting. I just wanna frame his notes.
Artists always have interesting handwriting. My father's friend is a professor of art, it is always a pleasure to get a postcard from him. His handwriting is a delight to read. Thank you friend for dropping by.
I know of persons who have very neat and nice handwritings but are not neat in person. Handwriting doesnt really have to do with ones personality. I think this handwriting things is a gift. It also has to do with feelings. The way one is feeling at the time of writing. I say so because, its been observed that when one is in a hurry or angry he tends to scrawl anything on paper. And also people tend to use very beautiful and neat handwritings when writing love letters or job applications. Just my thoughts.
For me, my handwriting really just depends on my mood. Sometimes it's fine and other times I scribble barely visible stuff. It depends on how fast I'm writing, the amount of attention I'm paying to the writing n so on.
I even have two quite distinct handwritings. One is straight and one is more like italics. I use the one that looks like italics the most but the straight one for random writing but it all really depends on my mood.
How writing can determine a person's character to me is farfetched but I've noticed artist or people doing arts and social sciences have better handwritings than scientists
Yeah, some very good handwriting becomes almost a scrawl in examination due to the rush and pressure to deliver. Thanks.
Exactly my point. Circumstances may be a factor at times
I have seen my lady friends usually having good hand writing then gents friend. So hand writing has gender issue too? :)
Girls just care more about the appearance of things than we guys. No biggy!!
Yeah, right.... lot of people consciously or unconsciously tend to attach a good handwriting to being brilliant while one with a bad handwriting will be passed for a dullard.
Well, I feel having a good handwriting may have to do with other skills like being ordered, careful, determined but not really smart (Bookwise). I have seen lotta good handwriting with terrible scores while bad handwriting with brilliant scores.
My handwriting is yuck! Big time Yuck
Most of the brilliant guys I know, especially guys who are real good at maths have really horrible handwritings so I guess it has nothing to do with brains. I think the way one holds pens also matter. Just my view though
@mimy try to improve on the yuck. Handwriting can be improved. Just practice more and you'd end up with a beautiful handwriting like mine. Lol
The first writing seemed to me like short hand not until I saw the transcript. It reminded me of an uncle who wrote like that, wrote long notes, talks too much too. Maybe because he's an M.C. He has notes from the 90s and tgey are always hard to read especially when we mistakenly came across his diary. Man! We ( I and my cousins) so wanted to read that diary, but his handwriting failed us... lol
In my own opinion, I don't think handwriting determines anything about anybody. I have seen dull people with lovey handwritings and have seen some with creepy and intidy writing so as with the intelligent ones.
I just think its something that comes naturally. A good writting might be a gift too.
I have been with one of my teacher back then, helping her with exam scripts and she gave a dull boy free 5marks because he wrote neatly and tidy too unlike some intelligent ones.
This post was really beautiful at least I remembered the event with my uncle's diary...haha. Thank you @greenrun
That was a wonderful contribution to this topic. Your uncle may be a very busy person with little time for some niceties like a great handwriting :)
I agree with you that handwriting having nothing to do with intelligence as I have highly intelligent individuals with scrawly writings. But anyways the fact of the matter is a good handwriting could be improved upon with practice.
Yes you are right. My brother was able to improve on his. So its not bad to want to improve.
Yes, you just confirmed my thoughts. Thank you.
Much welcomed.
Well writing to me is just a skill like singing. It can be learned . I learned how to write well after my waec exam before then my handwriting suggested that I was a physician lol. It is also a gift in that it comes naturally
Physician have the worst of writing or they do it deliberately so no one self medicates from their subscription. So they usually write in their lingo, unless you are a physician too, no way could you decipher the scrawling scribblings. Lol. Thanks
I have noticed that most people around me with scraggy writing are extremely brilliant but that is not enough conclusion in itself but the one I am absolutely sure about is the beauty in the handwriting of every artist I have come across.
Artist's handwriting reflects their artistic nature. It is usually very good to look at. I think handwriting are inherited too, I write exactly like my father. So I think DNA / gene has a hand in it too. Like everything, a good handwriting could be learned. Thanks
I think if serious studies is done on this handwriting stuff, it might be a means of seeing through the windows of one's heart, like one who is a psycho being identified through his writing...... Lols. That could be science for the future.
YWC dear.
People are already studying it. Let's wait for it to be more scientifically proven and it may just be a mainstream thing.
Mine is a whack, my mind is mostly faster than my hands, thats what makes it so. But my handwriting in text messages is the best😜
Join the club :)
I could barely read what was in each note. People dey sha. I used to do such when i was an UG, because of one Professor that dictates as hell. lol
That could pass got a shorthand. Thanks
My handwriting (prescription mainly) largely depends on how busy I am at that moment. When enough time, nice hand writing but if busy during writing, I, myself, can't read it in later period.
I'm yet to be able to read a pharmacist's or doctor's handwriting :)
Thanks.
That day will be one of the best days of your life definitely :)
@hafiz34 for real 😎
Ha.. I get your point. I'm always able to read my handwriting though. I can read almost anything. Got to a point teachers started calling on be back in high school to read illegible handwritings for them.
@ajremy Were you able to read Hepburn's handwriting above?
Yes I was. With a few errors which I spotted while reading the one below...
@ajremy, that's cool, you've got a gift then and a good eye. Thanks
@ajremy, you are good then at reading all types of writing.