John Gunkler writes,
>I was also taught (about creativity) that: In order to be creative one needs
>to do two things--and that it is impossible to do both well at the same
>time. (Of course the >two things are divergent and convergent thinking.)
My research and experience is that in the commonly termed Fine Arts the
very best work often results from doing what you seem to be saying is
impossible. That is to say the 'doing of' divergent and convergent at the
same time...
You don't specify if they are ways of 'thinking' or 'acting' but I would
propose in both cases many positive emergences can come from the
'syncretistic approach' which utilises both unconscious scanning
techniques, taking 'flying leaps' as William James put it, to enable the
apprehension of 'total structure' rather than single fragmented elements.
For some would take the view that the inability to 'converge in the
divergent' leads to narrow specializations and the need for excessive and
elaborate plans and defences. This convergence in divergence idea is
possibly very contrary to the more analytical or logical mind.
Nevertheless, it might be worth thinking about how such a diffuse system
of attention to the world might lead to reifications in an emergently
chaotic or complex environment.
Didn't Wittgenstein move from 'crystal clarity' toward something more
'diffuse' in the architecture of his thinking?
I would just throw into the pot the notion of 'scattering'...I don't know
why, the idea just popped out of my head!
Best wishes,
Andrew Campbell
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