In just the same way the thousands of successive positions of a runner are contracted into one sole symbolic attitude, which our eye perceives, which art reproduces, and which becomes for everyone the image of a man who runs.
This quote by Henri Bergson illustrates the concept of contraction, where a complex, dynamic process is reduced to a single, symbolic representation. In this case, the thousands of positions a runner takes during a race are condensed into a single attitude, which becomes the image of a man who runs. This concept is crucial in understanding how our perception of reality is shaped by our cognitive biases and the limitations of language.
The quote highlights the tension between the complexity of reality and our need to simplify it through symbolic representations. Bergson's concept of contraction emphasizes the importance of acknowledging the limitations of our understanding and the role of language in shaping our perception of the world.
Henri Bergson was a French philosopher who wrote extensively on the nature of time, consciousness, and the human experience. This quote is likely from his book 'Matter and Memory', which explores the relationship between the physical world and our subjective experience.
Henri Bergson was born in 1859 in Paris, France. He was a philosopher and a professor at the École Normale Supérieure, where he taught philosophy and psychology. Bergson's work had a significant impact on the development of modern philosophy, particularly in the areas of phenomenology and existentialism.
This concept of contraction can be applied to various fields, such as art, literature, and psychology. For instance, artists may use this concept to simplify complex ideas and emotions into a single, powerful image. Similarly, writers may use this concept to convey complex themes and ideas through a single, symbolic representation.