criminal psychology-第101章

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ion。　So　again；　when　in　a　rain　I　believe　mountains　to　be　nearer　than　they　really　are；　or　when　I　believe　the　stick　in　the　water　to　be　really　bent；　my　sensations　are　perfectly　correct；　but　my　inferences　are　wrong。　In　the　last　instance；　even　a　photograph　will　show　the　stick　in　water　as　bent。

This　difference　in　the　nature　of　illusion　is　particularly　evident　in　those　phenomena　of　expectation　that　people　tend　to　miscall　‘‘illusions　of　sense。''　If；　in　church；　anybody　hears　a　dull；　weak　tone；　he　will　believe　that　the　organ　is　beginning　to　sound；　because　it　is　appropriate　to　assume　that。　In　the　presence　of　a　train　of　steam　cars　which　shows　every　sign　of　being　ready　to　start　you　may　easily　get　the　illusion　that　it　is　already　going。　Now；　how　is　the　sense　to　have　been　mistaken　in　such　cases？　The　ear　has　really　heard　a　noise；　the　eye　has　really　seen　a　train；　and　both　have　registered　correctly；　but　it　is　not　their　function　to　qualify　the　impression　they　register；　and　if　the　imagination　then　effects　a　false　inference；　that　can　not　be　called　an　illusion　of　sensation。

The　incorrectness　of　such　classification　becomes　still　more　obvious　when　some　numerical；　arithmetical　demonstration　can　be　given　of　the　presence　of　faulty　inference。　For　example；　if　I　see　through　the　window　a　man　very　far　away　clearing　a　lot　with　an　ax；　I　naturally　see　the　ax　fall　before　I　hear　the　noise　of　the　blow。　Now；　it　may　happen　that　the　distance　may　be　just　great　enough　to　make　me　hear　the　sound　of　the　second　blow　at　the　moment　in　which　I　see　the　delivery　of　the　third　blow。　Thus　I　perceive　at　the　same　moment；　　in　spite　of　the　great　distance；　both　the　phenomena　of　light　and　of　sound；　just　as　if　I　were　directly　on　the　spot。　Perhaps　I　will　wonder　at　first　about　these　physical　anomalies；　and　then；　if　I　have　made　my　simple　mistake　in　inference；　I　shall　tell　somebody　about　the　remarkable　‘‘sensory　illusion''　I　had　today；　although　no　one　had　ever　supposed　me　capable　of　being　deceived　in　this　way。　Schopenhauer　calls　attention　to　the　familiar　fact　that　on　waking　after　a　short　nap　all　localizations　are　apparently　perverted；　and　the　mind　does　not　know　what　is　in　front；　what　behind；　what　to　the　right；　and　what　to　the　left。　To　call　also　this　sensory　illusion；　would　again　be　wrong；　since　the　mind　is　not　fully　awake；　and　sufficiently　orientated　to　know　clearly　its　condition。　The　matter　is　different　when　we　do　not　properly　estimate　an　uncustomary　sense…impression。　A　light　touch　in　an　unaccustomed　part　of　the　body　is　felt　as　a　heavy　weight。　After　the　loss　of　a　tooth　we　feel　an　enormous　cave　in　the　mouth；　and　what　a　nonsensical　idea　we　have　of　what　is　happening　when　the　dentist　is　drilling　a　hole　in　a　tooth！　In　all　these　cases　the　senses　have　received　a　new　impression　which　they　have　not　yet　succeeded　in　judging　properly；　and　hence；　make　a　false　announcement　of　the　object。　It　is　to　this　fact　that　all　fundamentally　incorrect　judgments　of　new　impressions　must　be　attributed；for　example；　when　we　pass　from　darkness　into　bright　light　and　find　it　very　sharp；　when　we　find　a　cellar　warm　in　winter　that　we　believe　to　be　ice…cold　in　summer；　when　we　suppose　ourselves　to　be　high　up　in　the　air　the　first　time　we　are　on　horseback；　etc。　Now；　the　actual　presence　of　sensory　illusions　is　especially　important　to　us　because　we　must　make　certain　tests　to　determine　whether　testimony　depends　on　them　or　not；　and　it　is　of　great　moment　to　know　whether　the　illusions　depend　on　the　individual's　mind　or　on　his　senses。　We　may　trust　a　man's　intellect　and　not　his　senses；　and　conversely；　from　the　very　beginning。

It　would　be　superfluous　to　talk　of　the　importance　of　sensory　illusion　in　the　determination　of　a　sentence。　The　correctness　of　the　judgment　depends　on　the　correctness　of　the　transmitted　observations；　and　to　understand　the　nature　of　sense…illusion　and　its　frequency　is　to　know　its　significance　for　punishment。　There　are　many　mistakes　of　judges　based　entirely　on　ignorance　of　this　matter。　Once　a　man　who　claimed；　in　spite　of　absolute　darkness；　to　have　recognized　an　opponent　who　punched　him　in　the　eye；　was　altogether　believed；　simply　because　it　was　assumed　that　the　punch　was　so　vigorous　that　the　wounded　man　saw　sparks　by　the　light　of　which　he　could　recognize　　the　other。　And　yet　already　Aristotle　knew　that　such　sparks　are　only　subjective。　But　that　such　things　were　believed　is　a　notable　warning。＇1＇


＇1＇　　For　literature　of　Edmund　Parish：　ber　Trugwahrnehmung。　Leipsig　1894。　　A　Cramer：　Geriehtliche　Psychiatrie。　Jena　1897。　　Th。　Lipps：　sthetische　Eindrcke　u。　optische。　Taschung。　　J。　Sully：　Illusions；　London；　1888。


Section　99。　（2）　_Optical　Illusions_。

It　will　be　best　to　begin　the　study　of　optical　illusions　with　the　consideration　of　those　conditions　which　cause　extraordinary；　lunatic　images。　They　are　important　because　the　illusion　is　recognizable　with　respect　to　the　possibility　of　varied　interpretations　by　any　observer；　and　because　anybody　may　experiment　for　himself　with　a　bit　of　paper　on　the　nature　of　false　optical　apprehension。　If　we　should　demonstrate　no　more　than　that　the　simplest　conditions　often　involve　coarse　mistakes；　much　will　have　been　accomplished　for　the　law；　since　the　‘‘irrefutable　evidence''　of　our　senses　would　then　show　itself　to　need　corroboration。　Nothing　is　proved　with　‘‘I　have　seen　it　myself；''　for　a　mistake　in　one　point　shows　the　equal　possibility　of　mistakes　in　all　other　points。

Generally；　it　may　be　said　that　the　position　of　lines　is　not　without　influence　on　the　estimation　of　their　size。＇2＇　Perpendicular　dimensions　are　taken　to　be　somewhat　greater　than　they　are。　Of　two　crossed　lines；　the　vertical　one　seems　longer；　although　it　is　really　equal　to　the　horizontal　one。　An　oblong；　lying　on　its　somewhat　longer　side；　is　taken　to　be　a　square；　if　we　set　it　on　the　shorter　side　it　seems　to　be　still　more　oblong　than　it　really　is。　If　we　divide　a　square　into　equal　angles　we　take　the　nearer　horizontal　ones　to　be　larger；　so　that　we　often　take　an　angle　of　thirty　degrees　to　be　forty…five。　Habit　has　much　influence　here。　It　will　hardly　be　believed；　and　certainly　is　not　consciously　known；　that　in　the　letter　S　the　upper　curve　has　a　definitely　smaller　radius　than　the　lower　one；　but　the　inverted　S　shows　this　at　once。　To　such　types　other　false　estimations　belong：　inclinations；　roofs；　etc。；　appear　so　steep　in　the　distance　that　it　is　said　to　be　impossible　to　move　on　them　without　especial　help。　But　whoever　does　move　on　them　finds　the　inclination　not　at　all　so　great。　Hence；　it　is　necessary；　whenever　the　ascension　of　some　inclined　plane　is　declared　impossible；　to　inquire　whether　the　author　of　the　declaration　was　himself　there；　or　whether　he　had　judged　the　thing　at　a　distance。


＇2＇　Cf。　Lotze：　Medizinische　Psychologie。　Leipzig　1852。



Slight　crooks　are　underestimated。　Exner＇1＇　rightly　calls　attention　to　the　fact　that　in　going　round　the　rotunda　of　the　Viennese　Prater；　he　always　reached　the　exit　much　sooner　than　he　expected。　This　is　due　to　the　presence　of　slight　deviations　and　on　them　are　based　the　numerous　false　estimates　of　distance　and　the　curious　fact　that　people；　on　being　lost　at　night　in　the　woods；　go　round　in　a　significantly　small　circle。　It　is　frequently　observed　that　persons；　who　for　one　reason　or　another；　i。　e。；　robbery；　maltreatment；　a　burglarious　assault；　etc。；　had　fled　into　the　woods　to　escape；　found　themselves　at　daybreak；　in　spite　of　their　flight；　very　near　the　place　of　the　crime；　so　that　their　honesty　in　fleeing　seems　hardly　believable。　Nevertheless　it　may　be　perfectly　trustworthy；　even　though　in　the　daytime　the　fugitive　might　be　altogether　at　home　in　the　woods。　He　has　simply　underestimated　the　deviations　he　has　made；　and　hence　believes　that　he　has　moved　at　most　in　a　very　flat　arc。　Supposing　himself　to　be　going　forward　and　leaving　the　wood；　he　has　really　been　making　a　sharp　arc；　and　always　in　the　same　direction；　so　that　his　path　has　really　been　circular。


＇1＇　Cf。　Entwurf；　etc。


Some　corroboration　for　this　illusion　is　supplied　by　the　fact　that　the　left　eye　sees　objects　on　the　left　too　small；　while　the　right　eye　underestimates　the　right　side　of　objects。　This　underestimation　varies　from　0。3　to　0。7％。　These　are　magnitudes　which　may　naturally　be　of　importance；　and　which　in　the　dark　most　affect　deviations　that　are　closely　regarded　on　the　inner　side　of　the　eyei。　e。；　deviations　to　the　left　of　the　left　eye　or　the　right　of　the　right　eye。

Such　confusions　become　most　troublesome　when　other　estimations　are　added　to　them。　So　long　as　the　informant　knows　that　he　has　only　been　estimating；　the　danger　is　not　too　great。　But　as　a　rule　the　informant　does　not　regard　his　conception　as　an　estimate；　but　as　certain　knowledge。　He　does　not　say；　‘‘I　estimate；''　he　says；　‘‘It　is　so。''　Aubert　tells　how　the　astronomer　Frster　had　a　number　of　educated　men；　physicians；　etc。；　estimate　the　diameter　of　the　moon。　The　estimation　varied　from　1''　to　8''　and　more。　The　proper　diameter　is　1。5''　at　a　distance　of　12''。

It　is　well　known　that　an　unfurnished　room　seems　much　smaller　than　a　furnished　one；　and　a　lawn　covered　with　snow；　smaller　than　a　thickly…grown　one。　We　are　regularly　surprised　when　we　find　an　enormous　new　structure　on　an　apparently　small　lot；　or　when　a　lot　is　parcelled　out　into　smaller　building　lots。　When　they　are　planked　off　we　marvel　at　the　number　of　planks　which　can　be　laid　on　the　sur…　　face。　The　illusions　are　still　greater　when　we　look　upward。　We　are　less　accustomed　to　estimation　of　verticals　than　of　horizontals。　An　object　on　the　gutter　of　a　roof　seems　much　smaller　than　at　a　similar　distance　on　the　ground。　This　can　be　easily　observed　if　any　figure　which　has　been　on　the　roof　of　a　house　for　years　is　once　brought　down。　Even　if　it　is　horizontally　twice　as　far　as　the　height　of　the　house；　the　figure　still　seems　larger　than　before。　That　this　illusion　is　due　to　defective　practice　is　shown　by　the　fact　that　children　make　mistakes　which　adults　find　inconceivable。　Helmholtz　tells　how；　as　child；　he　asked　his　mother　to　get　him　the　little　dolls　from　the　gallery　of　a　very　high　tower。　I　remember　myself　that　at　five　years　I　proposed　to　my　comrades　to　hold　my　ankles　so　that　I　could　reach　for　a　ball　from　the　second　story　of　a　house　down　to　the　court…yard。　I　had　estimated　the　height　as　one…twelfth　of　its　actual　magnitude。　Certain　standards　of　under　and　overestimations　are　given　us　when　there　is　near　the　object　to　be　judged　an　object　the　size　of　which　we　know。　The　reason　for　the　fact　that　trees　and　buildings　get　such　ideal　sizes　on　so…called　heroic　landscape　is　the　artistically　reduced　scale。　I　know　that　few　pictures　have　made　such　a　devilish　impression　on　me　as　an　enormous　landscape；　something　in　the　style　of　Claude　Lorraine；　covering　half　a　wall。　In　its　foreground　there　is　to　be　seen　a　clerk　riding　a　horse　in　a　glen。　Rider　and　horse　are　a　few　inches　high；　and　because　of　this　the　already　enormous　landscape　becomes　frightfully　big。　I　saw　the　picture　as　a　student；　and　even　now　I　can　describe　all　its　details。　Without　the　diminutive　clerk　it　would　have　had　no　particular　effect。

In　this　connection　we　must　not　forget　that　the　relations　of　magnitude　of　things　about　us　are；　because　of　perspective；　so　uncertain　that　we　no　longer　pay　any　attention　to　them。　‘‘I　find　it　difficult；''　says　Lipps；＇1＇　‘‘to　believe　that　the　oven