Anne Carson · Beware the man whose handwriting sways like a reed in the wind
Bad handwriting is ugly. It looks sort of stupid. I was going to say it feels inauthentic, but then I realised that the opposite is the case. In its badness my chaotic handwriting seems to reveal something about me that I’d rather not look at. It carries what Gerard Manley Hopkins calls ‘the inscape’ out. ‘Beware the man whose handwriting sways like a reed in the wind,’ Confucius said. Graphology, as I’m sure you know, is the study of handwriting as a clue to character analysis. Hard to believe it isn’t a good clue.
This essay is great. Sent to me by reader Misha Lynn Moon and I failed to post it earlier. Worth your time!
