Handwriting Analysis

So I don't remember what I was looking up the other day (what else is new), but I somehow stumbled upon this interesting handwriting analysis site. I have always been fascinated with the idea how something as mundane as a person's handwriting can tell you intricate details about their personality. From the letter spacing to size to pressure applied, every tiny detail is imperative to distinguish a person's personality characteristics. Yes, handwriting analysis can be seen as subjective and it definitely has its flaws. BUT, it has been shown that talented handwriting analysts have greater than 90% accuracy. Still skeptical? Let's put this analysis into action with a few American authors we have come across (link included after each analysis).

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)

Time Period: The Colonial Period
Famous Pieces: The Autobiography, Poor Richard's Almanack
Genre(s): Autobiography, narrative
Writing Style: Plain, informational, can be satirical

Common Themes: Wealth, politics, self independence, realistic

Handwriting Analysis: From an analysis, some of Mr. Franklin's positive traits include logical, innovative, creative, independent, and desires authority. Some of his negative traits include conceited, materialistic, critical, and can be easily irritable. 1

Conclusion: I think Benjamin's handwriting analysis reflects his writing pretty accurately. He is often straight forward and right to the point in his writing style. One of his popular topics to write about was wealth, which correlates with his materialistic trait. Another related attribute is his love for politics, which is reflective in the desires authority trait. All in all, this one was hard to disagree with.

Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)

Time Period: Romanticism

Famous Pieces: The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart

Genre(s): Short stories, poems

Writing Style: Gothic, dramatic

Common Themes: Love, madness, evil, horror

Handwriting Analysis: Some of Poe's personality characteristics that are seen from an analysis of his handwriting include organized, traumatic past, skeptical of new information, prideful, and cooperative. 2

Conclusion: This one is harder to correlate. Organized can easily be seen by his style of writing. Every aspect was well thought out, especially his rhythmic rhyming in particular poems. He preferred shorter pieces of work that got the point across without being too drawn out. His traumatic past can refer to his parents dying at the age of three and his trouble with relationships. This is easily reflected in his work like The Raven, which revolves around a lost love. One interesting fact I should mention is that Poe actually dabbled in the art of graphology (aka handwriting analysis). Could this have influenced a change in his own handwriting? I guess we will never know.

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

Time Period: End of Romanticism, and Realism

Famous Pieces: Success is Counted Sweetest, Hope, A Bird Came Down the Walk

Genre(s): Poems

Writing Style: Lyrical, precise, modern

Common Themes: Love, death, doubt, faith

Handwriting Analysis: As you can see, Emily had very different handwriting when compared to the others. Some of her personality characteristics that can be seen from her handwriting include emotionally expressive, visionary, independent, fluidity of thought, and need for personal space. 3

Conclusion: Emily was a unique woman of her time, and I think her handwriting reflects that. Later in her life, she tended to be a reclusive individual, which can be suggested by her independent way and need for personal space. It also predicts she was emotionally expressive. This is easily seen in her work where her topics often include strong emotions from her (at times) brutal honesty.

Go to this link which includes an online book where you can easily analyze your own handwriting. What does your handwriting say about you?