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From: andrew@trlamct.OZ.AU (Andrew Jennings)
Newsgroups: mod.ai
Subject: Re : creativity and analogy  (Andrew Jennings@ Telecom Research,Aus)
Message-ID: <8606190241.AA19633@trlamct.amct.trl.oz>
Date: Thu, 19-Jun-86 13:41:01 EDT
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Posted: Thu Jun 19 13:41:01 1986
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  Sure, many creative people are good at drawing analogies : but is
that the source of their creativity ? I would argue that it is more
their ability to hold two seemingly disparate situations in
consideration simultaneously : if as part of this an analogy drops out
then fine, but is an analogy creative ? In one sense it is almost
deductive, I think. For me Koestler's view of the processrings more
true. In this view all creative acts are the result of simultaneous
consideration of seemingly completely disparate situations : producing
something completely new as a result, but not by reasoning by analogy.
Also here Minsky's view that we put creativity on too high a pedestal
is relevant. Why do we ? Because we have a vested interest in this
position ? Perhaps. Are we simply afraid of pursuing what creativity is ?

  So what IS creativity ?