The Logical Side of Creativity

In research for my Creativity Class, when I first came across the Logical Thinking Skills aspect in Tardif and Sternberg’s Cognitivie Characteristics of Creativity, it seemed an apparent contradiction to state creativity, a concept previously understood to me to be something unpredictable, free flowing, and original, had anything to do with a system of formal logic. My text (Creativity in the Classroom, Starko) justified the seeming paradox by claiming “highly creative people [must] have excellent logical thinking skills…to be effective in gathering information about a situation, to focus on important issues, or to evaluate potential ideas.” It goes on to argue that “logical thinking can even be a tool for dealing with novelty.” These arguments seemed to make some sense to me, so I accepted them and moved on. It was not until last night, however, that I really began to understand the many ways in which logic helps us to creatively respond to the world.

This past week, I have shut myself away in my Modern Philosophy studies. When beginning to study for my midterm and first paper, I found that I had not kept up with the semester’s studies. As a result, Descartes and Spinoza have become my best friend. Preparing for my midterm was the first situation in a long time in which I have found myself truly stressed. I started panicking at times; adrenaline kept me alert, but unfocused; I had a very difficult time relaxing when with friends. Last night, I went to the home of a friend who had taken Modern Philosophy previously, in preparation for the midterm, so that I could talk to her about some of the concepts.

She amazes me. Not only did she clearly and distinctly remember Descartes’ proofs from when she had taken the class two years earlier, but through our conversation, sometimes more far reaching than the arguments of the philosophers, I found that she was able to, when she read philosophy, not only brilliantly analyze it for its validity, but is also able to directly apply it to her life. Oftentimes, when I approach a great thinker, I can take in their comments, but I have great difficulty looking through the eyes of their worldview either to analyze its appropriateness to my own life, or to step into their P.O.V. to compare it to the thoughts of others. I have found that there are many logical cross-connections I am missing. My thoughts are very context dependent and memorization based; I can understand the philosophers through themselves, but trying to apply them to different situations is extremely difficult and confusing. This is why my friend’s approach to philosophy stunned me. When she analyzed the arguments of the philosophers, she easily filled in the logical steps to transfer their claims to her own life. She then argued back. Writing to me which seemed unapproachable became undefendable under her scrutiny.

This experience led me to once again more deeply question the link between creativity and logical thinking. My friend’s ability to clearly hold on to arguments and follow them through to their implications allowed her to take viewpoints and deduce resulting effects and assumptions in a multitude of contexts. Whereas I read a text and can explain it, she reads a text and can explain some element of life. My conversations with her renewed my determination to focus on further training my mind in logic. Although it may seem simple or inflexible at times, logical thinking is an incredible tool for taking a wisp of a feeling, an inkling of an idea, and extrapolating it to the far reaches of perception. Logic is central to the generation and analysis of ideas in novel situations. Therefore, it must necessarily be a key component of creativity.