Harry Stack Sullivan made the statement: "The eyes are the windows to
the soul" as a description of how some schizophrenics experience
communication. My exclusive interest is the proper citation for this
quote. I am not interested in the original source of this quote or
that it has been used by others.

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Clarification of Question by krakowski-ga on 03 Nov 2002 09:17 PST

My interest is to find where Sullivan made this statement.

Sullivan, H. S.  (1954).  The Psychiatric Interview.  New York: Norton.

p. 5-6.  "Perhaps in all too many cases they [schizophrenics] are full of
ancient traditional hokum from the culture about the eyes being the windows
of the soul, and things being seen in them that might not otherwise be
revealed -- which seems to be one of the most misguided ideas I've ever
known."

The Norton edition is a paperback reprint

Perfect response. I've been asking this question on psych newsgroup,
and asked several psychologists/psychiatrists and none could recall
the source. Without this exact referrence, I would be unable to use it
in a paper that might get published.  Thank you.  Jerry Krakowski

Krakowski..

You are looking for one those sayings that people want to know, but
nobody really does.  In researching your question, I found the source
as "unknown" numerous times.  Some attribute it to Roman philospher,
Cicero, but no reference to the source or the citation.

I have found some references the proper citation as "The eyes are the
windows to the soul; if you look into them long enough, one's true
self is revealed." by Nicole Dawson, though I have not been able to
find the source or even who Nicole Dawson is.  I am posting this as a
comment until I can further validate the information.

Regards,

-THV

"To thee I do commend my watchful soul,
Ere I let fall the windows of mine eyes."
"King Richard III,"  William Shakespeare, Act V, Sc.3, Line 117
(1592-93).

Add this to the lost list of metaphors that Shakespeare may have come
up with before anyone else.

markj-ga

I meant "long list of metaphors."  Sorry.
markj-ga

Just because it's interesting --
This from my academic friend who eventually supplied the answer.

"My first reaction is "no way!"  John Donne, maybe, but Harry Stack
Sullivan???!!!  If I had had to guess, I would have guessed Shakespeare and
that he stole it.  I would guess Homer, but windows weren't that popular
back then.  In short, Harry Stack Sullivan sounds way too recent.

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations has
Blake: "This life's five windows of the soul/Distorts the Heavens from pole
to pole."  So, if Harry Stack Sullivan said it, he got the basic metaphor
from Blake.  Now, as to whether Blake was alluding to a prior use of the
metaphor, or whether the specifics of the eyes as one of the five senses
came after Blake, that Oxford can't tell us.

On to Bartlett's.  Holy Cow!  I was right!!  Shakespeare said it, AND he
stole it.  At least according to Bartlett's.  In chronological order, we
have:

Guilliaume de Salluste, Seigneur Du Bartas (1544-1590): "These lovely
lamps, these windows of the soul."  (Divine Weeks and Works, 1578, Sixth
Day).


[Bartlett's footnotes the above with Shakespeare's "The windows of mine
eyes" (Richard III, Act V, sc. iii, l. 117).]


William Blake (1757-1827): "This life's dim windows of the soul/Distorts
the heavens from pole to pole."  (The Everlasting Gospel, c1818, sec. 5, l.
101).  [No accounting for the difference in wording between Oxford and
Bartlett's.  Oxford has sec. d, l.103]

John Greenleaf Whittier (1807-1892): "The windows of my soul I throw/Wide
open to the sun."  (My Psalm, st. 9).