Look at Hua-Yen Buddhsim, Flower Ornament Sutra, Angkor Wat, Borobudur, etc. It's everywhere. Same with Cathedral mazes etc.
Best, Alan - On Thu, Oct 29, 2020 at 2:55 PM Edward Picot via NetBehaviour < netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> wrote: > Max, > > I'm a big fan of chaistic structure - or the 'onion structure', which is > another term for the same thing. You work your way inwards through various > layers of narrative to reach the central point, then you work your way > outwards through the same layers again, ideally in reverse order, to > complete the story. There are examples of this kind of structure in fairy > stories - a princess who is exiled does kind deeds to a bird, a toad and a > fox, and then has to overcome a series of apparently-impossible challenges > in which she is helped by the fox, the toad and the bird in repayment for > her kindness. It's a very useful alternative to the prevailing 'three act' > structure of (for example) most Hollywood movies, where everything is > geared towards a massive cliffhanger/climax/confrontation/resolution at the > end. The onion structure, by contrast, is more balanced, less end-heavy, > and the turning-point/crux of the story tends to be the bit in the middle, > the heart of the narrative, after which good luck turns to bad, the > protagonist starts to reap the rewards of her good deeds, etc. > > I suppose things like mandalas (and possibly mazes) might be examples of > this kind of structure in the visual arts. > > Edward > > On 29/10/2020 18:00, Max Herman via NetBehaviour wrote: > > Hi all, > > My book club just read Andrew Sean Greer's novel *Less*, which won the > Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2018. It seems to use a lot of "chiastic > structure," which is an A-B-B'-A' pattern used in ancient literature. > There are also some biological meanings of the term (for vision and > genetics). > > I'd be curious to know if anyone is aware of chiastic structure in visual > arts or perhaps computer systems. > > Interesting idea Ricardo about the Rethinking Humanity idea! Will be > interested to hear/see more. > > All best, > > Max > > > _______________________________________________ > NetBehaviour mailing > listNetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.orghttps://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour > > > _______________________________________________ > NetBehaviour mailing list > NetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org > https://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour > -- *=====================================================* *directory http://www.alansondheim.org <http://www.alansondheim.org> tel 718-813-3285**email sondheim ut panix.com <http://panix.com>, sondheim ut gmail.com <http://gmail.com>* *=====================================================*
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