The authoritative Swiss graphologist Max Pulver (1889-1952) composed the chart below, showing many of the points discussed in the previous chapter. But in addition to demonstrating slant, it also demonstrates the zones.

If we were to superimpose a written word with a t in it on the spot marked I (Ego) Present, and the t coincided with the straight up-and-down line, we would be talking about a vertical writer. If the t veered to the right, we see from the chart that it would point toward the future. Were it to veer to the left, it would point toward the past. But this same word-say, the word "height"-also reaches into an upper and lower dimension. Upper, middle, and lower areas are called dimension zones, and they make up the zonal area.

Think of a child's drawing-a boy standing on a piece of land, the sun shining and some clouds above. Zones are something like that picture. The upper zone represents sky, clouds, the sun-by exten¬sion what is high, spiritual, religious, lofty. Conversely, the lower zone represents earth, solidness, what is underfoot-things that are basic, common, earthy, materialistic, sexual. The middle zone is the person, the ego, the me. When handwriting is predominantly in one zone, we see a powerful key to personality. Handwriting confined to the middle zone demonstrates the social person, the today person, the one concerned with Number One and lacking spiritual as well as physical drive.

In Figure 1 we see an example of the word "height" laid out on a zonal chart; each zone is 3 millimeters in height, which is the norm. If the rest of the writing is consistently in the same zones, we say there is balance in this writer. Where the zones fluctuate, the graphologist looks to see what the changes are and analyzes them. If the writer constantly changes the angle of his writing, we see a moody individual, unreliable in his reactions. Where the zones vary, it indicates a shift in motivation.

Take, for instance, the case of a man whose upper-zone writing ordinarily averages three millimeters in height-the norm. Suddenly, the upper zone dwindles to an average of one millimeter. This represents a shifting away from aspirations, spirituality as motivating factors. Usually such a change is accompanied by increased size in one of the other two zones, as if the energy normally expended in the spiritual zone has been shifted to the ego or sexual zones.

Notice the balanced writing, the general equality in the size of the zones in George Washington's script in Figure 2:

In addition to writing that consistently covers all zones in Figure 1 and writing where there is no consistency whatsoever, we have six other combinations of zonal areas:

Figure 3 shows the upper zone as the largest. This reveals a person with high aspirations but too little interest in social life, because he has a relatively small lower zone. Although he strives toward high goals, it is doubtful if he will achieve them, because he lacks stamina. Figure 4 shows high aspiration coupled with physical stamina, evidenced by both the upper and lower zones being large. However, since his middle zone is quite shrunk, his handling of everyday affairs may be off, and consequently the two positive aspects of his character may not take their proper effect. Figure 5 shows a small upper zone, so the writer probably has little spirituality and few aspirations. His middle zone is average, which reveals a normal social life, but because the accent in this writer's script is on the lower zone, we see someone who is preoccupied with physical pleasures. If the lower zone loop is long and straight down (Figure 5A), it is the sign of sexual pleasure; if the lower zone loop is inflated (Figure 5B), it shows money, materialism. One of the greatest of all heavyweight boxers, the "champion among champions," Jack Dempsey shows by his signature in Figure 5C great physical pleasure and much physical interest. Notice his long, heavy, lower-zone structures-this kind of writing is almost always found among super athletes. The saddest picture is perhaps that of a writer whose script seems to have everything but an upper zone, and who therefore has neither imagination nor ideals, neither intellectual interests nor ambitions, no real pride, no ethics and, I dare to say, no brains.

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