Do you doodle?

The chances are that you do “doodle” and that your friends and colleagues have seen you doodle. Their conclusion is probably that you were day-dreaming and not paying full attention to what you were doing! The word doodle, in the early 17th century, meant a fool and led to the early 18th century verb to doodle, meaning “to swindle or to make a fool of someone”. It appears that the modern version, associated with “to dawdle”, has had a meaning of wasting time. But no longer can doodlers be accused of wasting time by not paying attention. Current scientific research has occasioned a different interpretation as it concludes that doodling actually helps the doodler remember and assess important points.
So what is a doodle? Whilst everyone does it I discovered, when I asked this question, that many did not realise what doodling means. Many of us love to scribble away, apparently absent-mindedly, and it is these drawings which are called doodles. Frequently doodles can convey a great deal of meaning and, for the artist especially, may sometimes be the source of inspiration for serious artworks. If you are drawing patterns on pieces of paper, as you are listening or watching something, then you are doodling.
The way doodles inspire us is displayed in both young and old. I was surprised to see that Indian teenage students have started a trend of doodling on the backs of their school white shirts. Using washable blue ink, they have fun drawing designs whilst they are sitting in class or chatting in the school yard. The recipient of the doodle has the amusement of working out what it means. A few weeks ago, whilst at a British Actors’ Equity Council Meeting, I was sitting next to my friend Nicholas Smith. An English multifaceted actor Nicholas is best known internationally for playing the bald, jug-eared manager Mr. Rumbold in the British classic sitcom “Are you being served”. Whilst the meeting’s discussion was in depth and detailed, during which Nicholas made some telling comments and observations, I spotted that he was doodling. Rather appropriately they have an artistic connection with C.S.S. so he signed and dated them for “Lighthouse”. Obviously in Nicholas’s case doodling helped him participate. Scientists at Plymouth University England have shown that, according to their recently published study, subjects given a doodling task while listening to a boring phone message had a 29% improved recall compared to their non-doodling counterparts.
Doodling can also give an insight into what you are really thinking. Nicholas’s print journal design; which includes a speed boat, yacht and sailing ship, would probably be interpreted as showing a desire to move away from his present position and that he has already decided his goal as all the designs are sailing in the same direction. The Indian teenagers, with their designs including curves and straight lines, display opposite aspects of our nature: masculine and feminine, mental and physical, willpower and emotion. Teenagers are more inclined to mix-up shapes as their personalities and opinions are rapidly developing and changing. Those who prefer straight lines tend to have strong willpower, self-control and like facts, while those who prefer curved strokes are more flexible, imaginative and emotional.
There are many articles now available on the Internet which will help you understand and interpret your doodles. Please remember, before you show them to anyone else, that whilst doodles may help you recall events, they are expressions of your subconscious mind. You may be letting someone see more about yourself than you realise !

Dave Eager