VI. Postmodern Justice Looks Like...An Inkblot

The Rorschach Test, more commonly known and referred to as the "Inkblot Test," was developed by a Swiss psychologist named Hermann Rorschach in the 1930's. The Rorschach Test (pronounced Ror-shock) has been popularized in movies and television as being an interpretive tool for psychologists to use with their patients. Implementation of the Rorschach Test involves showing a set of ten inkblot prints to a patient, recording that patient's perceptions of the visual image shown there, and then to analyze the patient's interpretations using psychological knowledge and theory. Some psychologists believe the Rorschach Test might is helpful in examining a patient's personality traits, emotional functioning, and thought processes.

Although the test's scientific validity and evaluative usefulness has been called into question, and is no longer widely used in psychological evaluations, the idea, history and theory behind the test provides an excellent visual illustration of Postmodern philosophy, art, and justice.
To demonstrate the usefulness of the test in illustrating postmodernism, you can take the following test. Take a short time to decide what image you see in each of the cards below, and record your responses in sentence form. After you have completed the test, compare and contrast your responses to someone else's recorded perceptions of these same ten inkblots. You will most likely discover that, although there may be some common themes in interpreting the imagery in the inkblots, each individual will incorporate a unique perspective, history, culture, beliefs, values, interests, and needs into their interpretation of each inkblot. Postmodernism suggests that each of us is formed by our context, and therefore our perspectives and interpretations of meaning and life will differ greatly. Additionally, Postmodernism requires the acceptance and acknowledgement of subjectivity and contradiction, both of which play a key role in the Rorschach Test.

*Spoiler Alert! Several of the most common interpretations of each inkblot are listed at the end of this post.*

Rorschach Inkblot #1:

Rorschach Inkblot #2:

Rorschach Inkblot #3:

Rorschach Inkblot #4:

Rorschach Inkblot #5:

Rorschach Inkblot #6:

Rorschach Inkblot #7:

Rorschach Inkblot #8:

Rorschach Inkblot #9:

Rorschach Inkblot #10:

Rorschach Inkblot #1: Often described as looking like a mask or the face of a fox or a wolf.

Rorschach Inkblot#2: Often described as people dancing, touching hands, or as an organ.

Rorschach Inkblot#3: Frequently described as two people facing one another, a butterfly, or a moth. Sometimes blood is seen.

Rorschach Inkblot #4: Often described as boots, shoes, or viewing a person from below.

Rorschach Inkblot #5: Often described as a bat or bird-like figure.

Rorschach Inkblot #6: Sometimes described as a person with arms outstretched.

Rorschach Inkblot #7: Sometimes described as bunny ears or similar.

Rorschach Inkblot #8: Some of the items often seen in this inkblot are a mask, animals climbing the sides, female sex organs, a moth, or a butterfly.

Rorschach Inkblot #9: Sometimes described as female sex organs, other body parts, or frequently a patient might see “nothing at all” and make no meaning from this inkblot.

Rorschach Inkblot #10: Often described as animals or a colorful place.