Might and magic, lust and language--the eye as a metaphor in literature. Notes on the hierarchy of the senses.

The special anatomy and physiology of the eye predestine it to function as the primary mediator between the world within us and the world without. The way we respond to and reflect on our world is strongly associated with our eyesight. Since antiquity literature, the most important medium for propagating knowledge, has abounded with symbols for the motif 'eye,' symbolizing the responsibility, independence and significance of the visual sense. Today the mechanisms of the modern information media engulf us with new and permanent stimuli. If we surrender ourselves uncritically to this profusion of images, we risk 'overstraining' our sense of sight and losing the connection between perception and cognition. In the following a few references to the international non-medical literature may explain and illustrate the functions of the eye as a metaphor for the mind and describe the past and the prospects of visual perception.