this law in mental terms we may say: The more often a fact is recalled in
consciousness the easier and more certain the recall becomes. It is upon the law
of repetition that reviews and drills to fix things in the memory are based.
The Law of Recency.—We may state the law of recency in physiological terms
as follows: The more recently brain centers have been employed in a certain
activity, the more easily are they thrown into the same activity. This, on the
mental side, means: The more recently any facts have been present in
consciousness the more easily are they recalled. It is in obedience to this law that
we want to rehearse a difficult lesson just before the recitation hour, or cram
immediately before an examination. The working of this law also explains the
tendency of all memories to fade out as the years pass by.
The Law of Vividness.—The law of vividness is of primary importance in
memorizing. On the physical side it may be expressed as follows: The higher the
tension or the more intense the activity of neural centers the more easily the
activity is repeated. The counterpart of this law in mental terms is: The higher
the degree of attention or concentration when the fact is registered the more
certain it is of recall. Better far one impression of a high degree of vividness than
several repetitions with the attention wandering or the brain too fatigued to
respond. Not drill alone, but drill with concentration, is necessary to sure
memory,—in proof of which witness the futile results on the part of the small
boy who "studies his spelling lesson over fifteen times," the while he is at the
same time counting his marbles.
5. RULES FOR USING THE MEMORY
Much careful and fruitful experimentation in the field of memory has taken place
in recent years. The scientists are now able to give us certain simple rules which
we can employ in using our memories, even if we lack the time or opportunity to
follow all their technical discussions.
Wholes Versus Parts.—Probably most people in setting to work to commit to
memory a poem, oration, or other such material, have a tendency to learn it first
by stanzas or sections and then put the parts together to form the whole. Many
tests, however, have shown this to be a less effective method than to go over the
whole poem or oration time after time, finally giving special attention to any
particularly difficult places. The only exception to this rule would seem to be in
the case of very long productions, which may be broken up into sections of