Among creative people and critics of various eras and countries, probably, the debate about the understanding and meaning of this word never stops. Some people think that talent is the destiny of the elect, God's spark, which arises completely unpredictably and quite rarely on Earth. Others believe that talent is something that is given to each of us, and any person can reveal his extraordinary abilities in a particular area using certain methods, and then develop it correctly with the help of special exercises. Some people think that 99% of success depends on this concept, and some that talent is 90 percent work and daily exercises! Who knows? Or maybe calling is talent? Let us and we try to at least a little understand this, frankly, difficult question.
Definition of a concept
According to dictionaries and encyclopedias, this word is defined as the presence of certain outstanding abilities in a particular person or group of people. As a rule, they are manifested in the creative achievements of various types of arts, professional innovations and the like. So, the rest of the society judges the presence of talent mainly on the basis of performance. And they, of course, should be innovative, with a fresh and original approach to the topic and material. Different talents can manifest themselves at different ages: from early childhood (a vivid example - Mozart in music), to an experience-rich maturity (for example, many philosophical works).
Congenital or acquired
The opinion is quite widespread: that talent is a consequence and a possible result only of the innate and genetically conditioned abilities of people. The so-called gift. But many years of experiments and research conducted by some scientists have shown that almost every one of us has the beginnings of various talents from birth. And already this or that degree of their subsequent development can be caused by education and training. It follows directly that talent means abilities developed and affirmed through experience and the acquisition of skills.
People and animals
Many researchers believe that this concept is inherent only to man. But some think differently. Indeed, in higher mammals of animals, for example, primates or dolphins, amazing abilities can be revealed and developed. What has already been repeatedly proven by various examples and experiments documented. And in India, dolphins were generally officially recognized as a rational race different from the human one. Probably, all the same, talent is not only a human privilege!
Social characteristic
Be that as it may, a person’s talent is rather one of his social characteristics, and not a strict scientific definition. It is a purely everyday concept, since there are no specific and clearly verified diagnostic methods for its identification and assessment. Talent levels are usually judged by other people around the community. And judgments are formed depending on the products of activity and their novelty. However, over time, assessments of significance can change, and the relevance of creations is lost, and then oblivion is inevitable, as has happened more than once in the history of mankind: the masters recognized by their era lost all value to posterity.
Etymology
The word itself comes from the name of a measure of weight and currency in ancient Greece. And in Christianity there is a parable that the owner gave his three slaves a coin - talent. The first buried money. The second - exchanged wealth. The third - increased. From here, by the way, then came the expressions: to increase or bury our talent in the ground (as many representatives of humanity do). In the figurative sense of the word: the gift of God, the possibility of creating a new one, equal to the Lord himself, who created people in his own image and likeness. And that means that a person has such a privilege - to create and create!
Classification Attempt
In attempts to classify the concept itself, some minds, as they say, have broken their heads. By questioning and dissatisfied with such methodologies, one can still cite Howard Gardner as an example of the “Frame of the Mind”. In it, the scientist identifies nine types of talent inherent in all people.
- Linguistic and verbal. Many writers and journalists, masters of the word and shark pen possess it.
- Digital talent. It is inherent in programmers and people with a mathematical mindset.
- "Aurally". Such a talent is inherent in many musicians, linguists, polyglot.
- Spatial. It is owned by artists and designers.
- Physical. Athletes and, for example, dancers.
- The following are personal and interpersonal, environmental talent and entrepreneurial talent associated with time management and money.
Of course, such a classification is perceived rather conditionally, since the assessment criteria are the opinions of others, and the assessment is mainly based on the results presented to the public.
In music
There are quite a few criteria by which one can say: musical talent is a person’s ability to memorize, repeat, compose a melody and play various musical instruments. As a rule, these abilities appear at an early age, extremely early. Sometimes parents do not pay due attention to the corresponding characteristics of the child, and the stars go out, and never have time to light up. Sometimes - as is the case with Mozart - talent is intensely developed by the parent, and backed by knowledge and experience, flashes like the sun!
Sometimes the opposite happens: adults consider a child genius gifted, indulging him in every way, and thereby breaking his fate. How to understand this delicate and sensitive issue, because talented children are so vulnerable at times? There are just good musicians, and there are talents close to genius. The latter, as a rule, hear much more in music than an ordinary person, they cannot imagine life without it, it is their natural and urgent need. If you have a good teacher, you can make an average musician out of almost any kid, understanding the harmony and notes, able to play quite complex works of respected authors from the sheet. For a genius, learning is not the most important thing (although with an experienced teacher, talent is realized faster). Important internal motivation, a sense of self in music, God's gift, the desire to improve and develop yourself. Often, students with such qualities surpass their experienced teachers at an early age (and this is not only true for music).
How to recognize
It is noted that the musical abilities of a child can be recognized by the age of three. This can be the key to the formation of future talent and even genius in this field. Researchers, before recording their own child in genius, advise using several tests that test the child’s abilities regarding hearing (of course, musical, and not ordinary), sensitivity to rhythm, and musical memory. Experienced educators even have special methods for determining the talent of kids at such an early age. They are focused on the fact that without waiting for 7 years of age, when they usually send them to a music school, they begin to develop abilities. Who knows, maybe by the age of seven your child will already play professionally on several instruments and write his own plays, thereby proving that musical talent is a feature that is inherent in him?
Tests
If the house has a musical instrument, for example, a piano (or a toy synthesizer, finally), you can conduct one of the simple tests. They are designed to reveal hidden talent. This is the child’s discernment of the pitch (of course, everything must happen in a playful way so that the child is interested), its tonality and speed of reproduction. You can hit the keys, saying: this is how the mouse squeaks, and this is how the bear goes, and this is the fox. Asking the baby then to identify these sounds: who is it - a bear or a mouse? It is noted that if a child has good musical ear, then the first time he will be able to determine the differences already in 2-3 years.
Guess the melody and rhythm
Another wonderful “children's” test is to guess the baby simple melodies. You need to select several, and each designate a specific picture or object. After playing the notes, ask the child to recognize them the next time, pointing to a specific drawing or object. So you can check the musical memory. If recognition is fast, you can talk about the presence of appropriate talent. A sense of rhythm is tested in a similar way. Slap your hands to the beat. If the baby will be able to repeat the hops next time with you, then he has a good sense of rhythm.