MARY HENLE (1913-2007)

摘要

Mary Henle was born July 14, 1913 in Cleveland, Ohio. All three children ofLeo Henle and Pearl Hahn Henle pursued academic careers. Paul Henle became aprofessor of philosophy, and Mary's twin sister, Jane, pursued an academic careerin archaeology. Mary Henle began her academic journey at Smith College in 193o.Although she majored in French, she had important contact with members of thepsychology department as an undergraduate. She was a member of the undergradu-ate class where Kurt Koffka read his manuscript version of the Principles of GestaltPsychology (1935). This major work of a prominent Gestalt psychologist was pub-lished in 1935, a year after Henle received her bachelor's degree. As a result of herstimulating contact with the psychology faculty, Henle stayed at Smith to pursue amaster's degree in psychology, which she obtained in 1935. She remained at Smithfor an additional year to work as an assistant in the psychology department. BecauseHenle was the only graduate student in the department at Smith, she was treatedas one of the faculty group in "stimulating and mind-opening" ways (Henle, 1983.p. 223). She pursued experimental work in perception with Kurt Koffka, and thiscontact with Kofika and the psychology department at Smith was decisive in herintellectual development and commitment to Gestalt psychology.