Jacob Bronowski’s 1966 speech, “The Reach of Imagination,” provides an early theory that humans are the only beings capable of imagination. This theory relies on the cognitive function of visual images; while it is suggestive, Bronowski does not give an in depth representation of the memory that explains how and why it works. However, Daniel Schacter provides an updated theory, closely related to Bronowski, of how the brain can form and retrieve memories. Schacter adds on to Bronowski’s theory and shows exactly how people remember and interpret things differently. Though Bronowski’s claim is aged, it is still supported by Daniel Schacter’s theory behind the human brain and how memories are retrieved in fragments. In order to understand the objectives of Bronowski, it is crucial to be aware of the rhetorical context. “The Reach of Imagination” is a speech which was delivered as the Blashfield Address to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1966. The speech was given to an audience of top class artists and poets to argue that all humans are capable of imagination, which is where memory is derived from. This is done by referring to an experiment performed by Walter Hunter, who tested the memory of dogs by placing them in cages with tunnels as escape routes. A light would flash above the exit tunnel, which the dogs would follow immediately. However, after making the dogs wait, it became evident that they were incapable of remembering the correct route. The experiment
