how would you describe the color red to someone who couldn't see it?

Answer 1

i am a psychology major and i know how you will describe it.

actually, you dont DESCRIBE colors to blind people. you make them feel it.

for example, when you say red, that is the feeling of love. that is, you say it and you say, or some significant person tells them that they love him/her so much. that is red. so whenever they feel loved, that is color red. let them feel it. blind people rely on their feelings rather than on their cognitive process when they refer to colors.

i know this because i am a volunteer in many institutions, and some of them have blind children. hope i helped you..^_^

Answer 2

Let's start with what red IS. Photons with a wavelength between 625 and 750 nanometers are red. That is just the start.

Any set of frequencies which produce the same ratio of stimulation to cone cells is also perceived as red by humans. Humans have cone cells which are most sensitive to of 564 nm, 534 nm, and 420 nm but are broadly sensitive at least 100 nm on either side. So it is quite possible to make something appear red to a human by making it less blue, for example.

Likewise, any set of pigments or natural coloration which produces wavelengths of light that is perceived by humans to be 'red' is ALSO said to be red. So it is red light which is reflected from the red paint on the red table. Technically it is only the LIGHT which is red, but in linguistic parlance, they are all red.

None of the above, of course, will be detectable by a blind person without the some extra equipment. But it gives a basic grounds for understanding. Red involves light. Red can be caused by colouration. But red is still much more than even this.

Red has a psychological effect on people. Red is considered to be an emotionally intense colour. It is associated with warmth but also with excitement. Humans who see red may experience these feelings even if they don't know why.

In the natural environment, red can be found in fire and very hot things, in sunsets, and on flowers. Some animals are naturally coloured red, primarily birds. Blood is also red. People who see the colour red often make these very common associations. The colour is also adopted for symbols and linguistic use as well, again often indicating intensity. There is a reason you 'paint the town RED', get 'caught RED-handed', and 'see RED'.

Even a blind person can learn and understand all these associations, and even come to make them himself. "A sports car? I hope it's red!"

Answer 3

well it depends on who that person was or is thats asking. if the person is someone i hate, i'll tell them i can show what red is by stabbing them a few times to show them what red feels like. or if its someone who i love or attracted to i can show them how red feels like on the other side (heart and red roses). also if its in the time of need, say a poor old lady living on the corner who cant afford heat during the winter months, i could light her a fire and wrap her with a nice warm blanket. she could experience the feeling of red that way (fire) :) deppends how look at it. a pun on words!

Answer 4

>> I saw a movie once where a man tried to describe colours to a blind lady ~ he did it like this:
For red, he took her hand & placed it near a stove top that was turned on...
For blue, he took her hand & placed it on ice cubes...
I thought this was a pretty good interpretation of how you could in some way explain colours to blind people.
Hope this helps. Ciao!

Answer 5

well the only ways you can explain are with the senses they do have .. so the things that have red associated to them let them smell and feel them.

I suppose blood and fire would be among the top 10.
Edit - I suppose love and ... umm passion could be associated with red as well .... I leave you to get creative as to how you could show those things.

Answer 6

That's funny. I was trying to just yesterday with a friend who is blind to red. I just told him to imagine a color in between orange and brown.

Answer 7

Red is that point where the pleasure turns into pain

Answer 8

i guess it would depend on who you were describing it to (what age).

I agree with "hot" and that would be appropriate for a child.

I also associate red with passion (I think of red sheets, red roses....they mean love, but love involves passion, so...).

good luck!

Answer 9

there's an older movie (not that old) it was called "mask" with Cher and she had that deformed kid and he went to camp it was a blind camp and met a girl who was blind (Laura dern) and she was blind since birth he wanted her to understand colors so he got rocks for red he got the rocks really hot, cold the rocks were in the freezer to explain blue, he gave her cotton balls to explain clouds and white,,,,,that's all i remember,,,great movie i hope i helped

Answer 10

The red color you could feel by enormous HEAT...
That's the only description, not warm...HOT