Marshall McLuhan has an alternate but related theory for the difference between &quot;close talkers&quot; and those who like to be able to see the whole person when talking.<p>In The Gutenberg Galaxy, McLuhan infers that &quot;close talkers&quot; are often tribal cultures who rely primarily on the spoken word for means of communication whereas highly literate cultures like to be able to see the whole person because of the stress the print medium has on the eye.