While we know our northern friends may not feel it, in the South, Spring is
here. So we thought we'd share a few of our gardening sites appropriate
for this time of the year. Along with gardening, there's grilling, and getting
ready to diet so that you can fit back into that bathing suit this summer!
These are corporeal motion and facial expression. An attempt
has been made by some writers to discuss these general
divisions separately, and its success would be practically
convenient if it were always understood that their
connection is so intimate that they can never be altogether
severed. A play of feature, whether instinctive or
voluntary, accentuates and qualifies all motions intended to
serve as signs, and strong instinctive facial expression is
generally accompanied by action of the body or some of its
members. But, so far as a distinction can be made,
expressions of the features are the result of emotional, and
corporeal gestures, of intellectual action. The former in
general and the small number of the latter that are
distinctively emotional are nearly identical among men from
physiological causes which do not affect with the same
similarity the processes of thought. The large number of
corporeal gestures expressing intellectual operations
require and admit of more variety and conventionality. Thus
the features and the body among all mankind act almost
uniformly in exhibiting fear, grief, surprise, and shame,
but all objective conceptions are varied and variously
portrayed. Even such simple indications as those for "no"
and "yes" appear in several differing motions. While,
therefore, the terms sign language and gesture speech
necessarily include and suppose facial expression when
emotions are in question, they refer more particularly to
corporeal motions and attitudes. For this reason much of the
valuable contribution of Darwin in his Expression of the
Emotions in Man and Animals is not directly applicable to
sign language. His analysis of emotional gestures into those
explained on the principles of serviceable associated
habits, of antithesis, and of the constitution of the
nervous system, should, nevertheless, always be remembered.
Even if it does not strictly embrace the class of gestures
which form the subject of this paper, and which often have
an immediate pantomimic origin, the earliest gestures were
doubtless instinctive and generally emotional, preceding
pictorial, metaphoric, and, still subsequent, conventional
gestures even, as, according to Darwin's cogent reasoning,
they preceded articulate speech.
While the distinction above made between the realm of facial
play and that of motions of the body, especially those of
the arms and hands, is sufficiently correct for use in
discussion, it must be admitted that the features do express
intellect as well as emotion. The well-known saying of
Charles Lamb that "jokes came in with the candles" is in
point, but the most remarkable example of conveying detailed
information without the use of sounds, hands, or arms, is
given by the late President T.H. Gallaudet, the
distinguished instructor of deaf-mutes, which, to be
intelligible, requires to be quoted at length:
"One day, our distinguished and lamented historical painter,
Col. John Trumbull, was in my school-room during the hours
of instruction, and, on my alluding to the tact which the
pupil referred to had of reading my face, he expressed a
wish to see it tried. I requested him to select any event in
Greek, Roman, English, or American history of a scenic
character, which would make a striking picture on canvas,
and said I would endeavor to communicate it to the lad.
'Tell him,' said he, 'that Brutus (Lucius Junius) condemned
his two sons to death for resisting his authority and
violating his orders.'
"I folded my arms in front of me, and kept them in that
position, to preclude the possibility of making any signs or
gestures, or of spelling any words on my fingers, and
proceeded, as best I could, by the expression of my
countenance, and a few motions of my head and attitudes of
the body, to convey the picture in my own mind to the mind
of my pupil.
"It ought to be stated that he was already acquainted with
the fact, being familiar with the leading events in Roman
history. But when I began, he knew not from what portion of
history, sacred or profane, ancient or modern, the fact was
selected. From this wide range, my delineation on the one
hand and his ingenuity on the other had to bring it within
the division of Roman history, and, still more minutely, to
the particular individual and transaction designated by
Colonel Trumbull. In carrying on the process, I made no use
whatever of any arbitrary, conventional look, motion, or
attitude, before settled between us, by which to let him
understand what I wished to communicate, with the exception
of a single one, if, indeed, it ought to be considered such.
"The usual sign, at that time, among the teachers and
pupils, for a Roman, was portraying an aquiline nose by
placing the forefinger, crooked, in front of the nose. As I
was prevented from using my finger in this way, and having
considerable command over the muscles of my face, I
endeavored to give my nose as much of the aquiline form as
possible, and succeeded well enough for my purpose....
"The outlines of the process were the following:
"A stretching and stretching gaze eastward, with an
undulating motion of the head, as if looking across and
beyond the Atlantic Ocean, to denote that the event
happened, not on the western, but eastern continent. This
was making a little progress, as it took the subject out of
the range of American history.
"A turning of the eyes upward and backward, with
frequently-repeated motions of the head backward, as if
looking a great way back in past time, to denote that the
event was one of ancient date.
"The aquiline shape of the nose, already referred to,
indicating that a Roman was the person concerned. It was, of
course, an old Roman.
"Portraying, as well as I could, by my countenance,
attitude, and manner an individual high in authority, and
commanding others, as if he expected to be obeyed.
"Looking and acting as if I were giving out a specific order
to many persons, and threatening punishment on those who
should resist my authority, even the punishment of death.
"Here was a pause in the progress of events, which I denoted
by sleeping as it were during the night and awakening in the
morning, and doing this several times, to signify that
several days had elapsed.
"Looking with deep interest and surprise, as if at a single
person brought and standing before me, with an expression of
countenance indicating that he had violated the order which
I had given, and that I knew it. Then looking in the same
way at another person near him as also guilty. Two offending
persons were thus denoted.
"Exhibiting serious deliberation, then hesitation,
accompanied with strong conflicting emotions, producing
perturbation, as if I knew not how to feel or what to do.
"Looking first at one of the persons before me, and then at
the other, and then at both together, as a father would
look, indicating his distressful parental feelings under
such afflicting circumstances.
"Composing my feelings, showing that a change was coming
over me, and exhibiting towards the imaginary persons before
me the decided look of the inflexible commander, who was
determined and ready to order them away to execution.
Looking and acting as if the tender and forgiving feelings
of the father had again got the ascendency, and as if I was
about to relent and pardon them.
"These alternating states of mind I portrayed several times,
to make my representations the more graphic and impressive.
"At length the father yields, and the stern principle of
justice, as expressed in my countenance and manners,
prevails. My look and action denote the passing of the
sentence of death on the offenders, and the ordering them
away to execution.
"He quickly turned round to his slate and wrote a correct
and complete account of this story of Brutus and his two
sons."
While it appears that the expressions of the features are
not confined to the emotions or to distinguishing synonyms,
it must be remembered that the meaning of the same motion of
hands, arms, and fingers is often modified, individualized,
or accentuated by associated facial changes and postures of
the body not essential to the sign, which emotional changes
and postures are at once the most difficult to describe and
the most interesting when intelligently reported, not only
because they infuse life into the skeleton sign, but because
they may belong to the class of innate expressions.
This site includes some historical
materials that may imply negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or
language of a particular period or place. These items are presented as
part of the historical record and should not be interpreted to mean that
the WebMasters in any way endorse the stereotypes implied.
Sign Language
Among North American Indians Compared with
that Among Other Peoples and Deaf-Mutes,
1881
