Facial Expressions (2)
Posted on December 13, 2008 - Filed Under Uncategorized
After viewing this on a large screen, the attendees agree that the groups appear to be divided into two opposing camps. Once we have obtained this concession, we ask, “In what way is this communicated to you?” Although some never say more than “facial expressions,” others, with more perception, note in detail the furrows of the forehead, eyebrow positioning, exaggerated opening of the eyes, flaring nostrils, and so on.
Charles Darwin in his classic book,The Expression of Emotion in Man and Animals, to ascertain “whether the same expressions and gestures prevail . . . with all the races of mankind,” wrote questions
to his correspondents scattered throughout the world. As simple as the questions were, he requested that even his trained observers use “actual observations, and not memory.” The following are a few of Darwin’s questions:
1. Is astonishment expressed by the eyes and mouth being opened wide, and by the eyebrows being raised?
2. Does shame excite a blush when the colour of the skinallows it to be visible? And especially how low down the body does the blush extend?
3. When a man is indignant or defiant does he frown, hold his body and head erect, square his shoulders and clench his fists?
4. When considering deeply on any subject, or trying to understand any puzzle, does he frown, or wrinkle the skin beneath the lower eyelids?
To these and other basic questions he received replies from thirty- six different observers in various parts of the world. Their answers showed a great deal of similarity in communication through facial expressions.
A British research team led by Christopher Brannigan and David Humphries isolated and catalogued 135 distinct gestures and expressions of face, head, and body. Of these, 80 were involved in face and head gestures. They recorded nine separate smiles, three of which are very common: simple smile, upper smile, and broad smile. Briefly analyzed, thesimple smile (Figure 5A), with teeth unexposed, is commonly seen when a person is not participating in any outgoing activity. He is smiling to himself. In the upper smile (Figure 5B) the upper incisors are exposed and there is usually eye- to-eye contact between the individuals. It is often used as a greeting smile when friends meet, or, sometimes, when children greet
their parents. Abroad smile (Figure 5C) is commonly seen during play and is often associated with laughing; both upper and lower incisors are exposed, and eye-to-eye contact seldom occurs.
Smiles should not always be associated strictly with happy moments. “Beware of the oblong smile,” says Dr. Ewan Grant of Birmingham University. He uses this name for the smile that many of us tend to use when we have to be polite. The lips are drawn fully back from both upper and lower teeth, forming the oblong with the lips. Somehow there is no depthto this smile. “This is the smile or grimace when one is pretending to enjoy a joke or off-the-cuff remark. Or when a girl gets too much attention from a drunk, or is being chased around the office by the boss.”
Taken From : How To Read A Person Like a Book
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