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Show 258 DISGUST. CHAP. XI. there is of course nothing disgusting in the soup ~ts~lf. I presume tha.t thjs follows from the strong asso~1abon in our minds between the sight of food, however cucum-stanced, and the idea of eating it. As the sensation of disgust primarily arises in con-nection with the act of eating or tasting, it is natural that its expression should consist chiefly in movements round the mouth. But as disgust also causes annoyance, it is o-enerally accompanied by a frown, and often by gestu~es as if to push away or to guard oneself against the offensive object. In the two photographs (figs. 2 and 3, on Plate V.) Mr. Rejlander has siinulated this expression with some success. With respect to the face, moderate disgust is exhibited in various ways; by the mouth being widely opened, as if to let an offensive morsel drop out; by spitting; by blowing out of the protruded lips; or by a sound as of clearing the throat. Such guttural sounds are written ach or ugh; and their utter-ance is sometimes accompanied by a shudder, the arms being pressed close to the sides and the shoulders raised in the same manner as when horror is experienced.7 Extreme ~isgust is expressed by move1nents round the mouth identical ·with those preparatory to the act of vomiting. The mouth is opened widely, with the upper lip strongly retracted, which wrinkles the sides of the nose, and with the lower lip protruded and everted as much as possible. This latter movement requires the contraction of the 1nuscles which draw downwards the corners of the mouth.8 It is remarkable how readily and instantly retching 7 See, to this effect, Mr. Hensleigh Wedgwood's Introduction to the ' Dictionary of English Etymology,' 2nd edit. 18721 p. xxxvii. 8 Duchenne believes that in the eversion of the lower lip, the corners are drawn downwo.rds by the dep1·essores anguli oris. Henle (H~n~buch d. Ano.t. des Menschen, 1858, B. i. s. 151) concludes that thls 18 effected by th~ rr"uBct6lus g_uadratus menU. ~HAP. XI. DISGUST. 259 or act~al vomiting is induced in some persons by tho mere Idea of having partaken of any unusual food a 1 of an ~nimal.whioh i not commonly eaten; altho~gh th~re 1~ noth1ng in such food to cau e the stomach to reJect It. When vomiting results, as a reflex action, from some real cause-as from too rich food, or tainted meat, or from an emetic-it ~oes not ensue immediately, ~ut generally after a considerable interval of time. Iherefore, to account for retchino- or vomiting bein()' so . ll 0 0 q~1c r y and easily excited by a mere idea, the suspicion ar1ses tha: our progenitors must formerly have had the power (hke that possessed by ruminants and some oth r animals) of voluntarjly rejecting food which disa~ reed with them, or which they thought would disagree w1th them ; and now, though this power has been !ost, as far as :he will is concerned, it is called into Invoh:ntary act~on, through the force of a formerly welle tabhshed hab1t, whenever the mind revolts at the idea of having partaken of any kind of food or at anythinodisgusting. This suspicion receives s~pport from th~ fact, of w_hich I am assured by Mr. Sutton, that the ~1onkeys 1n the Zoological Gardens often vomit whilst In perfect health, which looks as if the act were voluntary. We can see that as man is able to communicate by langu~ge to his children and others, the knowledge o.f the kin~s of food to be avoided, he would have httle occas~on to use the faculty of voluntary rejection; ~o that this power would tend to be lost through uisuse. As the sense of smell is so intimately connected with that of taste, it is no.t surprising that an excessively bad odour ~hould exmte retching or vomiting in some ~ersons, quite as readily as the thought of revolting food does ; and that, as a further consequence, a 1noderately offensive odour should cause the various ~ 2 |
