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Show 1 t\NTITHESIS. CHAP. H. C? THE rRINCIPT.J E OF ~. )~ . s havino- commonly had depend. partly on all the Sl~lll th; practice of the Rotne natural on·g l· n ; a nd partY toon contract thm· r si· gns deaf and dnmb and of sahv aoo- esk e of rapidity.a H ence as Innch as possible for t. ~ saf't becomes doubtful or their natural source o.r or.i <on n .o ethn e case with artiC. U 1a t e is completely lost; as JS bkewise language. . h'cll plainly stand in oppo- Many signs, mor~ eove,-. ' w I h e had on both Sl' de s sition to each oth er, a Ppe.a r to a v to hold good W·l t 11 . . . . Tins seems . d a signrficant ongin. d f d dumb for hght an " d b the ea an the signs use y weakness, &c. In a future darkness, for strength and to show that the opposit~ chapter I shall end~avour d negation namely, vertJ-gestures of affinnation an h k' o· th~ head, have both eally noddi·n g and 1a t erally s. a . 1n.o The waving of t h e c1 tural beginning. . b probably ha a na h' h is used as a negati:ve y hand from right to left, wb IC ·rlve~ted in imitation of Y have een 1 t some savages, ma h th - the opposite movemen . h h ad . but w e er f' shaking t e e ' . t .. ht line from the ace, of waving the .handffi In at. s ra~as arisen through anti- . l . d In a 1 rma Ion, f 1 whiC. 1 IS ·u se qu1. te a·1 s t' ct manner is doubt u . 111 ' • thesis or 1n some th stures which are 1nnate turn to e ge · If we nowt 11 the 1. n a·1 v1. d u al s of the same s.p ecie.s , or common o a d th . resent head of antithesis, h. h me un er e P t and w 1C co d btf 1 whether any of them were a it is extremely o~ u t d nd consciously performed. first delib~r~tdelytheln;:~ ~ns:ance of a gesture standing With man1nn W R Scott's interesting work, 'The Deaf a See on this subject Dr. · · H ys "'!'his contracting of d Dumb, 2nd edit. 1870, P· 12. e sa th' the natural expres-nn , . h h ter gestures an . ,, natm·al gestures mto roue s or t tl deaf and dum b. 'rlns ,, sion requu· es, · common amongs le 11 lS very 1 h tened os neu.rly to lose a . f uent y so s or . "' . t ,, contracted gesturo lS req b t t the deaf and dumb who use l, " semblance of the nu.tural one, u o . ,, " it still has the force of the original expressiOn. CHAP. II. THE PRINCIPLE OF ANTITIIE~ 'IS. 63 in direct opposition to other movements, naturally assume.d under an opposite frame of mind, is that ~f shrugging the shoulders. This expresses impotence or an apology,- something which cannot be done or cannot be avoided. The gesture is sometimes ~sed consciously and voluntarily, but it is extremely improbable that it was at first deliberately invented, and afterwards fixed by habit; for not only do younoo children sometimes shrug their shoulders under th~ abov.e states of mi?d, but the movement is accompanied, as will be shown 1n a future chapter, by various subordinate movements, which not one man in a thousand is aware of, unless he has specially attended to the subject. Dogs when approaching a strange dog, may find it useful to show .by their movements that they are friendly, and do not vnsh to fight. When two young dogs in play are growling and biting each other's faces and legs, it is obvious that they mutually understand each other's gestures and manners. There seems, indeed, some deO'ree b of instinctive knowledge in puppies and ·kittens, that they must not use their sharp little teeth or claws too freely in their play, though this sometimes happens and a squeal is the result ; otherwise they would often injure each other's eyes. When my terrier bites 1ny hand in play, often snarling at the same time, if he bites too hard and I say gently, gently, .he goes on biting, but answers me by a few ·wags of the tail, which seems to say "Never mind, it is all fun." Although dogs do thus express, and may wish to express, to other dogs and to man, that they are in a fi·iendly state of mind, it is incredible that they could ever have deliberately thought of drawing back and depressing their ears, instead of holding them erect,-of lowering and wagging their tails, instead of keeping them stiff and |
