Our self-attention is excited almost exclusively by the opinion of others,
for no person living in absolute solitude would care about his appearance.
Every one feels blame more acutely than praise. Now, whenever we know,
or suppose, that others are depreciating our personal appearance,
our attention is strongly drawn towards ourselves, more especially
to our faces. The probable effect of this will be, as has just
been explained, to excite into activity that part of the sensorium,
which receives the sensory nerves of the face; and this will
react through the vaso-motor system on the facial capillaries.
By frequent reiteration during numberless generations, the process
will have become so habitual, in association with the belief that others
are thinking of us, that even a suspicion of their depreciation suffices
to relax the capillaries, without any conscious thought about our faces.
With some sensitive persons it is enough even to notice their dress
to produce the same effect. Through the force, also, of association
and inheritance our capillaries are relaxed, whenever we know,
or imagine, that any one is blaming, though in silence, our actions,
thoughts, or character; and, again, when we are highly praised.
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