A man reflecting on a crime committed in solitude, and stung by
his conscience, does not blush; yet he will blush under the vivid
recollection of a detected fault, or of one committed in the presence
of others, the degree of blushing being closely related to the feeling
of regard for those who have detected, witnessed, or suspected his fault.
Breaches of conventional rules of conduct, if they are rigidly insisted
on by our equals or superiors, often cause more intense blushes even
than a detected crime, and an act which is really criminal, if not
blamed by our equals, hardly raises a tinge of colour on our cheeks.
Modesty from humility, or from an indelicacy, excites a vivid blush,
as both relate to the judgment or fixed customs of others.
From the intimate sympathy which exists between the capillary circulation
of the surface of the head and of the brain, whenever there is
intense blushing, there will be some, and often great, confusion of mind.
This is frequently accompanied by awkward movements, and sometimes
by the involuntary twitching of certain muscles.
As blushing, according to this hypothesis, is an indirect result of attention,
originally directed to our personal appearance, that is to the surface
of the body, and more especially to the face, we can understand the meaning
of the gestures which accompany blushing throughout the world.
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