It is, however, possible that even strictly involuntary actions,
such as the erection of the hair, may have been affected by the mysterious
power of the will.
Some expressive movements may have arisen spontaneously,
in association with certain states of the mind, like the
tricks lately referred to, and afterwards been inherited.
But I know of no evidence rendering this view probable.
The power of communication between the members of the same
tribe by means of language has been of paramount importance
in the development of man; and the force of language is much
aided by the expressive movements of the face and body.
We perceive this at once when we converse on an important subject
with any person whose face is concealed. Nevertheless there are
no grounds, as far as I can discover, for believing that any muscle
has been developed or even modified exclusively for the sake
of expression. The vocal and other sound-producing organs,
by which various expressive noises are produced, seem to form
a partial exception; but I have elsewhere attempted to show
that these organs were first developed for sexual purposes,
in order that one sex might call or charm the other.
Pages:
494
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518