Nor can I discover grounds for believing that any inherited movement,
which now serves as a means of expression, was at first voluntarily
and consciously performed for this special purpose,--like some
of the gestures and the finger-language used by the deaf and dumb.
On the contrary, every true or inherited movement of expression
seems to have had some natural and independent origin.
But when once acquired, such movements may be voluntarily
and consciously employed as a means of communication.
Even infants, if carefully attended to, find out at a very
early age that their screaming brings relief, and they soon
voluntarily practise it. We may frequently see a person
voluntarily raising his eyebrows to express surprise, or smiling
to express pretended satisfaction and acquiescence. A man often
wishes to make certain gestures conspicuous or demonstrative,
and will raise his extended arms with widely opened fingers
above his head, to show astonishment, or lift his shoulders
to his ears, to show that he cannot or will not do something.
The tendency to such movements will be strengthened or increased
by their being thus voluntarily and repeatedly performed;
and the effects may be inherited.
Pages:
495
496
497
498
499
500
501
502
503
504
505
506
507
508
509
510
511
512
513
514
515
516
517
518
519