Darwinism stated by Darwin himself: Characteristic passages from the writings of Charles DarwinDarwin, Charles
Science
Darwinism stated by Darwin himself: Characteristic passages from the writings of Charles Darwin
Darwin, Charles
Evolution (Biology)
With young children sulkiness is shown by pouting, or, as it is
sometimes called, “making a snout.” When the corners of the mouth
are much depressed, the lower lip is a little everted and protruded;
and this is likewise called a pout. But the pouting here referred
to consists of the protrusion of both lips into a tubular form,
sometimes to such an extent as to project as far as the end of the
nose, if this be short. Pouting is generally accompanied by frowning,
and sometimes by the utterance of a booing or whooing noise. This
expression is remarkable, as almost the sole one, as far as I know,
which is exhibited much more plainly during childhood, at least with
Europeans, than during maturity. There is, however, some tendency to
the protrusion of the lips with the adults of all races under the
influence of great rage. Some children pout when they are shy, and they
can then hardly be called sulky.
* * * * *
[Page 234.]
Young orangs and chimpanzees protrude their lips to an extraordinary
degree, when they are discontented, somewhat angry, or sulky; also
when they are surprised, a little frightened, and even when slightly
pleased. Their mouths are protruded apparently for the sake of making
the various noises proper to these several states of mind; and its
shape, as I observed with the chimpanzee, differed slightly when the
cry of pleasure and that of anger were uttered. As soon as these
animals become enraged, the shape of the mouth wholly changes, and the
teeth are exposed. The adult orang when wounded is said to emit “a
singular cry, consisting at first of high notes, which at length deepen
into a low roar. While giving out the high notes he thrusts out his
lips into a funnel shape, but in uttering the low notes he holds his
mouth wide open.” With the gorilla, the lower lip is said to be capable
of great elongation. If, then, our semi-human progenitors protruded
their lips when sulky or a little angered, in the same manner as do
the existing anthropoid apes, it is not an anomalous, though a curious
fact, that our children should exhibit, when similarly affected, a
trace of the same expression, together with some tendency to utter a
noise. For it is not at all unusual for animals to retain, more or less
perfectly, during early youth, and subsequently to lose, characters
which were aboriginally possessed by their adult progenitors, and which
are still retained by distinct species, their near relations.
DECISION AT THE MOUTH.
[Page 236.]
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