Aristotle's works:: Containing the Master-piece, Directions for Midwives, and Counsel and Advice to Child-bearing Women with Various Useful Remedies
Aristotle · en
If the space between the eye-brows be of more than ordinary distance, it
shows the person to be hard-hearted, envious, close, cunning,
apprehensive, greedy of novelties, of a vain fortune, addicted to
cruelty more than love. But those men whose eye-brows are at lesser
distance from each other, are for the most part of a dull understanding;
yet subtle enough in their dealings, and of an uncommon boldness, which
is often attended with great felicity; but that which is most
commendable in them is, that they are most sure and constant in their
friendship.
Great and full eyes in either man or woman, show the person to be for
the most part slothful, bold, envious, a bad concealer of secrets,
miserable, vain, given to lying, and yet of a bad memory, slow in
invention, weak in his intellectuals, and yet very much conceited of
that little knack of wisdom he thinks himself master of. He whose eyes
are hollow in his head, and therefore discerns excellently well at a
great distance, is one that is suspicious, malicious, furious, perverse
in his conversation, of an extraordinary memory, bold, cruel and false
both in words and deeds, threatening, vicious, luxurious, proud,
envious, and treacherous; but he whose eyes are as it were starting out
of his head, is a simple foolish person, shameless, very fertile, and
easy to be persuaded either to vice or virtue. He who looks studiously
and acutely with his eyes and eye-lids downwards, denotes thereby to be
of a malicious nature, very treacherous, false, unfaithful, envious,
miserable, impious towards God, and dishonest towards men. He whose eyes
are small and conveniently round, is bashful and weak, very credulous,
liberal to others, and even in his conversation. He whose eyes look
asquint, is thereby denoted to be a deceitful person, unjust, envious,
furious, a great liar, and as the effect of all this, miserable. He who
hath a wandering eye, and which is rolling up and down, is for the most
part a vain, simple, deceitful man, lustful, treacherous, or
high-minded, an admirer of the fair sex, and one easy to be persuaded to
virtue or vice. He or she whose eyes are twinkling, and which move
forward or backward, shows the person to be luxurious, unfaithful, and
treacherous, presumptuous, and hard to believe any thing that is spoken.
If a person has any greenness mingled in the white of his eyes, such is
commonly silly, and often very false, vain and deceitful, unkind to his
friends, a great concealer of his own secrets, and very choleric. Those
whose eyes are every way rolling up and down, or they who seldom move
their eyes, and when they do, do as it were draw their eyes inwardly,
and accurately fasten them upon some object, such are by their
inclinations very malicious, vain-glorious, slothful, unfaithful,
envious, false and contentious. They whose eyes are addicted to
blood-shot, are naturally choleric, proud, disdainful, cruel without
shame, perfidious, and much inclined to superstition. They that have