Chapter X — HATRED AND ANGER

Hatred—Rage, effects of on the system—Uncovering of the teeth—Rage
in the insane—Anger and indignation—As expressed by the
various races of man—Sneering and defiance—The uncovering of
the canine tooth on one side of the face.

If we have suffered or expect to suffer some wilful injury from a man, or
if he is in any way offensive to us, we dislike him; and dislike easily
rises into hatred. Such feelings, if experienced in a moderate degree, are
not clearly expressed by any movement of the body or features, excepting
perhaps by a certain gravity of behaviour, or by some ill-temper. Few
individuals, however, can long reflect about a hated person, without
feeling and exhibiting signs of indignation or rage. But if the offending
person be quite insignificant, we experience merely disdain or contempt.
If, on the other hand, he is all-powerful, then hatred passes into terror,
as when a slave thinks about a cruel master, or a savage about a
bloodthirsty malignant deity.[1001] Most of our
emotions are so closely connected with their expression, that they hardly
exist if the body remains passive—the nature of the expression
depending in chief part on the nature of the actions which have been
habitually performed under this particular state of the mind. A man, for
instance, may know that his life is in the extremest peril, and may
strongly desire to save if; yet, as Louis XVI. said, when surrounded by a
fierce mob, “Am I afraid? feel my pulse.” So a man may intensely hate
another, but until his bodily frame is affected, he cannot be said to be
enraged.

Rage.—I have already had occasion to treat of this emotion in
the third chapter, when discussing the direct influence of the excited
sensorium on the body, in combination with the effects of habitually
associated actions. Rage exhibits itself in the most diversified manner.
The heart and circulation are always affected; the face reddens or becomes
purple, with the veins on the forehead and neck distended. The reddening
of the skin has been observed with the copper-coloured Indians of South
America,[1002] and even, as it is said, on the white
cicatrices left by old wounds on negroes.[1003] Monkeys also
redden from passion. With one of my own infants, under four months old, I
repeatedly observed that the first symptom of an approaching passion was
the rushing of the blood into his bare scalp. On the other hand, the
action of the heart is sometimes so much impeded by great rage, that the
countenance becomes pallid or livid,[1004] and not a few men
with heart-disease have dropped down dead under this powerful emotion.

The respiration is likewise affected; the chest heaves, and the dilated
nostrils quiver.[1005] As Tennyson writes, “sharp breaths of
anger puffed her fairy nostrils out.” Hence we have such expressions as
“breathing out vengeance,” and “fuming with anger.”[1006]

The excited brain gives strength to the muscles, and at the same time
energy to the will. The body is commonly held erect ready for instant
action, but sometimes it is bent forward towards the offending person,
with the limbs more or less rigid. The mouth is generally closed with
firmness, showing fixed determination, and the teeth are clenched or
ground together. Such gestures as the raising of the arms, with the fists
clenched, as if to strike the offender, are common. Few men in a great
passion, and telling some one to begone, can resist acting as if they
intended to strike or push the man violently away. The desire, indeed, to
strike often becomes so intolerably strong, that inanimate objects are
struck or dashed to the ground; but the gestures frequently become
altogether purposeless or frantic. Young children, when in a violent rage
roll on the ground on their backs or bellies, screaming, kicking,
scratching, or biting everything within reach. So it is, as I hear from
Mr. Scott, with Hindoo children; and, as we have seen, with the young of
the anthropomorphous apes.

But the muscular system is often affected in a wholly different way; for
trembling is a frequent consequence of extreme rage. The paralysed lips
then refuse to obey the will, “and the voice sticks in the throat;”[1007]
or it is rendered loud, harsh, and discordant. If there be much and rapid
speaking, the mouth froths. The hair sometimes bristles; but I shall
return to this subject in another chapter, when I treat of the mingled
emotions of rage and terror. There is in most cases a strongly-marked
frown on the forehead; for this follows from the sense of anything
displeasing or difficult, together with concentration of mind. But
sometimes the brow, instead of being much contracted and lowered, remains
smooth, with the glaring eyes kept widely open. The eyes are always
bright, or may, as Homer expresses it, glisten with fire. They are
sometimes bloodshot, and are said to protrude from their sockets—the
result, no doubt, of the head being gorged with blood, as shown by the
veins being distended. According to Gratiolet, “the pupils are always
contracted in rage,” and I hear from Dr. Crichton Browne that this is the
case in the fierce delirium of meningitis; but the movements of the iris
under the influence of the different emotions is a very obscure subject.[1008]

Shakspeare sums up the chief characteristics of rage as follows:—

“In peace there’s nothing so becomes a man,
As modest stillness and humility;
But when the blast of war blows in our ears,
Then imitate the action of the tiger:
Stiffen the sinews, summon up the blood,
Then lend the eye a terrible aspect;
Now set the teeth, and stretch the nostril wide,
Hold hard the breath, and bend up every spirit
To his full height! On, on, you noblest English.”
Henry V., act iii. sc. 1.

The lips are sometimes protruded during rage in a manner, the meaning of
which I do not understand, unless it depends on our descent from some
ape-like animal. Instances have been observed, not only with Europeans,
but with the Australians and Hindoos. The lips, however, are much more
commonly retracted, the grinning or clenched teeth being thus exposed.
This has been noticed by almost every one who has written on expression.[1009]
The appearance is as if the teeth were uncovered, ready for seizing or
tearing an enemy, though there may be no intention of acting in this
manner. Mr. Dyson Lacy has seen this grinning expression with the
Australians, when quarrelling, and so has Gaika with the Kafirs of South
America. Dickens,[1010] in speaking of an atrocious murderer who
had just been caught, and was surrounded by a furious mob, describes “the
people as jumping up one behind another, snarling with their teeth, and
making at him like wild beasts.” Every one who has had much to do with
young children must have seen how naturally they take to biting, when in a
passion. It seems as instinctive in them as in young crocodiles, who snap
their little jaws as soon as they emerge from the egg.

A grinning expression and the protrusion of the lips appear sometimes to
go together. A close observer says that he has seen many instances of
intense hatred (which can hardly be distinguished from rage, more or less
suppressed) in Orientals, and once in an elderly English woman. In all
these cases there “was a grin, not a scowl—the lips lengthening, the
cheeks settling downwards, the eyes half-closed, whilst the brow remained
perfectly calm.”[1011]

This retraction of the lips and uncovering of the teeth during paroxysms
of rage, as if to bite the offender, is so remarkable, considering how
seldom the teeth are used by men in fighting, that I inquired from Dr. J.
Crichton Browne whether the habit was common in the insane whose passions
are unbridled. He informs me that he has repeatedly observed it both with
the insane and idiotic, and has given me the following illustrations:—

Shortly before receiving my letter, he witnessed an uncontrollable
outbreak of anger and delusive jealousy in an insane lady. At first she
vituperated her husband, and whilst doing so foamed at the mouth. Next she
approached close to him with compressed lips, and a virulent set frown.
Then she drew back her lips, especially the corners of the upper lip, and
showed her teeth, at the same time aiming a vicious blow at him. A second
case is that of an old soldier, who, when he is requested to conform to
the rules of the establishment, gives way to discontent, terminating in
fury. He commonly begins by asking Dr. Browne whether he is not ashamed to
treat him in such a manner. He then swears and blasphemes, paces tip and
down, tosses his arms wildly about, and menaces any one near him. At last,
as his exasperation culminates, he rushes up towards Dr. Browne with a
peculiar sidelong movement, shaking his doubled fist, and threatening
destruction. Then his upper lip may be seen to be raised, especially at
the corners, so that his huge canine teeth are exhibited. He hisses forth
his curses through his set teeth, and his whole expression assumes the
character of extreme ferocity. A similar description is applicable to
another man, excepting that he generally foams at the mouth and spits,
dancing and jumping about in a strange rapid manner, shrieking out his
maledictions in a shrill falsetto voice.

Dr. Browne also informs me of the case of an epileptic idiot, incapable of
independent movements, and who spends the whole day in playing with some
toys; but his temper is morose and easily roused into fierceness. When any
one touches his toys, he slowly raises his head from its habitual downward
position, and fixes his eyes on the offender, with a tardy yet angry
scowl. If the annoyance be repeated, he draws back his thick lips and
reveals a prominent row of hideous fangs (large canines being especially
noticeable), and then makes a quick and cruel clutch with his open hand at
the offending person. The rapidity of this clutch, as Dr. Browne remarks,
is marvellous in a being ordinarily so torpid that he takes about fifteen
seconds, when attracted by any noise, to turn his head from one side to
the other. If, when thus incensed, a handkerchief, book, or other article,
be placed into his hands, he drags it to his mouth and bites it. Mr. Nicol
has likewise described to me two cases of insane patients, whose lips are
retracted during paroxysms of rage.

Dr. Maudsley, after detailing various strange animal-like traits in
idiots, asks whether these are not due to the reappearance of primitive
instincts—“a faint echo from a far-distant past, testifying to a
kinship which man has almost outgrown.” He adds, that as every human brain
passes, in the course of its development, through the same stages as those
occurring in the lower vertebrate animals, and as the brain of an idiot is
in an arrested condition, we may presume that it “will manifest its most
primitive functions, and no higher functions.” Dr. Maudsley thinks that
the same view may be extended to the brain in its degenerated condition in
some insane patients; and asks, whence come “the savage snarl, the
destructive disposition, the obscene language, the wild howl, the
offensive habits, displayed by some of the insane? Why should a human
being, deprived of his reason, ever become so brutal in character, as some
do, unless he has the brute nature within him?”[1012] This question
must, as it would appear, he answered in the affirmative.

Anger, Indignation.—These states of the mind differ from rage
only in degree, and there is no marked distinction in their characteristic
signs. Under moderate anger the action of the heart is a little increased,
the colour heightened, and the eyes become bright. The respiration is
likewise a little hurried; and as all the muscles serving for this
function act in association, the wings of the nostrils are somewhat raised
to allow of a free indraught of air; and this is a highly characteristic
sign of indignation. The mouth is commonly compressed, and there is almost
always a frown on the brow. Instead of the frantic gestures of extreme
rage, an indignant man unconsciously throws himself into an attitude ready
for attacking or striking his enemy, whom he will perhaps scan from head
to foot in defiance. He carries his head erect, with his chest well
expanded, and the feet planted firmly on the ground. He holds his arms in
various positions, with one or both elbows squared, or with the arms
rigidly suspended by his sides. With Europeans the fists are commonly
clenched.[1013] The figures 1 and 2 in Plate VI. are
fairly good representations of men simulating indignation. Any one may see
in a mirror, if he will vividly imagine that he has been insulted and
demands an explanation in an angry tone of voice, that he suddenly and
unconsciously throws himself into some such attitude.

Rage, anger, and indignation are exhibited in nearly the same manner
throughout the world; and the following descriptions may be worth giving
as evidence of this, and as illustrations of some of the foregoing
remarks. There is, however, an exception with respect to clenching the
fists, which seems confined chiefly to the men who fight with their fists.
With the Australians only one of my informants has seen the fists
clenched. All agree about the body being held erect; and all, with two
exceptions, state that the brows are heavily contracted. Some of them
allude to the firmly-compressed mouth, the distended nostrils, and
flashing eyes. According to the Rev. Mr. Taplin, rage, with the
Australians, is expressed by the lips being protruded, the eyes being
widely open; and in the case of the women by their dancing about and
casting dust into the air. Another observer speaks of the native men, when
enraged, throwing their arms wildly about.

I have received similar accounts, except as to the clenching of the fists,
in regard to the Malays of the Malacca peninsula, the Abyssinians, and the
natives of South Africa. So it is with the Dakota Indians of North
America; and, according to Mr. Matthews, they then hold their heads erect,
frown, and often stalk away with long strides. Mr. Bridges states that the
Fuegians, when enraged, frequently stamp on the ground, walk distractedly
about, sometimes cry and grow pale. The Rev. Mr. Stack watched a New
Zealand man and woman quarrelling, and made the following entry in his
note-book: “Eyes dilated, body swayed violently backwards and forwards,
head inclined forwards, fists clenched, now thrown behind the body, now
directed towards each other’s faces.” Mr. Swinhoe says that my description
agrees with what he has seen of the Chinese, excepting that an angry man
generally inclines his body towards his antagonist, and pointing at him,
pours forth a volley of abuse.

Lastly, with respect to the natives of India, Mr. J. Scott has sent me a
full description of their gestures and expression when enraged. Two
low-caste Bengalees disputed about a loan. At first they were calm, but
soon grew furious and poured forth the grossest abuse on each other’s
relations and progenitors for many generations past. Their gestures were
very different from those of Europeans; for though their chests were
expanded and shoulders squared, their arms remained rigidly suspended,
with the elbows turned inwards and the hands alternately clenched and
opened. Their shoulders were often raised high, and then again lowered.
They looked fiercely at each other from under their lowered and strongly
wrinkled brows, and their protruded lips were firmly closed. They
approached each other, with heads and necks stretched forwards, and
pushed, scratched, and grasped at each other. This protrusion of the head
and body seems a common gesture with the enraged; and I have noticed it
with degraded English women whilst quarrelling violently in the streets.
In such cases it may be presumed that neither party expects to receive a
blow from the other.

A Bengalee employed in the Botanic Gardens was accused, in the presence of
Mr. Scott, by the native overseer of having stolen a valuable plant. He
listened silently and scornfully to the accusation; his attitude erect,
chest expanded, mouth closed, lips protruding, eyes firmly set and
penetrating. He then defiantly maintained his innocence, with upraised and
clenched hands, his head being now pushed forwards, with the eyes widely
open and eyebrows raised. Mr. Scott also watched two Mechis, in Sikhim,
quarrelling about their share of payment. They soon got into a furious
passion, and then their bodies became less erect, with their heads pushed
forwards; they made grimaces at each other; their shoulders were raised;
their arms rigidly bent inwards at the elbows, and their hands
spasmodically closed, but not properly clenched. They continually
approached and retreated from each other, and often raised their arms as
if to strike, but their hands were open, and no blow was given. Mr. Scott
made similar observations on the Lepchas whom he often saw quarrelling,
and he noticed that they kept their arms rigid and almost parallel to
their bodies, with the hands pushed somewhat backwards and partially
closed, but not clenched.

Sneering, Defiance: Uncovering the canine tooth on one side.—The
expression which I wish here to consider differs but little from that
already described, when the lips are retracted and the grinning teeth
exposed. The difference consists solely in the upper lip being retracted
in such a manner that the canine tooth on one side of the face alone is
shown; the face itself being generally a little upturned and half averted
from the person causing offence. The other signs of rage are not
necessarily present. This expression may occasionally be observed in a
person who sneers at or defies another, though there may be no real anger;
as when any one is playfully accused of some fault, and answers, “I scorn
the imputation.” The expression is not a common one, but I have seen it
exhibited with perfect distinctness by a lady who was being quizzed by
another person. It was described by Parsons as long ago as 1746, with an
engraving, showing the uncovered canine on one side.[1014]
Mr. Rejlander, without my having made any allusion to the subject, asked
me whether I had ever noticed this expression, as he had been much struck
by it. He has photographed for me (Plate IV. fig 1) a lady, who sometimes
unintentionally displays the canine on one side, and who can do so
voluntarily with unusual distinctness.

The expression of a half-playful sneer graduates into one of great
ferocity when, together with a heavily frowning brow and fierce eye, the
canine tooth is exposed. A Bengalee boy was accused before Mr. Scott of
some misdeed. The delinquent did not dare to give vent to his wrath in
words, but it was plainly shown on his countenance, sometimes by a defiant
frown, and sometimes “by a thoroughly canine snarl.” When this was
exhibited, “the corner of the lip over the eye-tooth, which happened in
this case to be large and projecting, was raised on the side of his
accuser, a strong frown being still retained on the brow.” Sir C. Bell
states[1015] that the actor Cooke could express the
most determined hate “when with the oblique cast of his eyes he drew up
the outer part of the upper lip, and discovered a sharp angular tooth.”

The uncovering of the canine tooth is the result of a double movement. The
angle or corner of the mouth is drawn a little backwards, and at the same
time a muscle which runs parallel to and near the nose draws up the outer
part of the upper lip, and exposes the canine on this side of the face.
The contraction of this muscle makes a distinct furrow on the cheek, and
produces strong wrinkles under the eye, especially at its inner corner.
The action is the same as that of a snarling dog; and a dog when
pretending to fight often draws up the lip on one side alone, namely that
facing his antagonist. Our word sneer is in fact the same as snarl,
which was originally snar, the l “being merely an element
implying continuance of action.”[1016]

I suspect that we see a trace of this same expression in what is called a
derisive or sardonic smile. The lips are then kept joined or almost
joined, but one corner of the mouth is retracted on the side towards the
derided person; and this drawing back of the corner is part of a true
sneer. Although some persons smile more on one side of their face than on
the other, it is not easy to understand why in cases of derision the
smile, if a real one, should so commonly be confined to one side. I have
also on these occasions noticed a slight twitching of the muscle which
draws up the outer part of the upper lip; and this movement, if fully
carried out, would have uncovered the canine, and would have produced a
true sneer.

Mr. Bulmer, an Australian missionary in a remote part of Gipps’ Land,
says, in answer to my query about the uncovering of the canine on one
side, “I find that the natives in snarling at each other speak with the
teeth closed, the upper lip drawn to one side, and a general angry
expression of face; but they look direct at the person addressed.” Three
other observers in Australia, one in Abyssinia, and one in China, answer
my query on this head in the affirmative; but as the expression is rare,
and as they enter into no details, I am afraid of implicitly trusting
them. It is, however, by no means improbable that this animal-like
expression may be more common with savages than with civilized races. Mr.
Geach is an observer who may be fully trusted, and he has observed it on
one occasion in a Malay in the interior of Malacca. The Rev. S. O. Glenie
answers, “We have observed this expression with the natives of Ceylon, but
not often.” Lastly, in North America, Dr. Rothrock has seen it with some
wild Indians, and often in a tribe adjoining the Atnahs.

Although the upper lip is certainly sometimes raised on one side alone in
sneering at or defying any one, I do not know that this is always the
case, for the face is commonly half averted, and the expression is often
momentary. The movement being confined to one side may not be an essential
part of the expression, but may depend on the proper muscles being
incapable of movement excepting on one side. I asked four persons to
endeavour to act voluntarily in this manner; two could expose the canine
only on the left side, one only on the right side, and the fourth on
neither side. Nevertheless it is by no means certain that these same
persons, if defying any one in earnest, would not unconsciously have
uncovered their canine tooth on the side, whichever it might be, towards
the offender. For we have seen that some persons cannot voluntarily make
their eyebrows oblique, yet instantly act in this manner when affected by
any real, although most trifling, cause of distress. The power of
voluntarily uncovering the canine on one side of the face being thus often
wholly lost, indicates that it is a rarely used and almost abortive
action. It is indeed a surprising fact that man should possess the power,
or should exhibit any tendency to its use; for Mr. Sutton has never
noticed a snarling action in our nearest allies, namely, the monkeys in
the Zoological Gardens, and he is positive that the baboons, though
furnished with great canines, never act thus, but uncover all their teeth
when feeling savage and ready for an attack. Whether the adult
anthropomorphous apes, in the males of whom the canines are much larger
than in the females, uncover them when prepared to fight, is not known.

The expression here considered, whether that of a playful sneer or
ferocious snarl, is one of the most curious which occurs in man. It
reveals his animal descent; for no one, even if rolling on the ground in a
deadly grapple with an enemy, and attempting to bite him, would try to use
his canine teeth more than his other teeth. We may readily believe from
our affinity to the anthropomorphous apes that our male semi-human
progenitors possessed great canine teeth, and men are now occasionally
born having them of unusually large size, with interspaces in the opposite
jaw for their reception.[1017] We may further suspect, notwithstanding
that we have no support from analogy, that our semi-human progenitors
uncovered their canine teeth when prepared for battle, as we still do when
feeling ferocious, or when merely sneering at or defying some one, without
any intention of making a real attack with our teeth.