Chapter XIII — SELF-ATTENTION—SHAME—SHYNESS—MODESTY: BLUSHING

Nature of a blush—Inheritance—The parts of the body most
affected—Blushing in the various races of man—Accompanying
gestures—Confusion of mind—Causes of blushing—Self-attention,
the fundamental element—Shyness—Shame, from broken moral laws
and conventional rules—Modesty—Theory of blushing—Recapitulation.

Blushing is the most peculiar and the most human of all expressions.
Monkeys redden from passion, but it would require an overwhelming amount
of evidence to make us believe that any animal could blush. The reddening
of the face from a blush is due to the relaxation of the muscular coats of
the small arteries, by which the capillaries become filled with blood; and
this depends on the proper vaso-motor centre being affected. No doubt if
there be at the same time much mental agitation, the general circulation
will be affected; but it is not due to the action of the heart that the
network of minute vessels covering the face becomes under a sense of shame
gorged with blood. We can cause laughing by tickling the skin, weeping or
frowning by a blow, trembling from the fear of pain, and so forth; but we
cannot cause a blush, as Dr. Burgess remarks,[1301] by any physical
means,—that is by any action on the body. It is the mind which must
be affected. Blushing is not only involuntary; but the wish to restrain
it, by leading to self-attention actually increases the tendency.

The young blush much more freely than the old, but not during infancy,[1302]
which is remarkable, as we know that infants at a very early age redden
from passion. I have received authentic accounts of two little girls
blushing at the ages of between two and three years; and of another
sensitive child, a year older, blushing, when reproved for a fault. Many
children, at a somewhat more advanced age blush in a strongly marked
manner. It appears that the mental powers of infants are not as yet
sufficiently developed to allow of their blushing. Hence, also, it is that
idiots rarely blush. Dr. Crichton Browne observed for me those under his
care, but never saw a genuine blush, though he has seen their faces flush,
apparently from joy, when food was placed before them, and from anger.
Nevertheless some, if not utterly degraded, are capable of blushing. A
microcephalous idiot, for instance, thirteen years old, whose eyes
brightened a little when he was pleased or amused, has been described by
Dr. Behn,[1303] as blushing and turning to one side, when
undressed for medical examination.

Women blush much more than men. It is rare to see an old man, but not
nearly so rare to see an old woman blushing. The blind do not escape.
Laura Bridgman, born in this condition, as well as completely deaf,
blushes.[1304] The Rev. R. H. Blair, Principal of the
Worcester College, informs me that three children born blind, out of seven
or eight then in the Asylum, are great blushers. The blind are not at
first conscious that they are observed, and it is a most important part of
their education, as Mr. Blair informs me, to impress this knowledge on
their minds; and the impression thus gained would greatly strengthen the
tendency to blush, by increasing the habit of self-attention.

The tendency to blush is inherited. Dr. Burgess gives the case[1305]
of a family consisting of a father, mother, and ten children, all of whom,
without exception, were prone to blush to a most painful degree. The
children were grown up; “and some of them were sent to travel in order to
wear away this diseased sensibility, but nothing was of the slightest
avail.” Even peculiarities in blushing seem to be inherited. Sir James
Paget, whilst examining the spine of a girl, was struck at her singular
manner of blushing; a big splash of red appeared first on one cheek, and
then other splashes, variously scattered over the face and neck. He
subsequently asked the mother whether her daughter always blushed in this
peculiar manner; and was answered, “Yes, she takes after me.” Sir J. Paget
then perceived that by asking this question he had caused the mother to
blush; and she exhibited the same peculiarity as her daughter.

In most cases the face, ears and neck are the sole parts which redden; but
many persons, whilst blushing intensely, feel that their whole bodies grow
hot and tingle; and this shows that the entire surface must be in some
manner affected. Blushes are said sometimes to commence on the forehead,
but more commonly on the cheeks, afterwards spreading to the ears and
neck.[1306]
In two Albinos examined by Dr. Burgess, the blushes commenced by a small
circumscribed spot on the cheeks, over the parotidean plexus of nerves,
and then increased into a circle; between this blushing circle and the
blush on the neck there was an evident line of demarcation; although both
arose simultaneously. The retina, which is naturally red in the Albino,
invariably increased at the same time in redness.[1307] Every one must
have noticed how easily after one blush fresh blushes chase each other
over the face. Blushing is preceded by a peculiar sensation in the skin.
According to Dr. Burgess the reddening of the skin is generally succeeded
by a slight pallor, which shows that the capillary vessels contract after
dilating. In some rare cases paleness instead of redness is caused under
conditions which would naturally induce a blush. For instance, a young
lady told me that in a large and crowded party she caught her hair so
firmly on the button of a passing servant, that it took some time before
she could be extricated; from her sensations she imagined that she had
blushed crimson; but was assured by a friend that she had turned extremely
pale.

I was desirous to learn how far down the body blushes extend; and Sir J.
Paget, who necessarily has frequent opportunities for observation, has
kindly attended to this point for me during two or three years. He finds
that with women who blush intensely on the face, ears, and nape of neck,
the blush does not commonly extend any lower down the body. It is rare to
see it as low down as the collar-bones and shoulder-blades; and he has
never himself seen a single instance in which it extended below the upper
part of the chest. He has also noticed that blushes sometimes die away
downwards, not gradually and insensibly, but by irregular ruddy blotches.
Dr. Langstaff has likewise observed for me several women whose bodies did
not in the least redden while their faces were crimsoned with blushes.
With the insane, some of whom appear to be particularly liable to
blushing, Dr. J. Crichton Browne has several times seen the blush extend
as far down as the collar-bones, and in two instances to the breasts. He
gives me the case of a married woman, aged twenty-seven, who suffered from
epilepsy. On the morning after her arrival in the Asylum, Dr. Browne,
together with his assistants, visited her whilst she was in bed. The
moment that he approached, she blushed deeply over her cheeks and temples;
and the blush spread quickly to her ears. She was much agitated and
tremulous. He unfastened the collar of her chemise in order to examine the
state of her lungs; and then a brilliant blush rushed over her chest, in
an arched line over the upper third of each breast, and extended downwards
between the breasts nearly to the ensiform cartilage of the sternum. This
case is interesting, as the blush did not thus extend downwards until it
became intense by her attention being drawn to this part of her person. As
the examination proceeded she became composed, and the blush disappeared;
but on several subsequent occasions the same phenomena were observed.

The foregoing facts show that, as a general rule, with English women,
blushing does not extend beneath the neck and upper part of the chest.
Nevertheless Sir J. Paget informs me that he has lately heard of a case,
on which he can fully rely, in which a little girl, shocked by what she
imagined to be an act of indelicacy, blushed all over her abdomen and the
upper parts of her legs. Moreau also[1308] relates, on the
authority of a celebrated painter, that the chest, shoulders, arms, and
whole body of a girl, who unwillingly consented to serve as a model,
reddened when she was first divested of her clothes.

It is a rather curious question why, in most cases the face, ears, and
neck alone redden, inasmuch as the whole surface of the body often tingles
and grows hot. This seems to depend, chiefly, on the face and adjoining
parts of the skin having been habitually exposed to the air, light, and
alternations of temperature, by which the small arteries not only have
acquired the habit of readily dilating and contracting, but appear to have
become unusually developed in comparison with other parts of the surface.[1309]
It is probably owing to this same cause, as M. Moreau and Dr. Burgess have
remarked, that the face is so liable to redden under various
circumstances, such as a fever-fit, ordinary heat, violent exertion,
anger, a slight blow, &c.; and on the other hand that it is liable to
grow pale from cold and fear, and to be discoloured during pregnancy. The
face is also particularly liable to be affected by cutaneous complaints,
by small-pox, erysipelas, &c. This view is likewise supported by the
fact that the men of certain races, who habitually go nearly naked, often
blush over their arms and chests and even down to their waists. A lady,
who is a great blusher, informs Dr. Crichton Browne, that when she feels
ashamed or is agitated, she blushes over her face, neck, wrists, and
hands,—that is, over all the exposed portions of her skin.
Nevertheless it may be doubted whether the habitual exposure of the skin
of the face and neck, and its consequent power of reaction under
stimulants of all kinds, is by itself sufficient to account for the much
greater tendency in English women of these parts than of others to blush;
for the hands are well supplied with nerves and small vessels, and have
been as much exposed to the air as the face or neck, and yet the hands
rarely blush. We shall presently see that the attention of the mind having
been directed much more frequently and earnestly to the face than to any
other part of the body, probably affords a sufficient explanation.

Blushing in the various races of man.—The small vessels of
the face become filled with blood, from the emotion of shame, in almost
all the races of man, though in the very dark races no distinct change of
colour can be perceived. Blushing is evident in all the Aryan nations of
Europe, and to a certain extent with those of India. But Mr. Erskine has
never noticed that the necks of the Hindoos are decidedly affected. With
the Lepchas of Sikhim, Mr. Scott has often observed a faint blush on the
cheeks, base of the ears, and sides of the neck, accompanied by sunken
eyes and lowered head. This has occurred when he has detected them in a
falsehood, or has accused them of ingratitude. The pale, sallow
complexions of these men render a blush much more conspicuous than in most
of the other natives of India. With the latter, shame, or it may be in
part fear, is expressed, according to Mr. Scott, much more plainly by the
head being averted or bent down, with the eyes wavering or turned askant,
than by any change of colour in the skin.

The Semitic races blush freely, as might have been expected, from their
general similitude to the Aryans. Thus with the Jews, it is said in the
Book of Jeremiah (chap. vi. 15), “Nay, they were not at all ashamed,
neither could they blush.” Mrs. Asa Gray saw an Arab managing his boat
clumsily on the Nile, and when laughed at by his companions, “he blushed
quite to the back of his neck.” Lady Duff Gordon remarks that a young Arab
blushed on coming into her presence.[1310]

Mr. Swinhoe has seen the Chinese blushing, but he thinks it is rare; yet
they have the expression “to redden with shame.” Mr. Geach informs me that
the Chinese settled in Malacca and the native Malays of the interior both
blush. Some of these people go nearly naked, and he particularly attended
to the downward extension of the blush. Omitting the cases in which the
face alone was seen to blush, Mr. Geach observed that the face, arms, and
breast of a Chinaman, aged 24 years, reddened from shame; and with another
Chinese, when asked why he had not done his work in better style, the
whole body was similarly affected. In two Malays[1311] he saw the face,
neck, breast, and arms blushing; and in a third Malay (a Bugis) the blush
extended down to the waist.

The Polynesians blush freely. The Rev. Mr. Stack has seen hundreds of
instances with the New Zealanders. The following case is worth giving, as
it relates to an old man who was unusually dark-coloured and partly
tattooed. After having let his land to an Englishman for a small yearly
rental, a strong passion seized him to buy a gig, which had lately become
the fashion with the Maoris. He consequently wished to draw all the rent
for four years from his tenant, and consulted Mr. Stack whether he could
do so. The man was old, clumsy, poor, and ragged, and the idea of his
driving himself about in his carriage for display amused Mr. Stack so much
that he could not help bursting out into a laugh; and then “the old man
blushed up to the roots of his hair.” Forster says that “you may easily
distinguish a spreading blush” on the cheeks of the fairest women in
Tahiti.[1312] The natives also of several of the other
archipelagoes in the Pacific have been seen to blush.

Mr. Washington Matthews has often seen a blush on the faces of the young
squaws belonging to various wild Indian tribes of North America. At the
opposite extremity of the continent in Tierra del Fuego, the natives,
according to Mr. Bridges, “blush much, but chiefly in regard to women; but
they certainly blush also at their own personal appearance.” This latter
statement agrees with what I remember of the Fuegian, Jemmy Button, who
blushed when he was quizzed about the care which he took in polishing his
shoes, and in otherwise adorning himself. With respect to the Aymara
Indians on the lofty plateaus of Bolivia, Mr. Forbes says,[1313]
that from the colour of their skins it is impossible that their blushes
should be as clearly visible as in the white races; still under such
circumstances as would raise a blush in us, “there can always be seen the
same expression of modesty or confusion; and even in the dark, a rise of
temperature of the skin of the face can be felt, exactly as occurs in the
European.” With the Indians who inhabit the hot, equable, and damp parts
of South America, the skin apparently does not answer to mental excitement
so readily as with the natives of the northern and southern parts of the
continent, who have long been exposed to great vicissitudes of climate;
for Humboldt quotes without a protest the sneer of the Spaniard, “How can
those be trusted, who know not how to blush?”[1314] Von Spix and
Martius, in speaking of the aborigines of Brazil, assert that they cannot
properly be said to blush; “it was only after long intercourse with the
whites, and after receiving some education, that we perceived in the
Indians a change of colour expressive of the emotions of their minds.”[1315]
It is, however, incredible that the power of blushing could have thus
originated; but the habit of self-attention, consequent on their education
and new course of life, would have much increased any innate tendency to
blush.

Several trustworthy observers have assured me that they have seen on the
faces of negroes an appearance resembling a blush, under circumstances
which would have excited one in us, though their skins were of an
ebony-black tint. Some describe it as blushing brown, but most say that
the blackness becomes more intense. An increased supply of blood in the
skin seems in some manner to increase its blackness; thus certain
exanthematous diseases cause the affected places in the negro to appear
blacker, instead of, as with us, redder.[1316] The skin,
perhaps, from being rendered more tense by the filling of the capillaries,
would reflect a somewhat different tint to what it did before. That the
capillaries of the face in the negro become filled with blood, under the
emotion of shame, we may feel confident; because a perfectly characterized
albino negress, described by Buffon,[1317] showed a faint
tinge of crimson on her cheeks when she exhibited herself naked.
Cicatrices of the skin remain for a long time white in the negro, and Dr.
Burgess, who had frequent opportunities of observing a scar of this kind
on the face of a negress, distinctly saw that it “invariably became red
whenever she was abruptly spoken to, or charged with any trivial offence.”[1318]
The blush could be seen proceeding from the circumference of the scar
towards the middle, but it did not reach the centre. Mulattoes are often
great blushers, blush succeeding blush over their faces. From these facts
there can be no doubt that negroes blush, although no redness is visible
on the skin.

I am assured by Gaika and by Mrs. Barber that the Kafirs of South Africa
never blush; but this may only mean that no change of colour is
distinguishable. Gaika adds that under the circumstances which would make
a European blush, his countrymen “look ashamed to keep their heads up.”

It is asserted by four of my informants that the Australians, who are
almost as black as negroes, never blush. A fifth answers doubtfully,
remarking that only a very strong blush could be seen, on account of the
dirty state of their skins. Three observers state that they do blush;[1319]
Mr. S. Wilson adding that this is noticeable only under a strong emotion,
and when the skin is not too dark from long exposure and want of
cleanliness. Mr. Lang answers, “I have noticed that shame almost always
excites a blush, which frequently extends as low as the neck.” Shame is
also shown, as he adds, “by the eyes being turned from side to side.” As
Mr. Lang was a teacher in a native school, it is probable that he chiefly
observed children; and we know that they blush more than adults. Mr. G.
Taplin has seen half-castes blushing, and he says that the aborigines have
a word expressive of shame. Mr. Hagenauer, who is one of those who has
never observed the Australians to blush, says that he has “seen them
looking down to the ground on account of shame;” and the missionary, Mr.
Bulmer, remarks that though “I have not been able to detect anything like
shame in the adult aborigines, I have noticed that the eyes of the
children, when ashamed, present a restless, watery appearance, as if they
did not know where to look.”

The facts now given are sufficient to show that blushing, whether or not
there is any change of colour, is common to most, probably to all, of the
races of man.

Movements and gestures which accompany Blushing.—Under a keen
sense of shame there is a strong desire for concealment.[1320]
We turn away the whole body, more especially the face, which we endeavour
in some manner to hide. An ashamed person can hardly endure to meet the
gaze of those present, so that he almost invariably casts down his eyes or
looks askant. As there generally exists at the same time a strong wish to
avoid the appearance of shame, a vain attempt is made to look direct at
the person who causes this feeling; and the antagonism between these
opposite tendencies leads to various restless movements in the eyes. I
have noticed two ladies who, whilst blushing, to which they are very
liable, have thus acquired, as it appears, the oddest trick of incessantly
blinking their eyelids with extraordinary rapidity. An intense blush is
sometimes accompanied by a slight effusion of tears;[1321]
and this, I presume, is due to the lacrymal glands partaking of the
increased supply of blood, which we know rushes into the capillaries of
the adjoining parts, including the retina.

Many writers, ancient and modern, have noticed the foregoing movements;
and it has already been shown that the aborigines in various parts of the
world often exhibit their shame by looking downwards or askant, or by
restless movements of their eyes. Ezra cries out (ch. ix. 6), “O, my God!
I am ashamed, and blush to lift up my head to thee, my God.” In Isaiah
(ch. I. 6) we meet with the words, “I hid not my face from shame.” Seneca
remarks (Epist. xi. 5) “that the Roman players hang down their heads, fix
their eyes on the ground and keep them lowered, but are unable to blush in
acting shame.” According to Macrobius, who lived in the filth century
(‘Saturnalia,’ B. vii. C. 11), “Natural philosophers assert that nature
being moved by shame spreads the blood before herself as a veil, as we see
any one blushing often puts his hands before his face.” Shakspeare makes
Marcus (‘Titus Andronicus,’ act ii, sc. 5) say to his niece, “Ah! now thou
turn’st away thy face for shame.” A lady informs me that she found in the
Lock Hospital a girl whom she had formerly known, and who had become a
wretched castaway, and the poor creature, when approached, hid her face
under the bed-clothes, and could not be persuaded to uncover it. We often
see little children, when shy or ashamed, turn away, and still standing
up, bury their faces in their mother’s gown; or they throw themselves face
downwards on her lap.

Confusion of mind.—Most persons, whilst blushing intensely,
have their mental powers confused. This is recognized in such common
expressions as “she was covered with confusion.” Persons in this condition
lose their presence of mind, and utter singularly inappropriate remarks.
They are often much distressed, stammer, and make awkward movements or
strange grimaces. In certain cases involuntary twitchings of some of the
facial muscles may be observed. I have been informed by a young lady, who
blushes excessively, that at such times she does not even know what she is
saying. When it was suggested to her that this might be due to her
distress from the consciousness that her blushing was noticed, she
answered that this could not be the case, “as she had sometimes felt quite
as stupid when blushing at a thought in her own room.”

I will give an instance of the extreme disturbance of mind to which some
sensitive men are liable. A gentleman, on whom I can rely, assured me that
he had been an eye-witness of the following scene:—A small
dinner-party was given in honour of an extremely shy man, who, when he
rose to return thanks, rehearsed the speech, which he had evidently learnt
by heart, in absolute silence, and did not utter a single word; but he
acted as if he were speaking with much emphasis. His friends, perceiving
how the case stood, loudly applauded the imaginary bursts of eloquence,
whenever his gestures indicated a pause, and the man never discovered that
he had remained the whole time completely silent. On the contrary, he
afterwards remarked to my friend, with much satisfaction, that he thought
he had succeeded uncommonly well.

When a person is much ashamed or very shy, and blushes intensely, his
heart beats rapidly and his breathing is disturbed. This can hardly fail
to affect the circulation of the blood within the brain, and perhaps the
mental powers. It seems however doubtful, judging from the still more
powerful influence of anger and fear on the circulation, whether we can
thus satisfactorily account for the confused state of mind in persons
whilst blushing intensely.

The true explanation apparently lies in the intimate sympathy which exists
between the capillary circulation of the surface of the head and face, and
that of the brain. On applying to Dr. J. Crichton Browne for information,
he has given me various facts bearing on this subject. When the
sympathetic nerve is divided on one side of the head, the capillaries on
this side are relaxed and become filled with blood, causing the skin to
redden and to grow hot, and at the same time the temperature within the
cranium on the same side rises. Inflammation of the membranes of the brain
leads to the engorgement of the face, ears, and eyes with blood. The first
stage of an epileptic fit appears to be the contraction of the vessels of
the brain, and the first outward manifestation is, an extreme pallor of
countenance. Erysipelas of the head commonly induces delirium. Even the
relief given to a severe headache by burning the skin with strong lotion,
depends, I presume, on the same principle.

Dr. Browne has often administered to his patients the vapour of the
nitrite of amyl,[1322] which has the singular property of
causing vivid redness of the face in from thirty to sixty seconds. This
flushing resembles blushing in almost every detail: it begins at several
distinct points on the face, and spreads till it involves the whole
surface of the head, neck, and front of the chest; but has been observed
to extend only in one case to the abdomen. The arteries in the retina
become enlarged; the eyes glisten, and in one instance there was a slight
effusion of tears. The patients are at first pleasantly stimulated, but,
as the flushing increases, they become confused and bewildered. One woman
to whom the vapour had often been administered asserted that, as soon as
she grew hot, she grew MUDDLED. With persons just commencing to blush it
appears, judging from their bright eyes and lively behaviour, that their
mental powers are somewhat stimulated. It is only when the blushing is
excessive that the mind grows confused. Therefore it would seem that the
capillaries of the face are affected, both during the inhalation of the
nitrite of amyl and during blushing, before that part of the brain is
affected on which the mental powers depend.

Conversely when the brain is primarily affected; the circulation of the
skin is so in a secondary manner. Dr. Browne has frequently observed, as
he informs me, scattered red blotches and mottlings on the chests of
epileptic patients. In these cases, when the skin on the thorax or abdomen
is gently rubbed with a pencil or other object, or, in strongly-marked
cases, is merely touched by the finger, the surface becomes suffused in
less than half a minute with bright red marks, which spread to some
distance on each side of the touched point, and persist for several
minutes. These are the cerebral maculae of Trousseau; and they
indicate, as Dr. Browne remarks, a highly modified condition of the
cutaneous vascular system. If, then, there exists, as cannot be doubted,
an intimate sympathy between the capillary circulation in that part of the
brain on which our mental powers depend, and in the skin of the face, it
is not surprising that the moral causes which induce intense blushing
should likewise induce, independently of their own disturbing influence,
much confusion of mind.

The Nature of the Mental States which induce Blushing.—These
consist of shyness, shame, and modesty; the essential element in all being
self-attention. Many reasons can be assigned for believing that originally
self-attention directed to personal appearance, in relation to the opinion
of others, was the exciting cause; the same effect being subsequently
produced, through the force of association, by self-attention in relation
to moral conduct. It is not the simple act of reflecting on our own
appearance, but the thinking what others think of us, which excites a
blush. In absolute solitude the most sensitive person would be quite
indifferent about his appearance. We feel blame or disapprobation more
acutely than approbation; and consequently depreciatory remarks or
ridicule, whether of our appearance or conduct, causes us to blush much
more readily than does praise. But undoubtedly praise and admiration are
highly efficient: a pretty girl blushes when a man gazes intently at her,
though she may know perfectly well that he is not depreciating her. Many
children, as well as old and sensitive persons blush, when they are much
praised. Hereafter the question will be discussed, how it has arisen that
the consciousness that others are attending to our personal appearance
should have led to the capillaries, especially those of the face,
instantly becoming filled with blood.

My reasons for believing that attention directed to personal appearance,
and not to moral conduct, has been the fundamental element in the
acquirement of the habit of blushing, will now be given. They are
separately light, but combined possess, as it appears to me, considerable
weight. It is notorious that nothing makes a shy person blush so much as
any remark, however slight, on his personal appearance. One cannot notice
even the dress of a woman much given to blushing, without causing her face
to crimson. It is sufficient to stare hard at some persons to make them,
as Coleridge remarks, blush,—“account for that he who can.”[1323]

With the two albinos observed by Dr. Burgess,[1324] “the slightest
attempt to examine their peculiarities invariably caused them to blush
deeply.” Women are much more sensitive about their personal appearance
than men are, especially elderly women in comparison with elderly men, and
they blush much more freely. The young of both sexes are much more
sensitive on this same head than the old, and they also blush much more
freely than the old. Children at a very early age do not blush; nor do
they show those other signs of self-consciousness which generally
accompany blushing; and it is one of their chief charms that they think
nothing about what others think of them. At this early age they will stare
at a stranger with a fixed gaze and un-blinking eyes, as on an inanimate
object, in a manner which we elders cannot imitate.

It is plain to every one that young men and women are highly sensitive to
the opinion of each other with reference to their personal appearance; and
they blush incomparably more in the presence of the opposite sex than in
that of their own.[1325] A young man, not very liable to blush,
will blush intensely at any slight ridicule of his appearance from a girl
whose judgment on any important subject he would disregard. No happy pair
of young lovers, valuing each other’s admiration and love more than
anything else in the world, probably ever courted each other without many
a blush. Even the barbarians of Tierra del Fuego, according to Mr.
Bridges, blush “chiefly in regard to women, but certainly also at their
own personal appearance.”

Of all parts of the body, the face is most considered and regarded, as is
natural from its being the chief seat of expression and the source of the
voice. It is also the chief seat of beauty and of ugliness, and throughout
the world is the most ornamented.[1326] The face,
therefore, will have been subjected during many generations to much closer
and more earnest self-attention than any other part of the body; and in
accordance with the principle here advanced we can understand why it
should be the most liable to blush. Although exposure to alternations of
temperature, &c., has probably much increased the power of dilatation
and contraction in the capillaries of the face and adjoining parts, yet
this by itself will hardly account for these parts blushing much more than
the rest of the body; for it does not explain the fact of the hands rarely
blushing. With Europeans the whole body tingles slightly when the face
blushes intensely; and with the races of men who habitually go nearly
naked, the blushes extend over a much larger surface than with us. These
facts are, to a certain extent, intelligible, as the self-attention of
primeval man, as well as of the existing races which still go naked, will
not have been so exclusively confined to their faces, as is the case with
the people who now go clothed.

We have seen that in all parts of the world persons who feel shame for
some moral delinquency, are apt to avert, bend down, or hide their faces,
independently of any thought about their personal appearance. The object
can hardly be to conceal their blushes, for the face is thus averted or
hidden under circumstances which exclude any desire to conceal shame, as
when guilt is fully confessed and repented of. It is, however, probable
that primeval man before he had acquired much moral sensitiveness would
have been highly sensitive about his personal appearance, at least in
reference to the other sex, and he would consequently have felt distress
at any depreciatory remarks about his appearance; and this is one form of
shame. And as the face is the part of the body which is most regarded, it
is intelligible that any one ashamed of his personal appearance would
desire to conceal this part of his body. The habit having been thus
acquired, would naturally be carried on when shame from strictly moral
causes was felt; and it is not easy otherwise to see why under these
circumstances there should be a desire to hide the face more than any
other part of the body.

The habit, so general with every one who feels ashamed, of turning away,
or lowering his eyes, or restlessly moving them from side to side,
probably follows from each glance directed towards those present, bringing
home the conviction that he is intently regarded; and he endeavours, by
not looking at those present, and especially not at their eyes,
momentarily to escape from this painful conviction.

Shyness.—This odd state of mind, often called shamefacedness,
or false shame, or mauvaise honte, appears to be one of the most
efficient of all the causes of blushing. Shyness is, indeed, chiefly
recognized by the face reddening, by the eyes being averted or cast down,
and by awkward, nervous movements of the body. Many a woman blushes from
this cause, a hundred, perhaps a thousand times, to once that she blushes
from having done anything deserving blame, and of which she is truly
ashamed. Shyness seems to depend on sensitiveness to the opinion, whether
good or bad, of others, more especially with respect to external
appearance. Strangers neither know nor care anything about our conduct or
character, but they may, and often do, criticize our appearance: hence shy
persons are particularly apt to be shy and to blush in the presence of
strangers. The consciousness of anything peculiar, or even new, in the
dress, or any slight blemish on the person, and more especially, on the
face—points which are likely to attract the attention of strangers—makes
the shy intolerably shy. On the other hand, in those cases in which
conduct and not personal appearance is concerned, we are much more apt to
be shy in the presence of acquaintances, whose judgment we in some degree
value, than in that of strangers. A physician told me that a young man, a
wealthy duke, with whom he had travelled as medical attendant, blushed
like a girl, when he paid him his fee; yet this young man probably would
not have blushed and been shy, had he been paying a bill to a tradesman.
Some persons, however, are so sensitive, that the mere act of speaking to
almost any one is sufficient to rouse their self-consciousness, and a
slight blush is the result.

Disapprobation or ridicule, from our sensitiveness on this head, causes
shyness and blushing much more readily than does approbation; though the
latter with some persons is highly efficient. The conceited are rarely
shy; for they value themselves much too highly to expect depreciation. Why
a proud man is often shy, as appears to be the case, is not so obvious,
unless it be that, with all his self-reliance, he really thinks much about
the opinion of others although in a disdainful spirit. Persons who are
exceedingly shy are rarely shy in the presence of those with whom they are
quite familiar, and of whose good opinion and sympathy they are perfectly
assured;—for instance, a girl in the presence of her mother. I
neglected to inquire in my printed paper whether shyness can be detected
in the different races of man; but a Hindoo gentleman assured Mr. Erskine
that it is recognizable in his countrymen.

Shyness, as the derivation of the word indicates in several languages,[1327]
is closely related to fear; yet it is distinct from fear in the ordinary
sense. A shy man no doubt dreads the notice of strangers, but can hardly
be said to be afraid of them, he may be as bold as a hero in battle, and
yet have no self-confidence about trifles in the presence of strangers.
Almost every one is extremely nervous when first addressing a public
assembly, and most men remain so throughout their lives; but this appears
to depend on the consciousness of a great coming exertion, with its
associated effects on the system, rather than on shyness;[1328]
although a timid or shy man no doubt suffers on such occasions infinitely
more than another. With very young children it is difficult to distinguish
between fear and shyness; but this latter feeling with them has often
seemed to me to partake of the character of the wildness of an untamed
animal. Shyness comes on at a very early age. In one of my own children,
when two years and three months old, I saw a trace of what certainly
appeared to be shyness, directed towards myself after an absence from home
of only a week. This was shown not by a blush, but by the eyes being for a
few minutes slightly averted from me. I have noticed on other occasions
that shyness or shamefacedness and real shame are exhibited in the eyes of
young children before they have acquired the power of blushing.

As shyness apparently depends on self-attention, we can perceive how right
are those who maintain that reprehending children for shyness, instead of
doing them any good, does much harm, as it calls their attention still
more closely to themselves. It has been well urged that “nothing hurts
young people more than to be watched continually about their feelings, to
have their countenances scrutinized, and the degrees of their sensibility
measured by the surveying eye of the unmerciful spectator. Under the
constraint of such examinations they can think of nothing but that they
are looked at, and feel nothing but shame or apprehension.”[1329]

Moral causes: guilt.—With respect to blushing from strictly
moral causes, we meet with the same fundamental principle as before,
namely, regard for the opinion of others. It is not the conscience which
raises a blush, for a man may sincerely regret some slight fault committed
in solitude, or he may suffer the deepest remorse for an undetected crime,
but he will not blush. “I blush,” says Dr. Burgess,[1330] “in the presence
of my accusers.” It is not the sense of guilt, but the thought that others
think or know us to be guilty which crimsons the face. A man may feel
thoroughly ashamed at having told a small falsehood, without blushing; but
if he even suspects that he is detected he will instantly blush,
especially if detected by one whom he reveres.

On the other hand, a man may be convinced that God witnesses all his
actions, and he may feel deeply conscious of some fault and pray for
forgiveness; but this will not, as a lady who is a great blusher believes,
ever excite a blush. The explanation of this difference between the
knowledge by God and man of our actions lies, I presume, in man’s
disapprobation of immoral conduct being somewhat akin in nature to his
depreciation of our personal appearance, so that through association both
lead to similar results; whereas the disapprobation of God brings up no
such association.

Many a person has blushed intensely when accused of some crime, though
completely innocent of it. Even the thought, as the lady before referred
to has observed to me, that others think that we have made an unkind or
stupid remark, is amply sufficient to cause a blush, although we know all
the time that we have been completely misunderstood. An action may be
meritorious or of an indifferent nature, but a sensitive person, if he
suspects that others take a different view of it, will blush. For
instance, a lady by herself may give money to a beggar without a trace of
a blush, but if others are present, and she doubts whether they approve,
or suspects that they think her influenced by display, she will blush. So
it will be, if she offers to relieve the distress of a decayed
gentlewoman, more particularly of one whom she had previously known under
better circumstances, as she cannot then feel sure how her conduct will be
viewed. But such cases as these blend into shyness.

Breaches of etiquette.—The rules of etiquette always
refer to conduct in the presence of, or towards others. They have no
necessary connection with the moral sense, and are often meaningless.
Nevertheless as they depend on the fixed custom of our equals and
superiors, whose opinion we highly regard, they are considered almost as
binding as are the laws of honour to a gentleman. Consequently the breach
of the laws of etiquette, that is, any impoliteness or gaucherie,
any impropriety, or an inappropriate remark, though quite accidental, will
cause the most intense blushing of which a man is capable. Even the
recollection of such an act, after an interval of many years, will make
the whole body to tingle. So strong, also, is the power of sympathy that a
sensitive person, as a lady has assured me, will sometimes blush at a
flagrant breach of etiquette by a perfect stranger, though the act may in
no way concern her.

Modesty.—This is another powerful agent in exciting blushes;
but the word modesty includes very different states of the mind. It
implies humility, and we often judge of this by persons being greatly
pleased and blushing at slight praise, or by being annoyed at praise which
seems to them too high according to their own humble standard of
themselves. Blushing here has the usual signification of regard for the
opinion of others. But modesty frequently relates to acts of indelicacy;
and indelicacy is an affair of etiquette, as we clearly see with the
nations that go altogether or nearly naked. He who is modest, and blushes
easily at acts of this nature, does so because they are breaches of a
firmly and wisely established etiquette. This is indeed shown by the
derivation of the word modest from modus, a measure or
standard of behaviour. A blush due to this form of modesty is, moreover,
apt to be intense, because it generally relates to the opposite sex; and
we have seen how in all cases our liability to blush is thus increased. We
apply the term ‘modest,’ as it would appear, to those who have an humble
opinion of themselves, and to those who are extremely sensitive about an
indelicate word or deed, simply because in both cases blushes are readily
excited, for these two frames of mind have nothing else in common. Shyness
also, from this same cause, is often mistaken for modesty in the sense of
humility.

Some persons flush up, as I have observed and have been assured, at any
sudden and disagreeable recollection. The commonest cause seems to be the
sudden remembrance of not having done something for another person which
had been promised. In this case it may be that the thought passes half
unconsciously through the mind, “What will he think of me?” and then the
flush would partake of the nature of a true blush. But whether such
flushes are in most cases due to the capillary circulation being affected,
is very doubtful; for we must remember that almost every strong emotion,
such as anger or great joy, acts on the heart, and causes the face to
redden.

The fact that blushes may be excited in absolute solitude seems opposed to
the view here taken, namely that the habit originally arose from thinking
about what others think of us. Several ladies, who are great blushers, are
unanimous in regard to solitude; and some of them believe that they have
blushed in the dark. From what Mr. Forbes has stated with respect to the
Aymaras, and from my own sensations, I have no doubt that this latter
statement is correct. Shakspeare, therefore, erred when he made Juliet,
who was not even by herself, say to Romeo (act ii. sc. 2):—

“Thou know’st the mask of night is on my face;
Else would a maiden blush bepaint my cheek,
For that which thou hast heard me speak to-night.”

But when a blush is excited in solitude, the cause almost always relates
to the thoughts of others about us—to acts done in their presence,
or suspected by them; or again when we reflect what others would have
thought of us had they known of the act. Nevertheless one or two of my
informants believe that they have blushed from shame at acts in no way
relating to others. If this be so, we must attribute the result to the
force of inveterate habit and association, under a state of mind closely
analogous to that which ordinarily excites a blush; nor need we feel
surprise at this, as even sympathy with another person who commits a
flagrant breach of etiquette is believed, as we have just seen, sometimes
to cause a blush.

Finally, then, I conclude that blushing,—whether due to shyness—to
shame for a real crime—to shame from a breach of the laws of
etiquette—to modesty from humility—to modesty from an
indelicacy—depends in all cases on the same principle; this
principle being a sensitive regard for the opinion, more particularly for
the depreciation of others, primarily in relation to our personal
appearance, especially of our faces; and secondarily, through the force of
association and habit, in relation to the opinion of others on our
conduct.

Theory of Blushing.—We have now to consider, why should the
thought that others are thinking about us affect our capillary
circulation? Sir C. Bell insists[1331] that blushing “is
a provision for expression, as may be inferred from the colour extending
only to the surface of the face, neck, and breast, the parts most exposed.
It is not acquired; it is from the beginning.” Dr. Burgess believes that
it was designed by the Creator in “order that the soul might have
sovereign power of displaying in the cheeks the various internal emotions
of the moral feelings;” so as to serve as a check on ourselves, and as a
sign to others, that we were violating rules which ought to be held
sacred. Gratiolet merely remarks,—“Or, comme il est dans l’ordre de
la nature que l’être social le plus intelligent soit aussi le plus
intelligible, cette faculté de rougeur et de pâleur qui distingue l’homme,
est un signe naturel de sa haute perfection.”

The belief that blushing was SPECIALLY designed by the Creator is opposed
to the general theory of evolution, which is now so largely accepted; but
it forms no part of my duty here to argue on the general question. Those
who believe in design, will find it difficult to account for shyness being
the most frequent and efficient of all the causes of blushing, as it makes
the blusher to suffer and the beholder uncomfortable, without being of the
least service to either of them. They will also find it difficult to
account for negroes and other dark-coloured races blushing, in whom a
change of colour in the skin is scarcely or not at all visible.

No doubt a slight blush adds to the beauty of a maiden’s face; and the
Circassian women who are capable of blushing, invariably fetch a higher
price in the seraolio of the Sultan than less susceptible women.[1332]
But the firmest believer in the efficacy of sexual selection will hardly
suppose that blushing was acquired as a sexual ornament. This view would
also be opposed to what has just been said about the dark-coloured races
blushing in an invisible manner.

The hypothesis which appears to me the most probable, though it may at
first seem rash, is that attention closely directed to any part of the
body tends to interfere with the ordinary and tonic contraction of the
small arteries of that part. These vessels, in consequence, become at such
times more or less relaxed, and are instantly filled with arterial blood.
This tendency will have been much strengthened, if frequent attention has
been paid during many generations to the same part, owing to nerve-force
readily flowing along accustomed channels, and by the power of
inheritance. Whenever we believe that others are depreciating or even
considering our personal appearance, our attention is vividly directed to
the outer and visible parts of our bodies; and of all such parts we are
most sensitive about our faces, as no doubt has been the case during many
past generations. Therefore, assuming for the moment that the capillary
vessels can be acted on by close attention, those of the face will have
become eminently susceptible. Through the force of association, the same
effects will tend to follow whenever we think that others are considering
or censuring our actions or character.

As the basis of this theory rests on mental attention having some power to
influence the capillary circulation, it will be necessary to give a
considerable body of details, bearing more or less directly on this
subject. Several observers,[1333] who from their wide experience and
knowledge are eminently capable of forming a sound judgment, are convinced
that attention or consciousness (which latter term Sir H. Holland thinks
the more explicit) concentrated on almost any part of the body produces
some direct physical effect on it. This applies to the movements of the
involuntary muscles, and of the voluntary muscles when acting
involuntarily,—to the secretion of the glands,—to the activity
of the senses and sensations,—and even to the nutrition of parts.

It is known that the involuntary movements of the heart are affected if
close attention be paid to them. Gratiolet[1334] gives the case of
a man, who by continually watching and counting his own pulse, at last
caused one beat out of every six to intermit. On the other hand, my father
told me of a careful observer, who certainly had heart-disease and died
from it, and who positively stated that his pulse was habitually irregular
to an extreme degree; yet to his great disappointment it invariably became
regular as soon as my father entered the room. Sir H. Holland remarks,
that “the effect upon the circulation of a part from the consciousness
suddenly directed and fixed upon it, is often obvious and immediate.”
Professor Laycock, who has particularly attended to phenomena of this
nature, insists that “when the attention is directed to any portion of the
body, innervation and circulation are excited locally, and the functional
activity of that portion developed.”

It is generally believed that the peristaltic movements of the intestines
are influenced by attention being paid to them at fixed recurrent periods;
and these movements depend on the contraction of unstriped and involuntary
muscles. The abnormal action of the voluntary muscles in epilepsy, chorea,
and hysteria is known to be influenced by the expectation of an attack,
and by the sight of other patients similarly affected. So it is with the
involuntary acts of yawning and laughing.

Certain glands are much influenced by thinking of them, or of the
conditions under which they have been habitually excited. This is familiar
to every one in the increased flow of saliva, when the thought, for
instance, of intensely acid fruit is kept before the mind. It was shown in
our sixth chapter, that an earnest and long-continued desire either to
repress, or to increase, the action of the lacrymal glands is effectual.
Some curious cases have been recorded in the case of women, of the power
of the mind on the mammary glands; and still more remarkable ones in
relation to the uterine functions.

See Gratiolet on this subject, De la Phys. p. 287. Dr. J. Crichton Browne,
from his observations on the insane, is convinced that attention directed
for a prolonged period on any part or organ may ultimately influence its
capillary circulation and nutrition. He has given me some extraordinary
cases; one of these, which cannot here be related in full, refers to a
married woman fifty years of age, who laboured under the firm and
long-continued delusion that she was pregnant. When the expected period
arrived, she acted precisely as if she had been really delivered of a
child, and seemed to suffer extreme pain, so that the perspiration broke
out on her forehead. The result was that a state of things returned,
continuing for three days, which had ceased during the six previous years.
Mr. Braid gives, in his ‘Magic, Hypnotism,’ &c., 1852, p. 95, and in
his other works analogous cases, as well as other facts showing the great
influence of the will on the mammary glands, even on one breast alone.

When we direct our whole attention to any one sense, its acuteness is
increased;[1340] and the continued habit of close
attention, as with blind people to that of hearing, and with the blind and
deaf to that of touch, appears to improve the sense in question
permanently. There is, also, some reason to believe, judging from the
capacities of different races of man, that the effects are inherited.
Turning to ordinary sensations, it is well known that pain is increased by
attending to it; and Sir B. Brodie goes so far as to believe that pain may
be felt in any part of the body to which attention is closely drawn.[1341]
Sir H. Holland also remarks that we become not only conscious of the
existence of a part subjected to concentrated attention, but we experience
in it various odd sensations as of weight, heat, cold, tingling, or
itching.[1342]

Lastly, some physiologists maintain that the mind can influence the
nutrition of parts. Sir J. Paget has given a curious instance of the
power, not indeed of the mind, but of the nervous system, on the hair. A
lady “who is subject to attacks of what is called nervous headache, always
finds in the morning after such an one, that some patches of her hair are
white, as if powdered with starch. The change is effected in a night, and
in a few days after, the hairs gradually regain their dark brownish
colour.”[1343]

We thus see that close attention certainly affects various parts and
organs, which are not properly under the control of the will. By what
means attention—perhaps the most wonderful of all the wondrous
powers of the mind—is effected, is an extremely obscure subject.
According to Müller,[1344] the process by which the sensory cells of
the brain are rendered, through the will, susceptible of receiving more
intense and distinct impressions, is closely analogous to that by which
the motor cells are excited to send nerve-force to the voluntary muscles.
There are many points of analogy in the action of the sensory and motor
nerve-cells; for instance, the familiar fact that close attention to any
one sense causes fatigue, like the prolonged exertion of any one muscle.[1345]
When therefore we voluntarily concentrate our attention on any part of the
body, the cells of the brain which receive impressions or sensations from
that part are, it is probable, in some unknown manner stimulated into
activity. This may account, without any local change in the part to which
our attention is earnestly directed, for pain or odd sensations being
there felt or increased.

If, however, the part is furnished with muscles, we cannot feel sure, as
Mr. Michael Foster has remarked to me, that some slight impulse may not be
unconsciously sent to such muscles; and this would probably cause an
obscure sensation in the part.

In a large number of cases, as with the salivary and lacrymal glands,
intestinal canal, &c., the power of attention seems to rest, either
chiefly, or as some physiologists think, exclusively, on the vaso-motor
system being affected in such a manner that more blood is allowed to flow
into the capillaries of the part in question. This increased action of the
capillaries may in some cases be combined with the simultaneously
increased activity of the sensorium.

The manner in which the mind affects the vasomotor system may be conceived
in the following manner. When we actually taste sour fruit, an impression
is sent through the gustatory nerves to a certain part of the sensorium;
this transmits nerve-force to the vasomotor centre, which consequently
allows the muscular coats of the small arteries that permeate the salivary
glands to relax. Hence more blood flows into these glands, and they
secrete a copious supply of saliva. Now it does not seem an improbable
assumption, that, when we reflect intently on a sensation, the same part
of the sensorium, or a closely connected part of it, is brought into a
state of activity, in the same manner as when we actually perceive the
sensation. If so, the same cells in the brain will be excited, though,
perhaps, in a less degree, by vividly thinking about a sour taste, as by
perceiving it; and they will transmit in the one case, as in the other,
nerve-force to the vaso-motor centre with the same results.

To give another, and, in some respects, more appropriate illustration. If
a man stands before a hot fire, his face reddens. This appears to be due,
as Mr. Michael Foster informs me, in part to the local action of the heat,
and in part to a reflex action from the vaso-motor centres.[1346]
In this latter case, the heat affects the nerves of the face; these
transmit an impression to the sensory cells of the brain, which act on the
vaso-motor centre, and this reacts on the small arteries of the face,
relaxing them and allowing them to become filled with blood. Here, again,
it seems not improbable that if we were repeatedly to concentrate with
great earnestness our attention on the recollection of our heated faces,
the same part of the sensorium which gives us the consciousness of actual
heat would be in some slight degree stimulated, and would in consequence
tend to transmit some nerve-force to the vaso-motor centres, so as to
relax the capillaries of the face. Now as men during endless generations
have had their attention often and earnestly directed to their personal
appearance, and especially to their faces, any incipient tendency in the
facial capillaries to be thus affected will have become in the course of
time greatly strengthened through the principles just referred to, namely,
nerve-force passing readily along accustomed channels, and inherited
habit. Thus, as it appears to me, a plausible explanation is afforded of
the leading phenomena connected with the act of blushing.

Recapitulation.—Men and women, and especially the young, have
always valued, in a high degree, their personal appearance; and have
likewise regarded the appearance of others. The face has been the chief
object of attention, though, when man aboriginally went naked, the whole
surface of his body would have been attended to. Our self-attention is
excited almost exclusively by the opinion of others, for no person living
in absolute solitude would care about his appearance. Every one feels
blame more acutely than praise. Now, whenever we know, or suppose, that
others are depreciating our personal appearance, our attention is strongly
drawn towards ourselves, more especially to our faces. The probable effect
of this will be, as has just been explained, to excite into activity that
part of the sensorium, which receives the sensory nerves of the face; and
this will react through the vaso-motor system on the facial capillaries.
By frequent reiteration during numberless generations, the process will
have become so habitual, in association with the belief that others are
thinking of us, that even a suspicion of their depreciation suffices to
relax the capillaries, without any conscious thought about our faces. With
some sensitive persons it is enough even to notice their dress to produce
the same effect. Through the force, also, of association and inheritance
our capillaries are relaxed, whenever we know, or imagine, that any one is
blaming, though in silence, our actions, thoughts, or character; and,
again, when we are highly praised.

On this hypothesis we can understand how it is that the face blushes much
more than any other part of the body, though the whole surface is somewhat
affected, more especially with the races which still go nearly naked. It
is not at all surprising that the dark-coloured races should blush, though
no change of colour is visible in their skins. From the principle of
inheritance it is not surprising that persons born blind should blush. We
can understand why the young are much more affected than the old, and
women more than men; and why the opposite sexes especially excite each
other’s blushes. It becomes obvious why personal remarks should be
particularly liable to cause blushing, and why the most powerful of all
the causes is shyness; for shyness relates to the presence and opinion of
others, and the shy are always more or less self-conscious. With respect
to real shame from moral delinquencies, we can perceive why it is not
guilt, but the thought that others think us guilty, which raises a blush.
A man reflecting on a crime committed in solitude, and stung by his
conscience, does not blush; yet he will blush under the vivid recollection
of a detected fault, or of one committed in the presence of others, the
degree of blushing being closely related to the feeling of regard for
those who have detected, witnessed, or suspected his fault. Breaches of
conventional rules of conduct, if they are rigidly insisted on by our
equals or superiors, often cause more intense blushes even than a detected
crime, and an act which is really criminal, if not blamed by our equals,
hardly raises a tinge of colour on our cheeks. Modesty from humility, or
from an indelicacy, excites a vivid blush, as both relate to the judgment
or fixed customs of others.

From the intimate sympathy which exists between the capillary circulation
of the surface of the head and of the brain, whenever there is intense
blushing, there will be some, and often great, confusion of mind. This is
frequently accompanied by awkward movements, and sometimes by the
involuntary twitching of certain muscles.

As blushing, according to this hypothesis, is an indirect result of
attention, originally directed to our personal appearance, that is to the
surface of the body, and more especially to the face, we can understand
the meaning of the gestures which accompany blushing throughout the world.
These consist in hiding the face, or turning it towards the ground, or to
one side. The eyes are generally averted or are restless, for to look at
the man who causes us to feel shame or shyness, immediately brings home in
an intolerable manner the consciousness that his gaze is directed on us.
Through the principle of associated habit, the same movements of the face
and eyes are practised, and can, indeed, hardly be avoided, whenever we
know or believe that, others are blaming, or too strongly praising, our
moral conduct.