Chap. IX. DECISION. 233 



Europeans; for the essence of savagery seems to consist 

 in the retention of a primordial condition, and this occa- 

 sionally holds good even with bodily peculiarities. 12 It 

 may be objected to this view of the origin of pouting, 

 that the anthropoid apes likewise protrude their lips 

 when astonished and even when a little pleased; whilst 

 with us this expression is generally confined to a sulky 

 frame of mind. But we shall see in a future chapter 

 that with men of various races surprise does sometimes 

 lead to a slight protrusion of the lips, though great sur- 

 prise or astonishment is more commonly shown by the 

 mouth being widely opened. As when we smile or laugh 

 we draw back the corners of the mouth, we have lost 

 any tendency to protrude the lips, when pleased, if in- 

 deed our early progenitors thus expressed pleasure. 



A little gesture made by sulky children may here be 

 noticed, namely, their " showing a cold shoulder." This 

 has a different meaning, as, I believe, from the keeping 

 both shoulders raised. A cross child, sitting on its par- 

 ent's knee, will lift up the near shoulder, then jerk it 

 away, as if from a caress, and afterwards give a backward 

 push with it, as if to push away the offender. I have 

 seen a child, standing at some distance from any one, 

 clearly express its feelings by raising one shoulder, giving 

 it a little backward movement, and then turning away its 

 whole body. 



Decision or determination. — The firm closure of the 

 mouth tends to give an expression of determination or 

 decision to the countenance. Xo determined man prob- 

 ably ever had an habitually gaping mouth. Hence, also, 

 a small and weak lower jaw, which seems to indicate that 



12 1 have given several instances in my ' Descent of Man,' 

 vol. i. chap. iv. 



16 



