206 THE PHYSIOLOGY OF LATJGHTEE. 



sheep's clothing, a breach of bargain, and falsehood in gen- 

 eral ; the multitude taking the law in their own hands, 

 and everything of the nature of disorder ; a corpse at a 

 feast, parental cruelty, filial ingratitude, and whatever is 

 unnatural ; the entire catalogue of the vanities given by 

 Solomon, are all incongruous, but they cause feelings of 

 pain, anger, sadness, loathing, rather than mirth." Now 

 in these cases, where the totally unlike state of conscious- 

 ness suddenly produced, is not inferior in mass to the 

 preceding one, the conditions to laughter are not ful- 

 filled. As above shown, laughter naturally results only 

 when consciousness is unawares transferred from great 

 things to small — only when there is what we call a descend- 

 mg incongruity. 



And now observe, finally, the fact, alike inferable d 

 priori and illustrated in experience, that an ascending 

 incongruity not only fails to cause laughter, but works on 

 the muscular system an efiect of exactly the reverse kind. 

 When after something very insignificant there arises with- 

 out anticipation something very great, the emotion we call 

 wonder results ; and this emotion is accompanied not by 

 an excitement of the muscles, but by a relaxation of them. 

 In children and country people, that falling of the jaw 

 which occurs on witnessing something that is imposing and 

 unexpected, exemplifies this efi'ect. Persons who have 

 been wonder-struck at the production of very striking 

 results by a seemingly inadequate cause, are frequently 

 described as unconsciously dropping the things they held 

 in their hands. Such are just the efiects to be anticipated. 

 After an average state of consciousness, absorbing but a 

 small quantity of nervous energy, is aroused without the 

 slightest notice, a strong emotion of awe, terror, or admi- 

 ration ; joined with the astonishment due to an apparent 

 want of adequate causation. This new state of conscious- 

 ness demands far more nervous energy than that which it 



