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criminal psychology-第21章

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eclaration of ignorance。 The expression by word of mouth should have been enough and have needed no reinforcement through conventional gestures; but the last are spontaneously involuntary accompaniments。

On the other hand there is the converse fact that the voice may be influenced through expression and gesture。 If we fix an expression on our features or bring our body into an attitude which involves passional excitement we may be sure that we will be affected more or less by the appropriate emotion。 This statement; formulated by Maudsley; is perfectly true and may be proved by anybody at any moment。 It presents itself to us as an effective corroboration of the so well…known phenomenon of ‘‘talking…yourself…into…it。'' Suppose you correctly imagine how a very angry man looks: frowning brow; clenched fists; gritting teeth; hoarse; gasping voice; and suppose you imitate。 Then; even if you feel most harmless and order… loving; you become quite angry though you keep up the imitation only a little while。 By means of the imitation of lively bodily changes you may in the same way bring yourself into any conceivable emotional condition; the outer expressions of which appear energetically。 It must have occurred to every one of us how often prisoners present so well the excitement of passion that their earnestness is actually believed; as for example; the anger of a guiltless suspect or of an obviously needy person; of a man financially ruined by his trusted servant; etc。 Such scenes of passion happen

'1' S。 Stricker: Studien ber die Bewegungsvorstellungen。 Vienna 1882。

 daily in every court…house and they are so excellently presented that even an experienced judge believes in their reality and tells himself that such a thing can not be imitated because the imitation is altogether too hard to do and still harder to maintain。 But in reality the presentation is not so wonderful; and taken altogether; is not at all skilful; whoever wants to manifest _*anger_ must make the proper gestures (and that requires no art) and when he makes the gestures the necessary conditions occur and these stimulate and cause the correct manifestation of the later gestures; while these again influence the voice。 Thus without any essential mummery the comedy plays itself out; self…sufficient; correct; convincing。 Alarming oneself is not performed by words; but by the reciprocal influence of word and gesture; and the power of that influence is observable in the large number of cases where; in the end; people themselves believe what they have invented。 If they are of delicate spiritual equilibrium they even become hypochondriacs。 Writing; and the reading of writing; is to be considered in the same way as gesticulation; it has the same alarming influence on voice and general appearance as the other; so that it is relatively indifferent whether a man speaks and acts or writes and thinks。 This fact is well known to everybody who has ever in his life written a really coarse letter。

Now this exciting gesticulation can be very easily observed; but the observation must not come too late。 If the witness is once quite lost in it and sufficiently excited by the concomitant speeches he will make his gestures well and naturally and the artificial and untrue will not be discoverable。 But this is not the case in the beginning; then his gestures are actually not skilful; and at that point a definite force of will and rather notable exaggerations are observable; the gestures go further than the words; and that is a matter not difficult to recognize。 As soon as the recognition is made it becomes necessary to examine whether a certain congruity invariably manifests itself between word and gesture; inasmuch as with many people the above…mentioned lack of congruity is habitual and honest。 This is particularly the case with people who are somewhat theatrical and hence gesticulate too much。 But if word and gesture soon conform one to another; especially after a rather lively presentation; you may be certain that the subject has skilfully worked himself into his alarm or whatever it is he wanted to manifest。 Quite apart from the importance of seeing such a matter clearly the interest of the work is a rich reward for the labor involved。

In close relation to these phenomena is the change of color to  which unfortunately great importance is often assigned。'1' In this regard paling has received less general attention because it is more rare and less suspicious。 That it can not be simulated; as is frequently asserted in discussions of simulation (especially of epilepsy); is not true; inasmuch as there exists an especial physiological process which succeeds in causing pallor artificially。 In that experiment the chest is very forcibly contracted; the glottis is closed and the muscles used in inspiration are contracted。 This matter has no practical value for us; on the one hand; because the trick is always involved with lively and obvious efforts; and on the other; because cases are hardly thinkable in which a man will produce artificial pallor in the court where it can not be of any use to him。 The one possibility of use is in the simulation of epilepsy; and in such a case the trick can not be played because of the necessary falling to the ground。

Paling depends; as is well known; on the cramp of the muscles of the veins; which contract and so cause a narrowing of their bore which hinders the flow of blood。 But such cramps happen only in cases of considerable anger; fear; pain; trepidation; rage; in short; in cases of excitement that nobody ever has reason to simulate。 Paling has no value in differentiation inasmuch as a man might grow pale in the face through fear of being unmasked or in rage at unjust suspicion。

The same thing is true about blushing。'2' It consists in a sort of transitory crippling of those nerves that end in the walls of small arteries。 This causes the relaxation of the muscle…fibers of the blood vessels which are consequently filled in a greater degree with blood。 Blushing also may be voluntarily created by some individuals。 In that case the chest is fully expanded; the glottis is closed and the muscles of expiration are contracted。 But this matter again has no particular value for us since the simulation of a blush is at most of use only when a woman wants to appear quite modest and moral。 But for that effect artificial blushing does not help; since it requires such intense effort as to be immediately noticeable。 Blushing by means of external assistance; e。 g。; inhaling certain chemicals; is a thing hardly anybody will want to perform before the court。

With regard to guilt or innocence; blushing offers no evidence whatever。 There is a great troop of people who blush without any

'1' E。 Claparde: L'obsession de la rougeur。 Arch。 de Psych。 de la Suisse Romande; 1902; I; 307

'2' Henle: ber das Errten。 Breslau 1882。

 reason for feeling guilty。 The most instructive thing in this matter is self…observation; and whoever recalls the cause of his own blushing will value the phenomenon lightly enough。 I myself belonged; not only as a child; but also long after my student days; to those unfortunates who grow fire…red quite
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