Hand gestures, pre speech meaning of
Rushtown
was established.
This means that as our hominid ancestors scavanged the plains of Africa
for meat they could not communicate by talking. They had hands free
for cutting meat and sharing it. These tasks were made easier by free
hands. Therefore free hands were available for communication by
gesturing.
The remnants of these gestures can be seen today. The message that,
"I'm sharing this meat with you." was done with palms up and hands
outstretched. This gesture is used today when the speaker is
indicating that what is being said is expected to be readily accepted.
(ie, it's obvious)
The message, "There's a wounded Buffalo" or "That calf's mother is
behind the bushes." was done by frantic pointing. This gesture is used
today to say, "You don't yet understand what I am saying but I am
really really sure of it, and want you to agree." (Think of a chopping
pointing gesture with the hand.)
The message, "You should do this after this." ie, indicating a sequence
or process is done just by waving or twirling the hands while talking.
Alan
"palms up". Today, still, there are some major misunderstandings of
contemporary hand signals. The 'okay' sign with the finger against the thumb
is an example. In Brazil you might as well use the middle finger as give
them that okay sign.
Whether the bushmen could or couldn't speak physically to communicate, they
certainly had to use the hands frequently as to keep noise to a minimum
while sneaking up on prey.
Alan
--
Windsurfing Club: http://www.ibscc.org
"Rushtown" <Rush...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:1112120981.1...@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
Pepe le Pew
> Brain expansion in hominids did not start until full upright walking
> was established.
> This means that as our hominid ancestors scavanged the plains of Africa
> for meat they could not communicate by talking. They had hands free
> for cutting meat and sharing it. These tasks were made easier by free
> hands. Therefore free hands were available for communication by
> gesturing.
> The remnants of these gestures can be seen today. The message that,
> "I'm sharing this meat with you." was done with palms up and hands
> outstretched. This gesture is used today when the speaker is
> indicating that what is being said is expected to be readily accepted.
> (ie, it's obvious)
Hmmmmmm..... Obvious? One could also argue that the gesture comes
from the middle ages salute among knights (raise the helmet eyepiece
both to get a better view and also to show the other knight that one
does not have a weapon in hand.)
> The message, "There's a wounded Buffalo" or "That calf's mother is
> behind the bushes." was done by frantic pointing. This gesture is used
> today to say, "You don't yet understand what I am saying but I am
> really really sure of it, and want you to agree." (Think of a chopping
> pointing gesture with the hand.)
> The message, "You should do this after this." ie, indicating a sequence
> or process is done just by waving or twirling the hands while talking.
>
Rambling.
Later.
Pepe le Pew aka Pat Sullivan
--
PT Barnum was right !