approached the men, she noticed a momentary flicker of annoyance cross
their faces. She kept her expression open, matched their walking pace so as
not to slow them down, and thanked them politely and with another smile
when they pointed her in the right direction.
Revealing sadness ................................................................................
Look at someone who’s feeling blue and you can see that his facial features
are slack and sagging. His eyes are dull and lifeless and the sides of his mouth
are probably cast downward. His face seems to have melted or collapsed.
Lips frequently tremble when someone experiences feelings of grief or
sorrow. His eyes may become moist, and often a person in this position
covers his face with his hand as if blocking out whatever is causing him to
feel sad.
Demonstrating disgust and contempt ...............................................
Disgust and contempt can be shown in varying degrees, but the general look
involves the mouth grimacing while the eyes narrow. The nose wrinkles, the
chin drops or lifts a fraction, and the head turns slightly to the side.
Chappy and her mother Jean were having a heated political discussion. Not
surprisingly, Chappy’s views were in direct opposition to those of her mother.
Finally, unable to win the argument or to convince her daughter of her mis-
guided judgement, Jean, in a high display of contempt, wrinkled her nose,
narrowed her eyes, tightened her lips, and shook her head in disgust as if she
had just smelt an over-ripe Gorgonzola.
Signs of contempt are common in the business environment. Looks of disdain
and scorn are tossed about the office floor with regularity as when one high-
flyer attempts to dispose another.
Nicola is extremely talented at spotting new trends in consumer behaviour.
Although her boss admires her perception she also feels threatened by
Nicola’s youth, energy, and ability to engage with senior board members.
During meetings Nicola’s boss often responds to Nicola’s observations and
recommendations with pursed lips, a slight narrowing of the eyes, and a
small turn of the head away from Nicola, as she attempts to engage with a
senior member of the team to dismiss Nicola’s contribution.
Chapter 4: Facial Expressions 69