Surprise!
An expression of surprise, unlike a fearful expression, is open and colour-
ful. From the whites of your eyes and teeth to the redness of the inside of
your lips and your mouth, which you expose as your jaw drops, a person
can tell when you’re genuinely surprised. Granted, not all people open
their mouths, but the whites of the eyes show, and the eyebrows rise in
an arched position.
Justin and Sylvia secretly wed, with only the priest and two attendants pre-
sent. They hadn’t been dating long and few of their friends expected them to
last as a couple. When they invited some of their friends to dinner and told
them what they’d done, their guests raised their eyebrows and dropped their
jaws in surprise, never having expected to hear that news.
When you’re surprised or startled your eyebrows shoot up in an arch and,
horizontal wrinkles appear across your forehead. The whites of your eyes
become more noticeable as you widen your eyes and your jaw drops, leaving
your mouth in a slack position.
You may notice that someone who has been genuinely surprised covers his
mouth with his hand. This is an example of holding back an extreme emotion.
Go to Chapter 9 for more information on how revelatory hand movements
can be.
Boo!
The telltale signs of a fearful expression are
A tensely pulled back open mouthRaised eyelids
Exposed whites of eyesWhen you’re full of fear your eyebrows rise and pull together in a crooked
curve. The centre part of your forehead wrinkles and, while your upper eye-
lids rise exposing the whites of your eyes, your lower eyelids become tense
and rise, too. Finally, your lips tense and may pull back around your open
mouth (see Figure 4-3).
Demonstrating interest ........................................................................
When showing interest in what someone is doing or saying you may find
yourself cocking your head in his direction and nodding in agreement. Your
Chapter 4: Facial Expressions 71