A cultural history of the smile reveals an entire world lurking behind this simple universal expression, using art, poetry, history, and biology to reconstruct its role in human history. 30,000 first printing.
From the Mona Lisa to the Cheshire Cat, the various meanings of the human smile have changed over time and around the world. In this eclectic and erudite history, Angus Trumble challenges our most deeply held assumptions about smiling and considers the many implications of an often impulsive act - the leer, the snarl, the smirk, the lewd grin. Elegantly illustrating his points with emblematic works of art from nineteenth-century European paintings to modern-day toothpaste advertisements, Trumble explores the nuances of smiling in a variety of cultures and compares them to the dentally flawless, widening smile of our own times.
"Every smile is the product of physical processes common to all humans. But since the dawn of civilization, the upward movement of the muscles of the face has carried a bewildering range of meanings. S"
Every smile is the product of physical processes common to all humans. But since the dawn of civilization, the upward movement of the muscles of the face has carried a bewildering range of meanings. Supreme enlightenment is reflected in the holy smile of the Buddha, yet the Victorians thought of open-mouthed smiling as obscene, and nineteenth-century English and American slang equated "smiling" with drinking whisky.In A Brief History of the Smile, Angus Trumble deftly combines art, poetry, history, and biology into an intriguing portrait of the many nuances of the smile. Elegantly illustrating his points with emblematic works of art, from eighteenth- and nineteenth-century European paintings to Japanese woodblock prints, Trumble explores the meanings of smiling in a variety of cultures and contexts. Effortlessly mingling erudition, wit, and personal anecdote, Trumble weaves a seamless interdisciplinary tapestry, bringing his expertise as a writer, historian, and thinker to bear on the art of smiling in this warm and perceptive work.
