1. Introduction: Descriptions of physiognomies in (English) literature and their significance
It is a fascinating phenomenon, that whenever we meet another person for the first
time, we unconsciously and immediately judge him or her by merely looking at the person’s
face. Although we may call ourselves the most tolerant people free of prejudices, we cannot
help thinking a person likeable or not right away by the first visual impression we get, without
ever having talked to him or her. Even though we know that a correspondence of
physiognomic and ‘inner’ traits has never been convincingly or scientifically proved, it is
unquestionable that most of us are impressed and influenced by visual data we receive from
our fellow human beings’ faces.
In the course of history (and thus, of literature), people have repeatedly tried to come
to terms with this phenomenon and to find explanations as well as definitions that may help to
‘face’ and deal with physiognomy in everyday life. Apparently, it has always been, and still
is, people’s wish to ‘read’ in other faces so as to facilitate contact and to know how to judge
characters. That this desire is not new can be seen by the fact that even (Pseudo-)Aristotle set
up (very questionable, highly racist and sexist) rules according to which one could
‘categorise’ faces and thus know what kind of character is hidden behind the surface. Today,
nobody relies on his writings anymore, which categorised people, among other factors, by
establishing an analogy between animals and human beings. According to the author, those
who had certain traits that were seen as resembling certain animals were considered to have
the respective animal’s ‘inner’ traits as well, as in the following examples. “Die [Menschen]
mit dicken Lippen, wobei die obere weiter vorsteht als die untere, sind dumm; siehe die Esel
und Affen. [...] Die eine kleine Stirn haben, sind ungebildet; siehe die Schweine.“1
In (English) literature, the question of whether there is an indexical or arbitrary
connection between inner and outer traits has been approached in many different ways which cannot be analysed in detail here. In a large number of older texts, descriptive passages
containing physiognomic hints were not included, which points to a certain disinterest in this
field of explanations (as well as in visual details in general). [...]
1 [Pseudo-] Aristoteles (~ 300v.Chr./1999). Physiognomica. Übers. u. kommentiert von Sabine Vogt. Berlin:
Akademie Verlag. 26f.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: Descriptions of physiognomies in (English) literature and their significance
2. Definitions of the terminology: ‘physiognomy’, ‘pathognomy’ and ‘body language’
II.Descriptions of physiognomies in mid-19th-century realist fiction as a reflection of the period’s norms and worldviews
3. The general importance of physiognomy in the realist context: the dominance of ‘readable’ physiognomy as a confirmation of an objective, transparent world
4. Descriptions of physiognomies in Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South (1854-55): strong confirmation of a transparent, ‘readable’ world
4.1. Introduction
4.2. The narrative transmission of physiognomic descriptions
4.2.1. Transparent portraits of characters transmitted by an authorial narrator
4.2.2. Characters as successful ‘readers’ of physiognomies and the functioning of non-verbal communication
4.3. The ‘message’ of transparent faces
4.3.1. General remarks
4.3.2. Physiognomy as an indicator of a hereditary background: family likeness
4.3.3. Physiognomy as a reflection of influential circumstances: events, milieu (‘local origin’) and social class
4.3.3.1. General remarks
4.3.3.2. Physiognomy as an indicator of influential events
4.3.3.3. Physiognomy as an indicator of the milieu or local origin
4.3.3.4. Physiognomy as a class indicator
4.3.4. Physiognomy as a moral indicator
4.4. Occasional opacity of faces and its (plausible) reasons
4.5. Conclusion
5. Descriptions of physiognomies in George Eliot’s Adam Bede (1859): confirmation of a transparent world partly undermined by critical authorial remarks
5.1. Introduction
5.2. The narrative transmission of physiognomic descriptions
5.2.1. Transparent portraits of characters transmitted by an authorial narrator
5.2.2. Characters as successful ‘readers’ of physiognomies and the functioning of non-verbal communication
5.3. The ‘message’ of transparent faces
5.3.1. General remarks
5.3.2. Physiognomy as an indicator of a hereditary background: family likeness
5.3.3. Physiognomy as a reflection of influential circumstances: events, milieu (‘local’ and ‘racial’ origin) and social class
5.3.4. Physiognomy as a moral indicator
5.4. Doubts about a ‘readable’ world: instances of opacity (and their reasons) and critical authorial remarks
5.4.1. General remarks
5.4.2. Opacity in Adam Bede’s faces and critical authorial comments on a ‘readable’ world
5.5. Conclusion
II.Descriptions of physiognomies in early modernism as a reflection of the period’s new norms and changed worldviews
6. Early modernism: the gradual rejection of realist norms, new modernist aesthetics and the consequences for descriptions of physiognomies
7. Descriptions of physiognomies in D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover (1928): partial continuation of the realist tradition and the growing importance of subjective perceptions of physiognomies
7.1. Introduction: the peculiarity of D.H. Lawrence’s style
7.2. The narrative transmission of physiognomic descriptions
7.2.1. Remnants of transparent portraits of characters transmitted by an authorial narrator
7.2.2. Enhanced importance of intradiegetic physiognomists: continuation of ‘transparent’ physiognomic observations, and the increase in (un-)reliable subjective physiognomic perceptions and in non-verbal communication
7.2.2.1. General remarks
7.2.2.2. Characters as physiognomists (I): Clifford Chatterley: the continuation of the realist belief in transparent physiognomies
7.2.2.3. Characters as physiognomists (II): Connie Chatterley: the heroine’s overall belief in transparency in spite of her occasional inability to ‘read’ faces
7.2.2.4. The increase in non-verbal communication
7.3. The message of faces and bodies: transparent faces in the realist tradition, ‘new’ and ‘reduced’ transparency
7.3.1. General remarks
7.3.2. Transparent faces in the realist tradition: Physiognomy as an indicator of a hereditary background, as a reflection of influential circumstances: events, milieu (‘local origin’) and social class
7.3.3. ‘New’ transparency: descriptions of physiognomies and bodies as indicators of sexual experience
7.3.4. ‘Reduced’ transparency: vital, sexual descriptions of bodies for their own sake
7.4. Conclusion
8. Descriptions of physiognomies in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway (1925): the dominance of subjective, ambiguous perceptions of physiognomies as a strong undermining of the realist worldview and as a reflection of a ‘new’ sceptical approach to the world
8.1. Introduction: Virginia Woolf’s approach to the world and the new treatment of physiognomies
8.2. The narrative transmission of physiognomic descriptions
8.2.1. The overall withdrawal of the authorial narrator and its consequences for the treatment of physiognomies
8.2.2. Characters as the novel’s major physiognomists: various subjective perceptions of physiognomies and the lack of a ‘common’ worldview
8.2.2.1. General remarks
8.2.2.2. Characters as physiognomists (I): Clarissa Dalloway: the novel’s heroine as a representative of the traditional belief in ‘speaking’ faces
8.2.2.3. Characters as physiognomists (II): Septimus Warren Smith: an insane person’s distorted belief in transparent physiognomies
8.2.2.4. Characters as physiognomists (III): Peter Walsh: observations dominated by his ‘male gaze’ and the implicit rejection of realism’s epistemological basis
8.2.2.5. Characters as physiognomists (IV): Elizabeth Dalloway: her self-perception as a (possible) projection of her feeling of ‘otherness’
8.3. Conclusion
9. Final remarks
10. Bibliography
Research Objectives and Themes
This thesis examines the representation of physiognomy—the interpretation of character from physical appearance—in English fiction across two distinct literary periods: 19th-century realism and early 20th-century modernism. The central research question investigates how descriptions of characters' physical traits serve as a metonymic key to the worldview, epistemological norms, and implied aesthetics of the respective authors and their era.
- The transition from the realist belief in transparent, "readable" faces to the modernist skepticism regarding the accessibility of truth.
- The narrative strategies used to transmit physiognomic information, particularly the role of the omniscient narrator versus internal, subjective perspectives.
- The cultural and scientific influences on physiognomic theory, including Lavater’s treatise and later psychological insights.
- The shift from interpreting physical features as moral or social indices to the subjective, fragmented interpretations found in modernist works.
- The use of non-verbal communication and "body language" as additional layers of meaningful, yet often ambiguous, semiotic systems.
Excerpt from the Book
The Realist Tradition of Transparent Faces
Whereas in (English) literature until the 18th century, authors tended to focus on the action of the story and at the same time more or less ignored the visualising of the fictitious world, the attempts to visualise the intradiegetic ‘reality’ of novels have clearly and strongly increased since the 18th century, leading to a climax of ‘visualised’ intradiegetic realities in 19th-century realism. Among other (generally) detailed descriptions – of, for example, landscapes, weather, houses, rooms, clothes – descriptions of characters’ physiognomies strongly gained in importance, as Werner Wolf underlines in his latest essay on ‘speaking faces’ (2002a: 395).
Descriptions of characters’ physiognomic traits or pathognomic reactions can have various functions. Like other descriptions, they have the primary effect of enhancing the aesthetic illusion of the fictitious world; moreover, they help the readers to identify and tell characters apart. In addition to these obvious functions, there are, however, functions which not only partly deviate from the reader’s real-life experience, but are more relevant for this paper’s thesis and will thus be focused on during the following analysis: in the majority of instances, facial descriptions in realist fiction are not neutral observations but fulfil further functions.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Descriptions of physiognomies in (English) literature and their significance: This chapter establishes the theoretical groundwork and the thesis that physiognomic descriptions function as a metonymy for the underlying epistemological norms of a literary era.
2. Definitions of the terminology: ‘physiognomy’, ‘pathognomy’ and ‘body language’: Defines the key terms used in the study, distinguishing between permanent physiognomic traits and temporary pathognomic reactions.
II.Descriptions of physiognomies in mid-19th-century realist fiction as a reflection of the period’s norms and worldviews: An analysis of how realist authors utilize physiognomy to confirm the existence of an objective, transparent, and explainable world.
3. The general importance of physiognomy in the realist context: the dominance of ‘readable’ physiognomy as a confirmation of an objective, transparent world: Discusses the heightened interest in visualizing fictitious characters and the subsequent rise of physiognomic detail as a tool for creating aesthetic illusion.
4. Descriptions of physiognomies in Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South (1854-55): strong confirmation of a transparent, ‘readable’ world: Examines Gaskell’s industrial novel as a prime example of realist aesthetics, where characters' faces are interpreted as reliable, transparent indices of their inner morality and background.
5. Descriptions of physiognomies in George Eliot’s Adam Bede (1859): confirmation of a transparent world partly undermined by critical authorial remarks: Contrasts Gaskell’s uncritical realism with Eliot’s more skeptical approach, which occasionally questions the validity of reading character from appearance.
II.Descriptions of physiognomies in early modernism as a reflection of the period’s new norms and changed worldviews: Explores the shift in literary aesthetics as the confidence in an objective, transparent reality begins to decline.
6. Early modernism: the gradual rejection of realist norms, new modernist aesthetics and the consequences for descriptions of physiognomies: Provides a theoretical overview of how the rise of modernist subjectivity began to replace the objective, panoramic views typical of the 19th century.
7. Descriptions of physiognomies in D.H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover (1928): partial continuation of the realist tradition and the growing importance of subjective perceptions of physiognomies: Analyzes Lawrence’s "moderate" modernism, which combines realist character tropes with a growing focus on sexuality and subjective bodily experience.
8. Descriptions of physiognomies in Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway (1925): the dominance of subjective, ambiguous perceptions of physiognomies as a strong undermining of the realist worldview and as a reflection of a ‘new’ sceptical approach to the world: Investigates Woolf’s radical modernism, where the "stream of consciousness" technique and multiple perspectives render physiognomy an unreliable and fragmented source of knowledge.
9. Final remarks: Summarizes the study’s findings, confirming that the treatment of physiognomy is a reliable index for observing the historical transition from realist optimism to modernist skepticism.
10. Bibliography: A comprehensive list of the primary and secondary literature cited in the thesis.
Keywords
Physiognomy, Realism, Modernism, Elizabeth Gaskell, George Eliot, D.H. Lawrence, Virginia Woolf, Epistemology, Literary Aesthetics, Characterization, Narrative Theory, Subjectivity, Transparency, Pathognomy, Body Language.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental goal of this thesis?
The thesis aims to demonstrate that the way characters’ physical appearances are described in literature serves as a diagnostic tool for understanding the underlying epistemological worldview of a specific literary period.
How is "physiognomy" defined in the context of this work?
Physiognomy is treated both as the physical form of an individual and as the "art" of interpreting that form to infer inner character, social status, or moral integrity.
What is the primary method used in this analysis?
The author uses a metonymical approach, analyzing physiognomic descriptions as parts that represent the whole diegetic reality and the intellectual climate of the respective literary epoch.
Why are Elizabeth Gaskell and Virginia Woolf chosen as primary focal points?
They are chosen to represent the extremes of the spectrum: Gaskell exemplifies the realist tradition of the "transparent" face, while Woolf represents the radical modernist shift toward subjective, ambiguous, and fragmented perceptions of the self and others.
What is the distinction between "physiognomy" and "pathognomy" in the analysis?
Physiognomy refers to permanent physical traits, whereas pathognomy refers to temporary, often sudden changes in expression caused by emotions like shock or anger.
How does the role of the narrator change from realism to modernism?
In realism, the omniscient narrator acts as a reliable guide to character. In modernism, this authority is withdrawn, forcing the reader to navigate unreliable and subjective impressions filtered through individual characters' consciousness.
In Lady Chatterley’s Lover, why is the analysis extended to the "whole body"?
Because Lawrence’s focus shifts from the face to the vitality of the entire body, particularly in the context of sexual experience, which functions as a new, modernist form of "transparency."
How does Woolf treat the Victorian belief in "readable" faces in Mrs Dalloway?
Woolf actively mocks and undermines this belief by presenting characters whose inner lives are largely inaccessible, and whose physical appearances lead observers to contradictory or entirely fabricated conclusions.
- Quote paper
- Mirjam Marits (Author), 2003, Descriptions of physiognomies in English fiction from realism to modernism, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/19447
