Hand Gesturing

[EarlJam]

I just sat in a thirty minute meeting and became facinated at how much people hand gestured when they talked. I'd listen to them, but just watch their hands. It's interesting, because it's something we all do (I think) but it's not a learned behavior. Completely natural.

Why is this? What purpose (obviously it has a purpose) does hand gesturing when talking serve?

Has anyone ever studied this or written a book on it?

Has anyone else on this board ever been even remotely fascinated by this as well?

-EarlJam

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

I just sat in a thirty minute meeting and became facinated at how much people hand gestured when they talked. I'd listen to them, but just watch their hands. It's interesting, because it's something we all do (I think) but it's not a learned behavior. Completely natural.

Why is this? What purpose (obviously it has a purpose) does hand gesturing when talking serve?

Has anyone ever studied this or written a book on it?

Has anyone else on this board ever been even remotely fascinated by this as well?

-EarlJam

Yes! Such gestures and how they take place varies from one country or culture to another. Learning about such body language before traveling abroad is important to understanding what's going on or being said. Being prepared is an good way to avoid insulting the people who live where one visits. I think there have been studies of hand gestures and other forms of body language to analyze the meanings... such body language may contradict what is being said verbally.

[hurleyfor3]

Yes.

Why do we do it? Why do I do it? Usually it doesn't serve a purpose, although once in a while I'll draw air charts ("Here's your normal distribution and here's where we are...").

I worked in commodity trading pits in a previous life, and you need hand gestures there, but that's not quite the same atmosphere as a meeting room.

[bdh21]

I know there's the old stereotype:

How do you silence an Italian? Bind his hands.

[aimo]

Earlier this afternoon I was hand gesturing. Of course, I was watching the UNC-FSU game on ESPN 360, and the gestures were directed at the computer screen every time BlahBlah's face appeared.

[Lavabe]

I just sat in a thirty minute meeting and became facinated at how much people hand gestured when they talked. I'd listen to them, but just watch their hands. It's interesting, because it's something we all do (I think) but it's not a learned behavior. Completely natural.

Why is this? What purpose (obviously it has a purpose) does hand gesturing when talking serve?

Has anyone ever studied this or written a book on it?

Has anyone else on this board ever been even remotely fascinated by this as well?

-EarlJam

This usually gets covered in an Intro to Anthropology lecture on Linguistic Anthropology and Communication. There are MANY books on the subject.

For comedy, I believe it was Phil Hartman who talked about Bill Clinton's hand gesture for accentuating a point ... the fist holding the ATM card as it goes into the machine.

Cheers,
Lavabe

[Lavabe]

Earlier this afternoon I was hand gesturing. Of course, I was watching the UNC-FSU game on ESPN 360, and the gestures were directed at the computer screen every time BlahBlah's face appeared.

But you can't do that at Charlotte Bobcats Arena, lest the ushers escort you out of the building. [building on material from another thread]

Funny, all I could do when Beaker was on the screen was start humming the Muppets Show theme song.

Cheers,
Lavabe

[aimo]

Funny, all I could do when Beaker was on the screen was start humming the Muppets Show theme song.

I don't know if the camera captured it during the game Sat night, but one of the students had a beautiful giant Beaker head. I would love to know where they got it or if they made it. It was great.

[DevilAlumna]

Has anyone else on this board ever been even remotely fascinated by this as well?

No, but I'm totally and completely guilty of the habit. I've been known to hit people or knock over drinks (I always have to have a lid on my cup... sad) when I talk. It's alleviated by having a whiteboard to write on.

I can sit on my hands and still ramble on, but I feel less comfortable with it.

[Bostondevil]

In theater, I'm often at auditions where the actors are asked to prepare a monologue. There's a phenomenon called 'Monologue Hands'. When you are onstage alone, it can be incredibly difficult to know what to do with your hands. Even very good actors can fall victim to 'Monologue Hands'. Try Shakespeare, where the language is supposed to convey a picture, and it can get even worse. These are often hand gestures that you would NEVER see an actual person doing it real life.

I've written a monologue piece about it called 'How to Make Potato Candy'. I've yet to perform it, but I still might. (The premise is that I can't tell you how to make potato candy without using my hands.)

[OldPhiKap]

Yes! Such gestures and how they take place varies from one country or culture to another. Learning about such body language before traveling abroad is important to understanding what's going on or being said. Being prepared is an good way to avoid insulting the people who live where one visits. I think there have been studies of hand gestures and other forms of body language to analyze the meanings... such body language may contradict what is being said verbally.

I was in a train station in Italy, and was trying to communicate with some gruff guy behind the counter (the only one I met over there, actually). When we finally worked out some sort of understanding, I gave him the "okay" hand signal (thumb touching pointer finger in a circle, other three fingers extended).

This means something very different to the Italians. Lesson learned.

[hc5duke]

I was in a train station in Italy, and was trying to communicate with some gruff guy behind the counter (the only one I met over there, actually). When we finally worked out some sort of understanding, I gave him the "okay" hand signal (thumb touching pointer finger in a circle, other three fingers extended).

This means something very different to the Italians. Lesson learned.

<borat> she very niiiiiiice

Sorry, couldn't resist...