A Brief History of the Smile (Pgs 1-30)

Summary:
The first chapter of the book is about decorum, and as it was stated in the introduction this is the polite smile. At the beginning of the chapter, the author states that sometimes the smile of an adult is a kind of mask. There are a number of situations in where we exchange smiles to be polite but it does not mean that these smiles are insincere. When we are meeting new people, we tend to notice that if they do not smile we might get the impression that they are unfriendly. But a smile does not tell everything because after a few minutes we start to observe certain manners that makes us change our perspective about that person. As the chapter goes on, Angus goes back to Greek History where people used to wear masks during the plays. He also talks about the archaic smile represented in Greek Art. Since he is a museum curator, on the rest of the pages he made comments and observation about famous paintings such as Portrait of Pauline-Eleanor e de Galard de Brassac de Bearn and the Mona Lisa. He made similar comments about the smiles shown in both paintings since they can be interpreted differently depending on the person who is looking at it.

Quote:
" When in social situations we meet people for the first time, we notice if they do not smile, and may form the impression that they are unfriendly or cold. In some cases we will recognize that a painfully shy person finds this situation unbearably difficult, and does not smile for that reason " (Trumble 2).

Reaction:
The minute I read this quote I felt identified with it because I am not a very sociable person a first. I can be pretty shy at first and it takes time for me to get comfortable with that person and be able to establish a conversation without feeling weird or nervous. I agree with the part when he says that if a person does not smile a shy person will be in a difficult situation because sometimes a smile shows that a person is kind and wants to talk to you or help you out if you are new in a place. But sometimes the shy person is the one that has to give the first step and smile, and if they see that their smile is ignored then they just get over it.

A Brief History of the Smile (Pgs xxi-xlv)

Summary:
The first part of the book is an introduction explaining what led Angus write this book about the smile. The idea for the book came to him in 1998 when he was invited to address a conference of dentists and maxillofacial surgeons. In this conference, he was asked to comment on the changing criteria by which Europeans painters of the 18^th and 19 ^th century defined the beautiful face. He started to talk about artists do not paint teeth often on their paintings since they are so hard to paint. As the book goes on, he kept making connections on painting, and on how they portray a smile. He also made connection to an incident that occurred in Indonesia with a bomb where the prisoner was smiling to the police officer like if they were old friends. But then Dr. Ariel Heryanto wrote that a smile in Indonesia does not necessarily mean delight or friendliness. in 1972, O. G. Roeder wrote that sometimes Indonesians smile through tears. The warm response of the audience imbued Angus to find more information about this subject. As the introduction comes to an end, we are introduced to the different chapters (topics) that are going to be discussed in the book. These are "Decorum" (the polite smile), "Lewdness" (rude grinning), "Desire" (the coy smile, lipstick), "Mirth" (smiling and humor), "Wisdom" (the smile of reason, the stoic smile, the saintly smile), and "Deceit" (the fake smile).

Quote:
" It may be a blinding glimpse of the obvious, but it is worth noting in conclusion that the exchange of a smile −be it sincere or forced or spontaneous −makes us feel good. A smile may stimulate us in certain superficial ways, eliciting a ready smile in response, for example, but it also penetrates the deep recesses of our subconscious mind " (Trumble xlv).

Reaction:
When I read this quote I automatically smiled (ironic?) because I have always believed that a smile is cute (and more if you have a dimple) and says things that words cannot express. A smile can change anyone's day because it is something sweet and delightful for people. It is true that there are fake smile but no matter the mood you are in when someone makes you smile something changes even if it was only for a second. As Angus said, no matter what type of smile you receive it will always make you feel good no matter from who it is coming from.