TALKING WITH YOUR HANDS.

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Why do, in your opinion, people talk with the use of hand gestures. And I don't mean giving directions.

All your replies will be gratefully received.
Thank you, and have a great day.
Mark...

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Type: Question • Score: 14 • Views: 13,523 • Replies: 64

[+3] - ehBeth - 06/22/2010[quote="Foofie"] Newcomers to a country often, I believe, cluster in enclaves that slow down the process of assimilation into a country's culture. [/quote] My experience, as the...

@mark noble,

Because they are using American Sign Language as their communication method.

Because they have nothing else to do with their hands at the moment.

Because it is their way of formatting the language with bolds, italics, underlines and color to give emphasis to the words and emotions.

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@mark noble,

do you want opinions or do you want to talk about the science of non-verbal communication?

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@Butrflynet,

remember victor borge and " phonetic pronounciation " ?

he sure knew how to speak with his hands .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF4qii8S3gw

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@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

Why do, in your opinion, people talk with the use of hand gestures. And I don't mean giving directions.

Hand gestures is an instinct way of communication.
Often we have to communicate over great distance where words won't suffice and hand gestures along with other bodily gestures comes to play.
Or when hunting, it's not very smart to scare the prey away by talking, but simple gestures must be applied.

In some cultures we have suppressed it to very few and simple gestures, where in other cultures it's heavily used.

2 Replies

@HexHammer,

Hexhammer's comment about hand gestures as an instinctive way of communicating leads us to look at an area of research that I think is fascinating

Apes Point to Origins of Human Language (link to LiveScience)

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i often talk with my hands, usually i say to them "don't touch that, you don't know where it's been"

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@HexHammer,

more related articles at this sciencedaily link

including

Right-Handed Chimpanzees Provide Clues to the Origin of Human Language

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In my own opinion, talking with one's hands compensates sometimes for not having a nuanced word to describe something. At other times it can be used to get the attention of whoever is the listener.

I do believe some cultures have a more hands oriented attitude towards speech. Others do not. I also believe there is a correlation between talking, or not talking, with one's hands and one's social/economic class in the U.S.A.

I do not remember the characters portrayed by Clint Eastwood in his movies talking with their hands.

1 Reply

@Foofie,

Does that mean that WASP culture in the US thinks it's unmanly to use your hands?

1 Reply

Hi folks,
What about two people chatting away just out of earshot, one of, using a lot of two-handed gestures? Do you see this as a form of preaching, or controlling the conversation?
Best wishes.
Mark...

3 Replies

@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

What about two people chatting away just out of earshot, one of, using a lot of two-handed gestures? Do you see this as a form of preaching, or controlling the conversation?

Think it would be psyco'/skitz' to assue any of those 2 factors.

1 Reply

@mark noble,

My answer about formatting the language with their hands would be the same.

I'd probably be slightly entertained by doing some people watching and trying to discern the nature of the conversation by the gestures and body language being used.

0 Replies

@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

Why do, in your opinion, people talk with the use of hand gestures. And I don't mean giving directions.

All your replies will be gratefully received.
Thank you, and have a great day.
Mark...

I think a better question is why do you always feel it necessary to title your posts with all capital letters. Do you have some kind of identity crisis going on or what? We can read your post without the need of the caps and also your post isn't really anything special, so why the insistent need to always capitalize every word in the thread title?

1 Reply

@HexHammer,

Hi Hex,
You think I'm schizophrenic anyway.
Here's a poem.

I'm not a schizophrenic. Yes I am. No I'm not.
I love my friends and family,
Yet, I hate the blooming lot.
I'm happiest with little,
But, want more than what I've got.
I'm not a schizophrenic!
Yes I am!
NO I'M NOT!

Thank you Hex.
Have a lovely day.
Mark...

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@Krumple,

Hi Krumple,
Because I'm not you.
Why do you constantly feel the need to criticize everything I do?
I'm a poetic author, amongst other things, and have a tendency to capitalise titles, First characters, etc.
Mark...

1 Reply

@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

Hi Krumple,
Because I'm not you.
Why do you constantly feel the need to criticize everything I do?
I'm a poetic author, amongst other things, and have a tendency to capitalise titles, First characters, etc.

Ahh, I see you are a narcissist, because I criticize "everything" you do. What else have I criticized you for?

2 Replies

@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

Hi folks,
What about two people chatting away just out of earshot, one of, using a lot of two-handed gestures? Do you see this as a form of preaching, or controlling the conversation?
Best wishes.
Mark...

"Preaching"? No. "Controlling the conversation"? I don't think it's usually the intent, but I could see a potential culture clash if a person from a culture that is typically more reserved and a person from a culture that is typically more physically expressive are talking to each other. The person from the more reserved culture may find the more expressive person to be overbearing, whether that was intended or not. (I belong to a few different cultures, some of which are very physically expressive and some of which are not, and have learned to modulate my body language according to who I am talking to, to avoid this sort of miscommunication.)

Beth, the origin-of-language stuff is fascinating.

1 Reply

@Krumple,

Hi Krumple,
Narcisssist, indeed. Very funny. I guess my use of "Everything" is (clearly) an exaggeration. Mea culpa.
Moreso - How I post, extend gestures (of which you specifically requested I refrain from with regards to you), Using my name as a signature - you recently criticised, Capitalisation (the most weird yet). You've even attempted to relate me to a"conpiracy theorist" with your recent video.
I'm not suggesting that you have an obsession with my characteristics, but I'm starting to wonder.
Why don't you, when you see a thread or post of mine, just not respond, or ignore them. I wont mind, you seem to go off on personal tangents anyhow.
Mark...

1 Reply

@mark noble,

mark noble wrote:

you recently criticised, Capitalisation (the most weird yet). You've even attempted to relate me to a"conpiracy theorist" with your recent video.

I have no idea what you are even talking about. I never called you or related you as being a conspiracy theorist. What are you talking about?

1 Reply

TALKING WITH YOUR HANDS.

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