Expression of the Day (3-23-15)

What do you see when you look at this boy’s body language and stance?

21 replies
    • Paul Santino
      Paul Santino says:

      I see defiance, but not angry defiance. His eyes are wide open and his eyebrows level, almost like “You’ve got to be kidding; I totally disagree with you” rather than “No WAY I’m gonna do what you just told me to do!!!”.

      • Eyes for Lies
        Eyes for Lies says:

        Great job, Paul. Look what what the father wrote about the photo, “Tyler
        playing with some neighbor kids near our house wanted a large foot
        shaped rock another kid found. He was snatching the rock and not sharing
        it or playing nicely after awhile so I told him not to touch the rock
        anymore. They were dropping it off the edge of the playground equipment
        and it wasn’t safe. Tyler has always been fascinated by rocks so this
        was quite hard for him. He wanted to keep it… but I didn’t let him.”

    • Karon
      Karon says:

      I see this as emotion that is in middle to strong emotion. He looks more determined than in a temper tantrum, and he might take some strong persuasion to change his mind. He has his arms wrapped around himself to comfort and protect himself from whatever he is facing, and his back is strong and straight with his feet spread apart to cover more ground. He isn’t giving an inch. His eyes are shooting daggers. His lips are pressed together, and he isn’t saying a word, yet, but he doesn’t want to be pushed another inch. If he is pushed any further, we might see strong emotion!

    • Eyes for Lies
      Eyes for Lies says:

      I see this as a mild emotional response. He is showing resistance, but not out right defiance. His father wrote about the photo “Tyler
      playing with some neighbor kids near our house wanted a large foot
      shaped rock another kid found. He was snatching the rock and not sharing
      it or playing nicely after awhile so I told him not to touch the rock
      anymore. They were dropping it off the edge of the playground equipment
      and it wasn’t safe. Tyler has always been fascinated by rocks so this
      was quite hard for him. He wanted to keep it… but I didn’t let him.”

  1. Paul Flanagan
    Paul Flanagan says:

    It’s very cold out and…, oh, wait. 🙂 Strong emotion. I say defiance too. Arms folded is very closed here. I think his body and head facing different directions is something too. I feel usually when somebody only turns their head and their body stays in place, it’s exaggerated and meant to signal, “Hey! I got my eye on you.”

  2. Molly Hardison
    Molly Hardison says:

    I think he thinks he looks like he wants to be taken seriously, but to me, he looks like he’s on the verge of a smile, and possibly trying to suppress laughter.

  3. harlekin
    harlekin says:

    Easy one. Deeply convinced in his own self. Yet still open to argument. The left side of his face (from his pov) can be interpreted to be angry – yet I read the face as “open” to whatever is coming.

    I have a strong problem with people reading this at defiant, because of crossed arms alone, or as “standing strong”, “not mowing an inch” – because this is anecdotal at best. And more likely socially attributed, because he is “just a child”. And any attempt of projecting a “strong self” is seen as defiance against the parent.

  4. Karon
    Karon says:

    His eyebrows are slightly pulled together, showing anger. We don’t know who he might be showing anger toward. It could be another child taunting him. I don’t see rage, but I see defiance and anger. My mother was very strict, and I would have been in trouble if I had folded my arms across my chest and looked at her with this expression. I don’t ever remember my son folding his arms and looking at me with that expression. Of course, I saw some angry expressions, but not the stance.

  5. Eyes for Lies
    Eyes for Lies says:

    I wrote some comments below… I don’t see this as a strong emotion. I see the boy being “resistant”.

    The father wrote about the photograph:

    “Tyler playing with some neighbor kids near our house wanted a large foot shaped rock another kid found. He was snatching the rock and not sharing it or playing nicely after awhile so I told him not to touch the rock anymore. They were dropping it off the edge of the playground equipment and it wasn’t safe. Tyler has always been fascinated by rocks so this was quite hard for him. He wanted to keep it… but I didn’t let him.”

    • Paul Flanagan
      Paul Flanagan says:

      Hmm… I need to think about this a little. I may need to readjust my “strength meter”. I feel/felt it as strong. If I just look at the face, no, but the entire picture feels strong. If I was flipping through photos, I would notice this one. Maybe it’s the picture that is strong more than the emotion. I’m confused a bit. I would have totally come to the conclusion though that the story behind this photo fits the image perfectly (I just read it), so I don’t know. That’s the look I would expect if his father took something away from him. I guess it’s that he’s not defying anything, otherwise he’d be trying to get the rock back. I don’t know…

    • Lee Cockrell
      Lee Cockrell says:

      I would add to my comment: “defiant with a touch of unsure”. He wants to do something he’s been told not to. He’s probably going to follow instructions though he doesn’t like it, and doesn’t totally understand why.

  6. Anne S. - Betty's Beauty Bombs
    Anne S. - Betty's Beauty Bombs says:

    I see defiance that will not be backed up by actions. Like his mom told him to come inside and she’s counting to three….and maybe she’s on two…But as soon as she hits three, he’s going to come running. Fake defiance?

  7. Russ Conte
    Russ Conte says:

    Given what we know, it seems to me that this expression happened in the give and take about the rock, and that’s critical to understanding it. One the one hand I describe it as a “challenge”, but not in the normal sense of the word – in other words I do not see defiance here at all. He’s open to what dad is going to say (future tense), and he wants to hear what dad is going to say, but he’s going to challenge it. This exchange is not over at the time of the photo. Almost as if he is saying (with his face), “OK, I heard that, I don’t like it, but what else do you have/are you going to say?” It’s almost more inquisitive (with an edge) than anything else to me. In my experience defiance would have a lot of anger and no room for negotiation. Here the child is open to what’s coming, even though he doesn’t think he’s going to like it, and that’s clearly not defiance in my book.

    Excellent photo, very interesting posts, I enjoyed what everyone shared 🙂

    • clownfish
      clownfish says:

      what you wrote is exactly what i see in the photo as well, but I couldn’t have written what your wrote haha! thanks for putting into words!

    • Paul Flanagan
      Paul Flanagan says:

      I went to look up defiance and it seems to cover what you are saying, especially regarding your view that he wants to hear what dad is going to say, but he’s going to (still) challenge it. That is the definition of defiance. Also… “open resistance”, “disposition to resist”, “a challenge to meet in combat or contest.”

  8. auberge
    auberge says:

    I saw this (before reading other comments) as “i can’tt believe what you are telling me to do” and “you can’t make me.” Overtones of the boy truly feeling that an order given is unfair or unbelievable. One side of the face says “Well!” with a bit of indignation and the other side seems a little feeling hurt, as though disapointed or mistreated, giving way to self-doubt.

    So, partly defiant, partly disbelieving, a little bit doubting. Not a kid to throw a tantrum over the issue, though. He is not in emotional distress nor is he very angrily upset. This expression seems mild to moderate or temporary.

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