Michael Trimble
Image: Courtesy of Michael Trimble
Michael Trimble, a British professor at the Institute of Neurology in London, begins his new book with Gana the gorilla. In the summer of 2009, 11-year-old Gana gave birth to a boy at a Muenster zoo. But one day in August, the baby suddenly and mysteriously died. Gana held up her son in front of her, staring at his limp body. She held him close, stroking him. To onlookers it appeared that Gana was trying to reawaken him, and, as the hours passed, that she was mourning his passing. Some at the zoo that day cried. But Gana did not. Humans, Trimble tells us, are the only creatures who cry for emotional reasons. “Why Humans Like to Cry” is an exploration of why this would be so, a neuroanatomical “where do tears come from.” It’s also a meditation on human psychology. Many distinctions have been offered between humans and the rest of the animal world, and to this list Trimble adds another: the anguished tear, the apprehension that life is tragic. Trimble answered questions from Mind Matters editor Gareth Cook.
Cook: How did you first become interested in crying?
Trimble: Of course, because I cry, and some things bring tears quite easily, notably music, and opera with the power of the human voice.
Crying tears, for emotional reasons, is unique to humans. There has been a game of catch me if you can, which has been played by those interested in finding attributes or behaviours which separate humans from our nearest living relatives – namely the chimpanzees and bonobos. Certainly our propositional language is very special, but primate communities have very sophisticated ways of communicating. Other contenders, such as play, using tools, or having what is called theory of mind (the sense that I know that others have a mind very like mine, with similar inclinations and intentions) have all been argued as unique to our species, but all these have been demonstrated, in some form, to be found in other primates. Emotional crying makes us human.
Cook: What is known about crying in the animal world?
Trimble: Tears are necessary to keep the eyeball moist, and contain proteins and other substances which maintain the eye healthy and to combat infection. Tearing occurs in many animals in response to irritants which get in the eye, and in some settings tears fall for simple anatomical facts. When an elephant is standing, tears run down the trunk, but when lying down, the flow is impeded and tears may be seen coming from the eyes. It may be that animals that are abused shed tears, from pain, although observations of this are rare.
Cook: How is crying different in humans?
Trimble: Humans cry for many reasons, but crying for emotional reasons and crying in response to aesthetic experiences are unique to us. The former is most associated with loss and bereavement, and the art forms that are most associated with tears are music, literature and poetry. There are very few people who cry looking at paintings, sculptures or lovely buildings. But we also have tears of joy the associated feelings of which last a shorter time than crying in the other circumstances.
Cook: What do you find most interesting about the neuroscience of crying?
Trimble: If it is the case that only humans cry emotionally, then there must have been a time in human evolution when tears took on an additional meaning to their hitherto biological functions , namely as a signal of distress, and a cipher for suffering. In my book I discuss at when in the past our ancestors may come to possess this trait. I suggest that this is connected with the dawning of self-consciousness, with the development of theory of mind, and the realisation that the self and others can disappear. Attachment emotionally to others, with the development of sophisticated facial gestures associated with suffering, and with loss and bereavement ensued. All this before the development of our elegant propositional language. The emotional responses became largely unconscious and innate, and identification of tears as a signal for such distress was an important addition the so called Social brain, the circuitry of which can now be identified in the human brain.
I also discuss the differences between the neuroanatomy of the human brain and that of chimpanzees and other closely related primates, which may explain our ability to respond emotionally with tears to the arts. The brain areas involved are widespread, but link our cerebral cortex especially anteriorly with those areas associated with the representation of emotion – so called limbic structures and our autonomic system. The latter co-ordinates heart rate, breathing, and vocal output, all of which collaborate in the expression of emotion with tears.
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Add CommentThis young man of sixty-five cries!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI'm interested in empathy- our evolved moral sense.
Were there a way to implant a moral sense in the psychopaths and such!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisEmpathy and morality are clearly at the root of our social and moral selves, yet both are oddly absent from the theoretical underpinnings of the one social system that most directly influences our lives at every level - our economic system.
That would be a waste of effort; nothing but crocodile tears- as psychopaths are born with non-empathetic wiring systems!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe preceding comment, which somehow disappeared before I could find the exact quote, was as follows:
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisDr; Trimble: "All this (theory of mind interpretations) before the development of our elegant propositional language." Parenthesis supplied. The inherited language faculty, however primitive as could be imagined at about the age Piaget argued a toddler can conclude he is not an extension of his crib and tell the difference between self and the crib, i.e., self-conscious state. This 'proto-language' evolves with the child and is 'sine qua non' for any empathy between self and others and is an uniquely human feature especially when the subject can consciously trump the strong subconscious driving force of human species self preservation (biopsychosocial or 'bps' imperative) in behalf of altruistic behaviors history records. There is lots of good 'theory of mind' work on mirror neurons, fMRI synchrony between self and other, etc. that Dr. Trimble should look at before voicing his pronouncements. In case the preceding comment was lost, the reader may see Vol. III <http://delaSierra-Sheffer.net> where I interpret this empathic interspecies communication ability as utilizing same processing as in attaining an introspective self-conscious state where a 'proto-language' plays a role.' Sorry the more detaild explanation is lost. Dr.d
The main purpose of crying is to relieve stress.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIt is ridiculous to continue to find ways to make humans special. We aren't special because as humans, we cry tears. Other animals feel empathy too. Human beings are extraordinary, but we have got to stop finding new and inventive ways to pat ourselves on the back. So what, we cry tears and those primates don’t. What humanity needs is some good old fashioned humility.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere was a recent interesting discussion about the morphological reason for human tears:
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thishttp://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/AAT/message/60247
It doesn't concern itself as much with the psychic purpose of emotional tears (e.g. exclamation of empathy), but more the morphological purpose of it being possibly to prevent hypoxic damage of the eye balls in a non-air environment (the psychic exuding of tears being more an exaptation in such case). It was a new angle that I thought was interesting.
Humans differ from animals due to higher cognitive levels. This higher order of thinking is what enables humans to act beyond their animal ancestors. This factor is why humans are able to feel and express emotion. The crying that humans express is due to a natural reflex to an overwhelming amount of stress. Animals do not feel this stress because they live lives that are simple and easily maintained. Humans have the ability to cry due to the advancement in the limbic system of their brains. The neural anatomy that humans are equipped with allow the emotional flow to connect with other beings and this also brings the vulnerability that causes crying to happen so often these days.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis article is... actually.... beautiful.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThere is an interesting experiment done which was reported of late dealing with small (6 mo) tots. Puppets were used with the tots viewing. Things went as expected until the puppets that were disfavored.... http://www.disinfo.com/2013/04/babies-prefer-individuals-who-harm-those-who-arent-like-them/
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSo where does our humanity start? When we teach ourselves the benefits of reciprocity.
I happen to believe that there is another urge as strong as food and sex; we insist on fairness. What else is a media campaign than to sway our ideas of fairness? What makes a perfect slave? Why do all civilizations make an effort --generally as minimal as possible--to show reciprocity?