This may be an ideological difference...

[thanate]

A question for writers and readers: Do you find it odd when a first person narrator describes his or her own facial expressions?


I keep running into people who do, and I find *this* very odd. I was trained as a kid in the parents commenting on what expression you're making method ("If you keep pouting like that, a little bird might come and perch on your lip."* or "Oh look at that grin!") and probably learned some expressions (scowling, for instance) better by what they felt like than what they looked like. This may or may not still be true, but I am definitely able to describe my own facial expressions, and have been known to do so by way of emotional shorthand.

I can't possibly be the only one who thinks this way, can I?

ETA- by "describe" I don't mean in great detail, just "I smiled," or "that made me frown," &ct.


*Why this is a bad thing, I'm not sure; in retrospect the "your face might stick like that" seems a much more credible threat. Perhaps it's mostly intended to make cross children smile?

Comments

[jazzfish]

Chalk up another on the "don't find it odd in the slightest" side. Unless you're under a great deal of stress how do you /not/ know what your expression is?

[calliopeoracle]

Yeah, I don't think it's odd to describe expressions at all. I'm pretty aware of my expressions, too.

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

It throws me out of the story every time, unless the person is deliberately aware of their expression.

I can't buy: "He noticed my half-smile" because now the narrator is reading the other person's mind.

I can buy: "I couldn't help the twitch of my lips, and I wondered if he thought I was smiling."

[aanna-t.livejournal.com]

I suppose it depends how precise the description is. For instance, "I smiled" or "I frowned" are oftentimes conscious actions. On the other hand, more subtle expressions are problematic: unless you're acting, you would not stop and think, "I looked worried."

Then you get into the complicated, "I must have looked worried, because he said..."

[thanate.livejournal.com]

I'm entirely with you on the "He noticed my half-smile"; that's just silly, and gives the impression that the narrator is trying to conjure up a romance novel script to live in.

I'm thinking about something much more basic: "I kicked my heels and scowled," or "[thing happened], which made me grin."

[sartorias.livejournal.com]

But those are reactions, not the narrator watching themself in a mirror.

[queenoftheskies.livejournal.com]

I find it distracting unless there's a reason for it like: I forced a smile and turned away.

[blairmacg.livejournal.com]

Depends on the setting for me. If the character is in a situation the requires body-language awareness, it makes sense. (Forex, I tend to be hyper-aware when I'm doing consults because the client's impression of my attitude governs how much truth they will tell me.) I'm not bothered by general first-person references like "I smiled at the kid," especially in a short story when spending fifty precious words to otherwise describe the reaction seems extravagant.

[heuchera.livejournal.com]

It doesn't bother me. Some things make more sense from a first person perspective -- blushing for instance. "I could feel myself blushing, which only increased my embarrassment" or something like that, seems more awkward if you try to put it in third person.

[heuchera.livejournal.com]

I suppose a blush is not necessarily an expression though.