Posture of contempt It's common to “puff up” one's chest, have upright posture, look “down your nose” at others, and/or roll one's eyes.
The universal facial expression of contempt is often symbolized by half of the upper lip tightening up. At times, the head may be tilted back. Although the emotion of contempt can overlap with anger and disgust, the facial expression may be the only one that occurs on only one side of the face and varies in intensity.
Treating others with disrespect and mocking them with sarcasm and condescension are forms of contempt. So are hostile humor, name-calling, mimicking, and body language such as eye-rolling and sneering.
Often a person feeling guilt will instinctively hold his head with one or even both hands. The hands often are covering the eyes, because he would rather not see other people while feeling guilt. The posture here is similar to a “woe is me” type of feeling. It is like the person is trying to ask “What have I done?”
Some of the physical symptoms of guilt are problems with sleep, your stomach and digestion, and muscle tension. The social and emotional symptoms of guilt are often hidden in your everyday actions. You may find justification for certain thoughts, but guilt could very well be the cause.
A guilty person may avoid answering direct questions, refuse to provide information that could be used against them, or simply disappear altogether. Another telltale sign is that a guilty person may tend to lie or provide false explanations for their behavior.
What does 'in contempt' mean? A person may be held in contempt in a number of ways. The legal sense may be defined as "willful disobedience to or open disrespect of a court, judge, or legislative body." In a general sense if you hold someone in contempt it simply means that you despise or strongly disapprove of them.
There are some common signs that contempt is underlying the negative tone in a conversation. Eye-rolling suggests contempt. An upper lip raised on one side suggests contempt, as does a sarcastic tone of voice. If you have these habits, or if you have been on the receiving end of these negative communications, beware.
Although contempt often surfaces as an emotion, it can also be a personality trait, namely that of being contemptuous. People who are contemptuous have a greater tendency than others to look down on, derogate, or distance others whose standards or values are appalling to them.
"You disgust me," is one of the simplest and most contemptuous things you can say to someone. "You're stupid," is another. If you can think of something that both hurts a person and suggests that you're looking down on them, you've come up with a contemptuous thing to say.
: feeling or showing deep hatred or disapproval : feeling or showing contempt.
Often, subtle forms of contempt feel perfectly justified but what you may not realize is that you're putting yourself in opposition to your partner saying: “I am standing up for myself—against you.” While contempt may seem like the expression of genuine feeling, it's actually an expression of negative judgment.
: manifesting, feeling, or expressing deep hatred or disapproval : feeling or showing contempt.
Contempt. The article I read identified contempt as being the “kiss of death” in marriage and relationships. I think of contempt as being a more intense form of criticism. Contempt involves making threats, name calling and insults, and just downright treating your spouse or partner with hurt and meanness.
The causes of contempt
We can feel contempt because we've been hurt, insulted or deeply humiliated. We can also feel contempt towards someone who broke a moral code, such as mistreating, betraying, deceiving or disrespecting us. In fact, contempt is a “moral emotion”.
What's the difference between anger and contempt? The simplest way to think about it is, anger is an evaluation of someone's actions, while contempt is an evaluation of someone's value. So, if someone obstructs you from reaching your goal in any given situation, you may become angry at them.
The best way to deal with this situation is to confront your partner when they start behaving with contempt toward you. Ask them what they need and why they feel this way about certain subjects. They may not know how their behavior affects you and if so, it would be helpful for them to know.
The narcissist, incapable of experiencing any depth of vulnerability, projects his/her shame and rage outwards onto certain targets in order to not have to “carry' his/her shame and rage within him/herself. This projection sometimes takes on the form of disdain, disgust, and contempt.
Familiarity leads to liking; familiarity breeds contempt.
People doing contempt think that they are expressing emotions—but they aren't. They are certainly feeling emotions, but contempt is expressing (negative) judgments, which your partner will resent. So the key antidote to contempt is expressing your feelings and longings—and expressing them well.
In shame and guilt there may be more looking away or covering of part of the face, than would occur with straight sadness, but the basic facial expression is the same – inner corners of the eyebrows are raised so that the eyebrows slant downwards from the center of the forehead, cheeks are slightly raised, lip corners ...
Acting suspiciously – When people are falsely accused of a crime, they may become nervous or anxious, making them appear shifty and suspicious. They may avoid eye contact, fidget, or act defensively when questioned. Unfortunately, these behaviors can make them look guilty, even if they have done nothing wrong.
"When a liar becomes hostile or defensive, he is attempting to turn the tables on you," says Glass. The liar will get hostile because he is angry that you've discovered his lies, which may result in a lot of pointing.
Contempt is feeling like the other person is not worth your anger. You are still angry, but you are trying to regulate your anger by looking down on the other person and putting a distance between you. Contempt is the cold version of hate. Like hate, contempt is about who you are, your nature and your personality.