This summer I had possibilities to observe a horse and a donkey. However, the two animals also had a chance to observe me and read my body language, and I’ve heard they are so good “readers”. Horses have extraordinary ability to interpret body language horses and humans and this kind of attention can save them from being eaten by predators. Attention seems to be a necessity of survival and a very early way of learning from the others.
My little niece, nine months old, is attentive to her surroundings. She touches and grabs what she can reach. Once she was in my arms, we were sitting on a floor and a cat was lying next to us. With her bare foot the girl was touching the cat’s tale. Knowing that this cat could suddenly jump and use his claws, I was alert to its movements. Unfortunately I was possibly too alert: when the cat lifted his head, I quickly moved the girl away, rotating my body about 20 cm to the right. Nothing else happened, the cat just looked at us, but my reaction really scared the girl. My body movement communicated danger and she detected that. I wanted to protect her, but scared her instead. She was screaming and could not calm down until her mother came from the other room.This reminds me of something Stern (2003) wrote: how young children often observe their mother’s body language to find out if something is dangerous or not. Young children seem to learn through this kind of first-hand experience mediated through care-givers’ body language, and I felt bad because I did not want to teach my niece that cats are dangerous animals. I can of course not know how this experience could influenced her understanding, however, to comfort myself I imagine that she has learned about the importance of being attentive to body language of other beings.
Stern, D. N. (2003). Spebarnets intersubjective verden (Ø. Randers-Pehrson, Trans.). Oslo: Gyldendal Akademisk.
