Lindsey Duncan writes:
Dear Dr. Bill,
Hi! I just started learning ASL. The vocabulary and basic
components I can understand pretty easily but I'm having a hard
time with the facial expressions, specifically in situations
where you need multiple expressions. For example, if I were to
sign "Why are you scared?" do I just have to transition quickly
from the frightened expression to the wh-expression? And if
you're asking a wh- question do you make the face through the
entire question, or just at the end? I would be so thankful if
you could answer this! It's important to me that I'm
communicating correctly.
- Lindsey
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Dear Lindsey,
Hello :)
It depends on how much context and how clear you need to be.
In general, yes, you should transition your facial expressions
quickly.
For example, you could sign:
YOU SCARED (using a scared facial expression), WHY? (using the "wh"-type
question expression).
However it is always important to consider the context of your
signing.
Suppose a child comes to you and tells you that he/she is
"scared." Now you have a context and thus your response of "YOU
SCARED, WHY?" would not need as much facial expression on the
"SCARED" concept since you both know that he "is" scared and now
your emphasis is on finding out "why" he is scared.
You could actually even drop the "YOU SCARED" part and just ask
"Why?" (Or "REASON?")
On the "YOU SCARED, WHY?" sentence if you use "fear" on the
SCARED and then transition into the WHY? It would be the
equivalent of saying in English:
"You are scared. Why?"
If you raise your eyebrows during the SCARED part of the
sentence it would be the equivalent of saying:
Are you afraid? If so -- why?
Or suppose your want to sign, "I'm not scared." You would
sign something to the effect of:
1. I/ME AFRAID-(negative head shake) I/ME.
2. I/ME NOT AFRAID.
Neither of those examples would use a "fearful" facial
expression.
However, if you were to topicalize the sentence you would indeed
use a fearful expression:
3. AFRAID? ME-(negative headshake).
4. ME AFRAID? NOT!-(scoffing facial expression, slight negative
headshake)
The first part of sentences 3 and 4 still wouldn't use "much" of
a fearful expression but rather a you would use a bit of fear
combined with the raised eyebrows of the "yes/no"-type facial
expression.
All four versions are "ASL." Just as English can say things in
various ways -- ASL likewise has various grammatically accurate
ways to express the same general concept depending on what you
want to emphasize.
Cordially,
Dr. Bill
Also see: Facial
Expressions
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