The Origin Of Screaming

So right now I'm stuck.

I have searched with little information, and the only information I'm looking for is in theory anyway.

This could be in the science forum, but it could be metaphysical as well. (this question goes far beyond screaming)

I'm not too much concerned with what causes screaming, but more so how it developed as both something of discomfort and delight.

It is just about in all cases the first audible human sound alerting discomfort.
- As with many other species and mammals.

Now, I have heard two interesting evolutionary examples to handed down causes. 1 - being that it is the most natural way to for your body to allow oxygen to your blood and body in a state of panic. 2 - it being a genetic benefit that instructs reflexes to pain, to help ease the pain, and thus survive.

Buuuuuut, we also scream for pleasure and delight.

Which is the exact opposite of every reason stated above. Because if you are in pleasure, survival is irrelevant. And if you are in pleasure, there is no need to panic. Yet it seems both are quite a bit involuntary and acceptably necessary.

Pleasure is a bit vague, someone might prefer the word excitement, but there are many types of screams. We scream from being completely engulfed with laughter, yet we are not excited, we are just joyously laughing.

Which brings me to a more metaphysical side apart from the evolutionary side.

Now, on the notion that the body is more something like a vessel, that has a mind and can think and experience, but is moved and thought by something unexplainable, like a spirit or soul (or call it consciousness)

This would also bring upon a duality between the evolved human - you would have to either consider all beings before man were conscious, but maybe in a different way or consciousness simply does not exist. - Or a God put it there, but that becomes a closed door, not an explanation, just a reason.

So the driver of the vessel, either in the animal or the man, must be a very simple driver, unless the driver is well trained in it's environment as well as the places the vessel has never been. (I think humans are interestingly different than other animals in the sense that they are almost geographically undetermined, they see the world that other animals don't. The fish see's the ocean, and only a small portion of that ocean, as do we. The bird see's the sky and trees, but only a small portion of that sky and trees. All have a natural habitat but us (some have a habitat that follow us) We simply travel where we can, when we can, with who we can. So going back to the driver, it is simple, unless you are capable of driving where you can see, hear, communicate in many different ways over thousands of years, at that point the driver has learned many different techniques that stimulate the vessel.


Now comes the question of pain and pleasure.

Because screaming seems to be some sort of climax of the either two.

Could it simply (not quite simply ) be an arbitrary set of on's and off's in the brain that tell the body what to do?

Or could it be the driver telling the brain to tell the body with the driver's new techniques from the vessel's cognitive development?

What caused me to ask this question was the difference of delight and discomfort for all newborns that enter the world during child birth. I really can't imagine the sensation of exiting a nice warm, all-the-nutrients you need isolation tank of euphoria, where time doesn't exist and exploring my surrounding was all i needed, not to mention hearing fascinating sounds that were always going on, and yet still being able to move and experiment. Then it all ends by entering a bright chaotic and confusingly sensitive new world.

So where does the scream come from? I would say the newborn doesn't even care what delight is, until that first scream.










[edit on 6-7-2010 by juveous]

Hmm... Very intresting thought.

Im no expert, in fact i doubt i am human sometimes but i would imagine that there is no single cause or effect of screaming. Take someone who screams in terror, this would be to release fear, anxiety, tension and probs certain hormones and chemicles to aid the body in fight or flight.
with new borns screaming this can only be attributed to the need to feel comfort from the mother and her giant swollen boobies (just the exat reason i scream).
Although why women scream at every available opportunity is beyond me and something i will never understand

S&F

apart from affected screaming when people are clearly putting it on for effect or attention, surely screaming is an indication of loss of control of faculties, be it for pleasurable, fearful or painful reasons?

Isn't "discomfort" screaming partly about alerting other people?
If you're a baby, mother comes and drives away the danger.
Or other members of the tribe are warned and get the chance to escape/band together, as appropriate.

I wonder if communicating with others is also an aspect of "pleasure" screaming. Would girls scream at a pop-star if they were not in a group of other girls and sharing the experience? Would someone on their own scream on a roller-coaster ride?

Once this question has been solved, perhaps someone can work on the question of why characters in movies always shout "No!" when they're being threatened by natural disasters, like avalanches. Does anybody do that in real life? What, exactly, is the point?

[edit on 6-7-2010 by DISRAELI]

reply to post by juveous


My hamsters scream too, in both fear and "pleasure" (mating).. In fear this alerts fellow hamsters to seek cover. Also it may scare of whatever it is they are afraid of.

When mating I believe it functions as a ranking thing ("Look at me.. I'm evolutionary adorable.. and so thinks my partner 'cause I'm being layed")

So I think it could be a social thing.. A group thing..

It is probably like most Human behaviours down to evolution.

Caveman A: Look a bear
Cavman B: RAAARWGLE! RUN!

Caveman A:

Originally posted by DISRAELI
Isn't "discomfort" screaming partly about alerting other people?
If you're a baby, mother comes and drives away the danger.
Or other members of the tribe are warned and get the chance to escape/band together, as appropriate.

I wonder if communicating with others is also an aspect of "pleasure" screaming. Would girls scream at a pop-star if they were not in a group of other girls and sharing the experience? Would someone on their own scream on a roller-coaster ride?

I agree with the communication aspect, since screaming is specifically vocal. But on the elementary level, why is screaming so fundamentally rooted? originating from the concept that newborns are attempting to alert others for "help" before they even know that they can be helped...

You can't just make up a fact that all newborns know so much to a point that knowing screaming is something that fixes discomfort (communicating). If that is more true, giving more weight to genetics, then what gene is that? and it better be in every newborn animal that screams..

[edit on 6-7-2010 by juveous]

Originally posted by juveous

You can't just make up a fact that all newborns know so much to a point that knowing screaming is something that fixes discomfort

Perhaps MrBOb above is right, and it's evolution. Babies that did it would have a selective advantage over babies that did not.

Another possible angle; release of inhibitions. If inhibitions restrain people from acting, does the release of inhibitions free them to take action in emergencies? And is screaming a symptom of or aid towards that?

I don't have enough science to do more than offer speculation here.

It could be related to the somatic mind / the somatic nervous system SNS.
Because it's usually a full body response when someone is yelling/screaming it would take a tremendous amount of energy to "rally" the cells into action. Also requiring an increase in oxygen. How I relate this to yelling and screaming would be when you are yelling or screaming you are trying to express something, usually. I also believe it could be a built in "program" genetic or evolutionary that tells us that a full body communication is a more effective communication, than just words or actions.

Originally posted by juveous

Originally posted by DISRAELI
Isn't "discomfort" screaming partly about alerting other people?
If you're a baby, mother comes and drives away the danger.
Or other members of the tribe are warned and get the chance to escape/band together, as appropriate.

I wonder if communicating with others is also an aspect of "pleasure" screaming. Would girls scream at a pop-star if they were not in a group of other girls and sharing the experience? Would someone on their own scream on a roller-coaster ride?

I agree with the communication aspect, since screaming is specifically vocal. But on the elementary level, why is screaming so fundamentally rooted? originating from the concept that newborns are attempting to alert others for "help" before they even know that they can be helped...

Either it's genetic memory, the first 'task' of life is the very first combustion of nerves booting up to experience light, sound , smell, taste, touch etc - A system check (so to speak) to ensure the lungs clear of fluid maybe? Or test the lungs.

Good question

Originally posted by DISRAELI

Originally posted by juveous

You can't just make up a fact that all newborns know so much to a point that knowing screaming is something that fixes discomfort

Perhaps MrBOb above is right, and it's evolution. Babies that did it would have a selective advantage over babies that did not.

Another possible angle; release of inhibitions. If inhibitions restrain people from acting, does the release of inhibitions free them to take action in emergencies? And is screaming a symptom of or aid towards that?

I don't have enough science to do more than offer speculation here.

I'm right there with you, I don't have anything but speculations. On the inhibitions side, same with suppressing emotions until something "bursts" out.
On the babies that did not cry, how do you know that them not crying was a "disadvantage" it is also possible they just weren't in discomfort.

Originally posted by PuRe EnErGy
It could be related to the somatic mind / the somatic nervous system SNS.
Because it's usually a full body response when someone is yelling/screaming it would take a tremendous amount of energy to "rally" the cells into action. Also requiring an increase in oxygen. How I relate this to yelling and screaming would be when you are yelling or screaming you are trying to express something, usually. I also believe it could be a built in "program" genetic or evolutionary that tells us that a full body communication is a more effective communication, than just words or actions.

Interesting view on the full body response.

On the human expression point, I think that is really key. It is like a release or a valve (as well as many other bodily valves) - A scream can release any current negative feelings while screaming (although it probably won't get rid of them) As well as screaming to allow energy to enter us - whether that be a physical match of strength or simply celebrating a musical performance - we like energy

Originally posted by juveous

On the babies that did not cry, how do you know that them not crying was a "disadvantage" it is also possible they just weren't in discomfort.

I think in that comment I was really getting back to the question of danger situations. Screaming babies would be more likely to be rescued from the leopard than non-screaming babies, so it would be an advantage to have it wired in from birth.

Men used to scream before combat to appear more scary, hence the scrunched face. We scream when in pain as it helps ease the pain. Humans evolved in groups as social beings, we scream in fear to alert others im in danger or i need help. My theorey anyway

reply to post by juveous


Well sometime in the 1970's Arthur Janov came up with a [sarcasm]brilliant[/sarcasm] idea called Primal Scream Therapy or Primal Therapy, which in the long run will just make you crazy btw. The idea was literally to scream and you'd feel better but now we know the more you do something the better you get at it or in other words neurons that fire together wire together and all it did was make a bunch of mad crazy people who thought yelling and screaming was how you dealt with BS in your life. I recommend doing something different.... something you'd rather be doing instead.