Embarrassment

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Embarrassment is an unpleasant emotional state experienced upon having a socially unacceptable act or condition witnessed by or revealed to others.

It is similar to shame, except that shame may be experienced for an act known only to oneself. Also, embarrassment usually carries the connotation of being caused by an act that is merely socially unacceptable, rather than morally wrong.

1 Causes
2 Etymology
3 See also
4 External link
5 References

[edit] Causes

Some causes of embarrassment include:

losing in a competition or a bet; demonstrating/revealing incompetence to others
socially awkward behavior
making unwarranted or incorrect assumptions about others
being mistaken or making a mistake
The perception of having abnormal, ugly, or unusually-sized genitalia
accidents (tripping, spilling liquids, etc.)
being seen urinating, defecating, masturbating, having sex, or otherwise performing a private action
flatulence
misbehaving due to alcohol or other drugs
damaging or soiling an article of clothing
being seen nude or inappropriately dressed. A person who is embarrassed in this situation is said to be petonic.
being seen viewing pornographic material
being seen in a sexually aroused state (such as with an erection in males)
discussing sexual matters
being overweight
body odor
having one's undergarments visible
medical conditions (vomiting, fainting, suffering a medical emergency)
having private information revealed (such as being the subject of gossip)
mistaking one person for another
showing childhood photos to other people
accompanying or being associated with someone who is behaving in an embarrassing way
witnessing someone else's embarrassment (empathetic embarrassment)
being made the focus of attention (e.g. birthday celebrants, newlyweds)
receiving or giving misdirected or excessive praise or compliments
being insulted (and being unable to retort effectively)
being rejected by another person
being the subject of a practical joke multiple people witness

Embarrassment is often accompanied by blushing, nervousness, stammering, and fidgeting.

[edit] Etymology

The English word embarrassed has taken an unusual path into English. The first written usage of embarrass in English was in 1664 by Samuel Pepys in his diary. The word was derived from the French word embarrasser, "to block," or "obstruct",¹ whose first recorded usage was by Michel de Montaigne in 1580. The French word was derived from the Spanish embarazar, whose first recorded usage was in 1460 in Cancionero de Stúñiga (Songbook of Stúñiga) by Álvaro de Luna.² The Spanish word comes from the Portuguese embaraçar, which is a combination of the prefix em- (from Latin im- for "in-") with baraço or baraça, "a noose", or "rope".³ Baraça originated before the Romans began their conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in 218 BC.⁴ Thus, baraça could be related to the Celtic word barr, "tuft." (Celtic people actually settled much of Spain and Portugal beginning in the 700s BC, the second group of people to do so.)⁵ However, it certainly is not directly derived from it, as the subsitution of r for rr in Ibero-Romantic languages was not a known occurrence.

Some say the Spanish word actually came from the Italian imbarazzare, from imbarazzo, "obstacle" or "obstruction." That word came from imbarrare, "to block," or "bar," which is a combination of in-, "in" with barra, "bar" (from the Vulgar Latin barra, which is of unknown origin).⁶ The problem with this theory is that the first known usage of the word in Italian was by Bernardo Davanzati (1529-1606), long after the word had entered Spanish.⁷

[edit] See also

[edit] External link

Bibliography of Embarrassment Research

[edit] References

"embarras," The Oxford English Dictionary, (1989) <http://dictionary.oed.com> [Accessed February 15, 2006].
Joan Corominas and José Pacual, "embarazar," Diccionario crítico etimológico castellano e hispánico, (Gredos, 1980) Vol. II, p. 555-556.
"embarrass," Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged (2002) <http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com> [Accessed February 15, 2006].
Corominas, "embarazar."
"Iberian," Encyclopaedia Britannica, <http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9041884> [Accessed February 15, 2006].
Corominas, "embarazar."
"embarrass," The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, (2000) <http://www.bartleby.com/61/12/E0101200.html> [Accessed February 15, 2006].