Idioms from the Heart

      Have you ever wondered why we often write and talk about the human heart as if it were an emotional being with a distinct personality? We boast that we know the words of a song by heart, suggesting that it has mental abilities. We find it in our heart to help someone in need, indicating that it has the capacity to care about another. And, alas, a snub from one’s sweetheart can break one’s heart. It’s like we completely forget that the major function of this hard-working organ is to pump blood.
    
     Understanding our off-track thinking requires that we go back in time—way back!

     The heart, it seems, has enjoyed a place of prominence throughout recorded history. Four thousand years or so ago ancient Egyptians thought part of the soul lived in it. When preparing a mummy, they carefully preserved the heart and put it back in the body or stored it in jars along with other organs. They didn’t think much of the brain, however, so they pulled it out through the nostrils and threw it away.

     Fast forward a couple thousand years to ancient Greece, where early physicians and philosophers argued about which organ produced human thought and emotion. Many were certain it was the heart. As for the brain, some Greek thinkers characterized it as no more than a cooling system for the blood or as a delicate, airy "spirit" that kept the all-important heart working properly. Some contended that the brain might be just as crucial, but most Greek doctors continued to insist that the heart was responsible for human emotions and personality traits.

     Thus, the debate rolled along for centuries before people finally understood the specific connections and functions of both organs.

     Still, even with modern technology and thousands of years of learning at our disposal, many antiquated ideas about the heart are still hanging around. They show up constantly in our language as idioms—those versatile words and phrases that allow us to say one thing and mean another. To declare, for example, that Mr. Anderson is a strict teacher, but he has a heart of gold, doesn’t mean that his heart is constructed of precious metal. Rather, the statement refers to his kind and generous nature, and it attributes its origin to his heart. And so, without thinking about it, we perpetuate ancient misconceptions about the heart. Fortunately, it’s one of the idiosyncrasies that make our language intriguing and fun to use.