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Encyclopedia Britannica



VENTRILOQUISM (Lat. venter, belly, and loqui, to speak)

This article appears in Volume V27, Page 1012 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: VAN-VIR
VENTRILOQUISM (Lat. venter, belly, and loqui, to speak) , the art of producing the voice in such a manner that it shall appear to proceed, not from the
speaker
 's own mouth, but from some place altogether distant from him. The art of
ventriloquism
  was formerly supposed to result from a
peculiar
  use of the stomach (whence the name) during the process of inhalation. As a matter of fact, the words are formed in the normal manner, but the breath is allowed to escape very slowly, the tones being muffled by narrowing the glottis and the mouth opened as little as possible, while the tongue is retracted and only its tip moves. Gestures and facial expression are employed at the same time to assist in the deception by stimulating the
imagination
  of the listeners and to distract their attention from the
speaker
 . " Thus," says Huxley, " if the ventriloquist desireto create the belief that a voice issues from the bowels of the earth, he imitates, with
great
  accuracy, the tones of such a half-stifled voice, and suggests the existence of some one uttering it by directing his answers and gestures towards the ground. The gestures and tones are such as would be produced by a given cause; and, no other cause being apparent, the mind of the bystander insensibly
judges
  the suggested cause to exist."
Ventriloquism
 , which is still a recognized form of conjuring entertainment, is of ancient origin. Traces of the art are found in Egyptian and Hebrew archaeology. Eurykles of Athens was the most celebrated of Greek ventriloquists, who were called after him Euryklides, and also Engastrimanteis (belly-prophets). It is not impossible that the priests of ancient times were masters of this art, and that to it may be ascribed such miracles as the speaking statues of the Egyptians, the Greek oracles, and the stone in the river Pactolus, the
sound
  of which put robbers to flight. Many uncivilized races of
modern
  times are adepts in ventriloquism, as the Zulus, the Maoris and the Eskimos. It is well known in Hindustan and China, where it is practised by travelling magicians.
See De la Chapelle, Le Ventriloque, ou l'engastrimythe (London, 1772); E. Schultz, Die Kunst des Bauchredens (
Erfurt
 , 1895); Sievers, Grundzuge der Phonetic (
Leipzig
 , 1901); Russel, Ventriloquism (London, 1898).


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