Institutio Oratoria

Further, we sometimes clench the hand and press it to our breast when we are expressing regret or anger, an occasion when it is not unbecoming even to force the voice through the teeth in phrases such as

What shall I do now?

What would you do?

To point at something with the thumb turned back is a gesture which is in general just, but is not, in my opinion, becoming to an orator.

Motion is generally divided into six kinds, but circular motion must be regarded as a seventh. The latter alone is faulty when applied to gesture. The remaining motions— that is, forward, to right or left and up or down—all have their significance, but the gesture is never directed to what lies behind us, though we do at

times throw the hand back.