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Are you saying that you think that description means the Michell was likely African-American? Or are you just saying that that description refers to a physical
by kbelder 3y ago
Are you saying that you think that description means the Michell was likely African-American? Or are you just saying that that description refers to a physical trait of being relatively dark-skinned for a Caucasian, instead of a behavioral trait?
I would have parsed that as meaning he behaved in a generally dour way.
- vfclists 3y agoWhy would Michell have to be African-American? Didn't African-Africans exist in the medieval era? Since when has the word "description" referred to a person's temperament? The only time it seems that "complexion" refers to a person temperament is only when if taken literally it refers to a very dark-skinned person or what we call a "black man" in our era, like an African, a Melanesian or a South Asian. For instance General Monck was described as a "black man" with a sanguine complexion, which should tell you that he was actually a "black man", because sanguine is the reddish-brown, or fawn color that Africans and South Asians exhibit. Would that mean the "black" used to describe him meant he was sad and melancholy when on the other hand sanguine meant cheerful? I think you should check the depiction of an English monarch on the frontispiece of Hobbes Leviathan, and also learn about Anton Wilhelm Amo, before concluding that a the term "black complexion" must refer to the temperament of an insightful natural philosopher.