Absolute recoil: what other response could there be? Utter recoil. Grimacing! Involuntary gagging! Basic aversion! Primitive aversion! Originary keep-away! Just … automatic!
The most primitive parts of the brain. The insula and basal ganglia regions of the brain. The hypothalamus! The amygdala! The whole limbic system. That’s what I’m tasting with. Those are the organs of disgust.
Phylogenetically ancient! Evolved long before the cerebral cortex!
Disgust slows the heartbeat – did you know that? Drops the blood pressure. Decreases the pulse! Because there’s always a pause in the recoil. A tendency to dwell, horrified, over the disgusting object …
Work in Progress 