What Does shy Mean
The adjective sullen is used to describe those who tend to distance themselves from people , choosing to lead an isolated and lonely life. The sullen individual does not enjoy contact with others , so he tries to avoid or minimize social interactions.
For example: "In the mountains there lives a sullen old man who only visits the town once a month" , "I'm a little sullen, in my free time I prefer to stay at home" , "The singer is somewhat sullen: he does not usually give interviews nor does he get too close to the public ” .
The sullen, in short, is not sociable . Participating in meetings, attending parties or hanging out with friends are not part of their interests. On the contrary, he chooses to remain in his home , without moving away from his environment and preventing other subjects from accessing it.
In general, the sullen is unfriendly and surly . You can ignore other people or even become aggressive, especially if you feel threatened or in danger.
There are a number of reasons that can make someone unsociable. Usually this characteristic is linked to upbringing or childhood , although it can also arise from a great disappointment with a loved one (a love disappointment, a family betrayal, etc.). Faced with pain or trauma , the subject begins to become self-absorbed as a protection mechanism.
It is important to mention that there are those who are sullen in public situations or with a lot of exposure, although they are warm, kind and friendly with their inner circle. This would be the case of a famous actor who does not speak to journalists or participate in social events, but is always close to his family and friends, to name one possibility.
The case of the word sullen is similar to that of many other adjectives that do not describe one or more undeniable characteristics but arise from the observation of subjective features, which can be interpreted in different ways, both by the observers and by the subject in which are interested. In this framework, we must also clarify that the sullen individual does not always identify himself in this way, either because he is ashamed to admit his lack of ease or interest in social issues or simply because he does not consider himself sullen.
To have more tools in the process of defining this term, we are going to refer to some of the synonyms that we can find in dictionaries: surly, unfriendly, unsociable, elusive, withdrawn, misanthrope, surly and elusive . With regard to antonyms, on the other hand, we can mention tractable and sociable .
It is curious to note that among the synonyms that are most frequently used to replace the term sullen there are two well-defined tendencies: one speaks of a somewhat violent attitude , while the other refers simply to an inability to deal with others. Although there are other nuances between these two extremes, it is interesting to distinguish the attitude of an unpleasant person (who feels and provokes rejection or aversion in their environment) from that of someone elusive (who is not easy to reach, who does not remain in spaces public or lead to lengthy conversations).
Perhaps the most important aspect of this concept is our perception of other people, especially those who do not seem to live up to the norm . Calling someone "sullen" may be the product of a mere intention to describe them in a single word to speed up a conversation, but also to despise their attitude as not being "normal." The use of this and other terms that refer to peculiar lifestyles serve as weapons to reject them and reinforce mass ideas.