Lewis Powell's Jaw

[Natty]

I’ve always wondered about the effects that Lewis‘ broken jaw had on his face. Apparently an untreated jaw fracture can lead to all kinds of complications, like facial deformity, nerve damage, pain, stiffness of the joint and additional wear and tear of teeth.

If you look at his photographs, the asymmetry is quite obvious; the left side of the area around the lower mandible is visibly thicker than the right, forming a distinct slant. What interests me most is the fact that his mouth appears immobile and smaller on that side, as though it is hanging to the right side of his face. According to accounts, his upper lip “protruded” when he talked; if he had some kind of nerve damage on the left side of his face, he might have been unable to fully utilize his entire mouth while speaking, which could lead to a more pronounced movement of the lips on the right. If you pinch one side of your mouth and immobilize it, you can easily simulate the impact of this kind of damage; the lack of movement from one side is compensated by exaggerated motion on the other. Combined with limited jaw mobility and a slight overbite, which is suggested by the protrusion of the right side of his upper lip, nerve damage could have created this effect. It would also mean that his smile would have been slightly crooked, perhaps even appearing somewhat cynical when very slight, almost suggesting a sneer. This would have affected the impression he made on people, possibly to his disadvantage, since irregularities, particularly in the face, are rarely perceived in a positive light. I have, however, not found any accounts where this is explicitly described or mentioned and am merely speculating. There are several references to his crooked, malformed jaw and I once read an account that describes the irregular slope to his mouth.


Did the mule kick him on the left side of his face? Is it possible that he suffered some form of nerve damage as a result?