What is "animal spirits"

Spirit \Spir"it\, n. [OF. espirit, esperit, F. esprit, L. spiritus, from spirare to breathe, to blow. Cf. Conspire, Expire, Esprit, Sprite.]

1. Air set in motion by breathing; breath; hence, sometimes, life itself. [Obs.] ``All of spirit would deprive.''
   --Spenser.

   The mild air, with season moderate, Gently attempered, and disposed eo well, That still it breathed foorth sweet spirit.
   --Spenser.

2. A rough breathing; an aspirate, as the letter h; also, a mark to denote aspiration; a breathing. [Obs.]

   Be it a letter or spirit, we have great use for it.
   --B. Jonson.

3. Life, or living substance, considered independently of corporeal existence; an intelligence conceived of apart from any physical organization or embodiment; vital essence, force, or energy, as distinct from matter.

4. The intelligent, immaterial and immortal part of man; the soul, in distinction from the body in which it resides; the agent or subject of vital and spiritual functions, whether spiritual or material.

   There is a spirit in man; and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them understanding.
   --Job xxxii. 8.

   As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
   --James ii. 26.

   Spirit is a substance wherein thinking, knowing, doubting, and a power of moving, do subsist.
   --Locke.

5. Specifically, a disembodied soul; the human soul after it has left the body.

   Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
   --Eccl. xii. 7.

   Ye gentle spirits far away, With whom we shared the cup of grace.
   --Keble.

6. Any supernatural being, good or bad; an apparition; a specter; a ghost; also, sometimes, a sprite,; a fairy; an elf.

   Whilst young, preserve his tender mind from all impressions of spirits and goblins in the dark.
   --Locke.

7. Energy, vivacity, ardor, enthusiasm, courage, etc.

   ``Write it then, quickly,'' replied Bede; and summoning all his spirits together, like the last blaze of a candle going out, he indited it, and expired.
   --Fuller.

8. One who is vivacious or lively; one who evinces great activity or peculiar characteristics of mind or temper; as, a ruling spirit; a schismatic spirit.

   Such spirits as he desired to please, such would I choose for my judges.
   --Dryden.

9. Temper or disposition of mind; mental condition or disposition; intellectual or moral state; -- often in the plural; as, to be cheerful, or in good spirits; to be downhearted, or in bad spirits.

   God has . . . made a spirit of building succeed a spirit of pulling down.
   --South.

   A perfect judge will read each work of wit With the same spirit that its author writ.
   --Pope.

10. Intent; real meaning; -- opposed to the letter, or to formal statement; also, characteristic quality, especially such as is derived from the individual genius or the personal character; as, the spirit of an enterprise, of a document, or the like.

11. Tenuous, volatile, airy, or vapory substance, possessed of active qualities.

    All bodies have spirits . . . within them.
    --Bacon.

12. Any liquid produced by distillation; especially, alcohol, the spirits, or spirit, of wine (it having been first distilled from wine): -- often in the plural.

13. pl. Rum, whisky, brandy, gin, and other distilled liquors having much alcohol, in distinction from wine and malt liquors.

14. (Med.) A solution in alcohol of a volatile principle. Cf. Tincture.
    --U. S. Disp.

15. (Alchemy) Any one of the four substances, sulphur, sal ammoniac, quicksilver, or arsenic (or, according to some, orpiment).

    The four spirits and the bodies seven.
    --Chaucer.

16. (Dyeing) Stannic chloride. See under Stannic. Note: Spirit is sometimes joined with other words, forming compounds, generally of obvious signification; as, spirit-moving, spirit-searching, spirit-stirring, etc. Astral spirits, Familiar spirits, etc. See under Astral, Familiar, etc. Animal spirits.

    1. (Physiol.) The fluid which at one time was supposed to circulate through the nerves and was regarded as the agent of sensation and motion; -- called also the nervous fluid, or nervous principle.

    2. Physical health and energy; frolicsomeness; sportiveness. Ardent spirits, strong alcoholic liquors, as brandy, rum, whisky, etc., obtained by distillation. Holy Spirit, or The Spirit (Theol.), the Spirit of God, or the third person of the Trinity; the Holy Ghost. The spirit also signifies the human spirit as influenced or animated by the Divine Spirit. Proof spirit. (Chem.) See under Proof. Rectified spirit (Chem.), spirit rendered purer or more concentrated by redistillation, so as to increase the percentage of absolute alcohol. Spirit butterfly (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of delicate butterflies of tropical America belonging to the genus Ithomia. The wings are gauzy and nearly destitute of scales. Spirit duck. (Zo["o]l.)

       1. The buffle-headed duck.

       2. The golden-eye.

          Spirit lamp (Art), a lamp in which alcohol or methylated spirit is burned.

          Spirit level. See under Level.

          Spirit of hartshorn. (Old Chem.) See under Hartshorn.

          Spirit of Mindererus (Med.), an aqueous solution of acetate of ammonium; -- named after R. Minderer, physician of Augsburg.

          Spirit of nitrous ether (Med. Chem.), a pale yellow liquid, of a sweetish taste and a pleasant ethereal odor. It is obtained by the distillation of alcohol with nitric and sulphuric acids, and consists essentially of ethyl nitrite with a little acetic aldehyde. It is used as a diaphoretic, diuretic, antispasmodic, etc. Called also sweet spirit of niter.

          Spirit of salt (Chem.), hydrochloric acid; -- so called because obtained from salt and sulphuric acid. [Obs.]

          Spirit of sense, the utmost refinement of sensation. [Obs.]
          --Shak.

          Spirits of turpentine, or Spirit of turpentine (Chem.), rectified oil of turpentine, a transparent, colorless, volatile, and very inflammable liquid, distilled from the turpentine of the various species of pine; camphine. It is commonly used to remove paint from surfaces, or to dissole oil-based paint. See Camphine.

          Spirit of vitriol (Chem.), sulphuric acid; -- so called because formerly obtained by the distillation of green vitriol. [Obs.]

          Spirit of vitriolic ether (Chem.) ethyl ether; -- often but incorrectly called sulphuric ether. See Ether. [Obs.]

          Spirits of wine, or Spirit of wine (Chem.), alcohol; -- so called because formerly obtained by the distillation of wine.

          Spirit rapper, one who practices spirit rapping; a ``medium'' so called.

          Spirit rapping, an alleged form of communication with the spirits of the dead by raps. See Spiritualism, 3.

          Sweet spirit of niter. See Spirit of nitrous ether, above.

          Syn: Life; ardor; energy; fire; courage; animatioon; cheerfulness; vivacity; enterprise.

Animal \An"i*mal\, a. [Cf. F. animal.]

1. Of or relating to animals; as, animal functions.

2. Pertaining to the merely sentient part of a creature, as distinguished from the intellectual, rational, or spiritual part; as, the animal passions or appetites.

3. Consisting of the flesh of animals; as, animal food.

   Animal magnetism. See Magnetism and Mesmerism.

   Animal electricity, the electricity developed in some animals, as the electric eel, torpedo, etc.

   Animal flower (Zo["o]l.), a name given to certain marine animals resembling a flower, as any species of actinia or sea anemone, and other Anthozoa, hydroids, starfishes, etc.

   Animal heat (Physiol.), the heat generated in the body of a living animal, by means of which the animal is kept at nearly a uniform temperature.

   Animal spirits. See under Spirit.

   Animal kingdom, the whole class of beings endowed with animal life. It embraces several subkingdoms, and under these there are Classes, Orders, Families, Genera, Species, and sometimes intermediate groupings, all in regular subordination, but variously arranged by different writers.

   Note: The following are the grand divisions, or subkingdoms, and the principal classes under them, generally recognized at the present time: Vertebrata, including Mammalia or Mammals, Aves or Birds, Reptilia, Amphibia, Pisces or Fishes, Marsipobranchiata (Craniota); and Leptocardia (Acrania). Tunicata, including the Thaliacea, and Ascidioidea or Ascidians. Articulata or Annulosa, including Insecta, Myriapoda, Malacapoda, Arachnida, Pycnogonida, Merostomata, Crustacea (Arthropoda); and Annelida, Gehyrea (Anarthropoda). Helminthes or Vermes, including Rotifera, Ch[ae]tognatha, Nematoidea, Acanthocephala, Nemertina, Turbellaria, Trematoda, Cestoidea, Mesozea. Molluscoidea, including Brachiopoda and Bryozoa. Mollusca, including Cephalopoda, Gastropoda, Pteropoda, Scaphopoda, Lamellibranchiata or Acephala. Echinodermata, including Holothurioidea, Echinoidea, Asterioidea, Ophiuroidea, and Crinoidea. C[oe]lenterata, including Anthozoa or Polyps, Ctenophora, and Hydrozoa or Acalephs. Spongiozoa or Porifera, including the sponges. Protozoa, including Infusoria and Rhizopoda. For definitions, see these names in the Vocabulary.

n. 1 (context medicine now historical English) The theorized ‘spirits’ or physiological principles which allowed for sensation and voluntary movement. (from 15th c.) 2 liveliness, vivacity, a happy tendency to action. (from 18th c.) 3 (context economics English) After Keynes (citation 1936, above), the emotional and intuitive factors that drive business decisions whether to make investment gambles. (from 20th c.)

Animal spirits may refer to:

• Animal spirits (Keynes), the Keynesian term indicating the emotional component of economies represented in consumer confidence
• Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives the Economy, and Why It Matters for Global Capitalism, a 2009 book by economists George Akerlof and Robert Shiller
• Animism, a philosophical, religious or spiritual idea that souls or spirits exist in humans, animals, plants or other entities

thumb|250px|John Maynard Keynes in 1933

Animal spirits is the term John Maynard Keynes used in his 1936 book The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money to describe the instincts, proclivities and emotions that ostensibly influence and guide human behavior, and which can be measured in terms of, for example, consumer confidence. It has since been argued that trust is also included in or produced by "animal spirits".