Why is it improper to point?

Question

Just curious..Always wondered

Answer 1

It singles someone out, and is implied that they are being discussed without their participation. Very confrontational.

Answer 2

Because they say when you point a finger at someone four of your fingers is pointing at yourself...

Answer 3

It's a very aggressive notion, and may offend people...

Answer 4

It can make others feel uncomfortable if they see you pointing at them or if they think you are pointing at them.

Answer 5

The term "it's impolite to point" is usually used when somebody is doing something embarrassing or they are different in some way.  The act of pointing at that person is improper because it singles out the person and draws more attention to the person.

An example might be a mentally challenged person.  Young children often point at these individuals because they have never seen people act that way and they want to point it out to everyone.  As adults we teach our children not to point or stare at these individuals out of respect.

Answer 6

because usually if people are pointing at you, they are not praising you, which makes you feel bad that others are criticizing you and you do not have a chance to defend your self and you dont now why.

Answer 7

that is a mystery noone can solve. i dont see anything wrong with it. i guess it could make the person being pointed at feel wierd but they will get over it.

Answer 8

i suspect that it comes from the Japanese.  They value indirectness.  Like, instead of saying "Where are you going?"  to be more polite they will go "what general direction are you going to be gracing with your presence?".  so pointing would be very direct and therefore rude.

but seriously...

hmm... i think when you point to someone it's like... singling them out and putting them under a spotlight..

Maybe it originated as a command to small children:  "don't point at a disabled person" because that would be singling them out--to notice is rude.  

and then we all remembered that as a general rule.

oh yeah, it's just people right?  you can point to a lamp and no one will think you're improper, right?