Why Babies Cry

A baby in a womb relies completely on its mother for everything. Nutrition and oxygen, both come from the placenta. The moment it separates from its mother, it no longer has placental support, it is forced to rebel against the pressure difference between its lungs and atmosphere. For that purpose it has to inflate its lungs for the very first time. Crying becomes the reflex that forces air into lungs, clears the amniotic fluid out, and kickstarts proper breathing. If the baby laughs instead of crying, it wouldn't be able to generate enough pressure needed to open up the lungs. Crying in a way turns out to be nature's CPR, a loud announcement that life has begun. 

But crying symbolizes something deeper than just arrival or inception. It symbolizes the eternal state of human existence that is grief. If life were to be such a merry thing, why'd it start with such a gesture that's associated with woe? "An infant unaware of any meaning is untouched with any feelings of life, bliss and woe alike," some may argue. Laughter demands cognition. An infant, until it develops cognition, doesn't smile or laugh. Crying on the other hand remains the primal instinct. It poses as a purely physiological reflex, not as despair. This in a way shows that laughter requires effort and crying does not, making the latter a natural instinct. Sadness or distress is more hardwired into our biology, while happiness needs to be cultivated overlay. Crying at birth illustrates this perfectly. The body automatically reacts to distress by signaling a primitive, built-in awareness of pain or need. It requires no thought, no learning, all that it requires is a sensation, a trigger. Biology equips us to feel discomfort first. It first teaches us to rebel before we can learn of joy. Pleasure, laughter, contentment needs to be acquired through experiences or constructed. Pain is free in the universe. Happiness must be negotiated. 

The first cry is in a way a pure, unfiltered reaction of the infant to the sudden invasion of air, light, cold, hunger, noise, and bodily needs. Life begins with a series of irritations for the being and the moral weight of existence isn't even in play yet. The world just hits and the infant responds to it. As mentioned before, if life were beautiful, it would have started with a gentle welcome. But reality doesn't appear to be that way. Pain comes before understanding. Biology understands sensation, not meaning and the first cry is acknowledgement of suffering.

A tiny rebel against the existence itself.

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