There are some emotions, like heartbreak, that do more than describe the mood of the moment. They tell the story of an emotional trajectory in which the change in status is at the core of its meaning.
Crestfallen is one such emotion. It tells the story of coming down from a peak of positive self-regard.
There’s a lot of history behind the feeling of being crestfallen, with strong emotional consistency, but a few different ideas about the origin of the term.
The first known use comes from the 1500s, in the form of creast falne. Some sources say that the crest is the fleshy waddle of a rooster, ordinarily puffed up and colorful with the blood supplied by a vigorous and confident heart, now wilted in defeat. Others say that the crest refers to the shoulders or the head of a human being, slumped forward in exhausted surrender. Yet others say that the creast falne was a disease that laid strong horses low. It could also be that the crest in crestfallen is a metaphorical peak in life, followed by a difficult valley.
Whatever the precise origin of the phrase may be, the emotional narrative is the same. The crestfallen was once self-assured, riding high in life, but now has been laid low. It’s a story of a low point, without any promise of a new ascension.
