The works of Shakespeare and Wordsworth are boosters to the brain and better therapy than some guide books, researchers say this week. Scientists, psychologists and English academics at Liverpool University have found that reading the works of the Bard and other classical writers has a beneficial effect on the mind, catches the reader's attention and triggers moments of self-reflection. Using scanners  , they monitored the brain activity of volunteers as they read works by William Shakespeare, William Wordsworth, T.S Eliot and others. They then "translated" the original texts into more "straightforward", modern language and again monitored the readers' brains as they read the words. Scans showed that the more "challenging" essays and poetry set off far more electrical activity in the brain than the much plainer versions. Scientists were able to study the brain activity as it responded to each word and record how it was "activated" as the readers encountered unusual words, surprising phrases or difficult sentence structure. This "activation" of the mind lasts longer, shifting the brain to a higher speed, encouraging further reading. The research also found that reading poetry, in particular, increases activity in the right hemisphere of the brain, helping the reader to reflect on their own experiences, which they compare with what they have read. This, according to the researchers, meant that the classic works were more useful than guide books. Philip Davis, an English professor believes "The research shows the power of literature to shift thinking patterns, to create new thoughts, shapes and connections in the young and adults alike." What might be the author's attitude towards reading classics as therapy?
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