[PW] Reading and the mind

[S M Colowick]

On 6/6/07, Daphne Drewello <drewello at daktel.com> wrote:
> What happens physiologically when
> someone "loses himself"  in a book?

Here's one view:

"...when you sit in your armchair reading or in a theater seat
watching, your body is giving you no new signals. All the novel
stimuli are coming from the page or stage or screen in front of you.
Our brains are programmed to attend to novelty. You therefore pay
attention to the literary or dramatic work, and you cease to be aware
of your body. The same holds true for the environment."

For an extended discussion, and additional theories, see "The Power(?)
of Literature: A Neuropsychological View", Norman N Holland. New
Literary History. Baltimore: Summer 2004. Vol.35, Iss. 3;  pg. 395

What happens could also be a variation on "flow":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_(psychology).

Susie