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Brain

Anatomy
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The organ within the skull that governs thought, sensation, and bodily coordination. It may symbolize reason, memory, consciousness, or mental disturbance.

Detailed Definition
The brain gives poets a physical image for thought itself, although poems often complicate the idea that reason rules the body. It may appear as an intricate landscape of memory, a fragile organ altered by injury, or a restless source of dreams and anxiety. Unlike the heart's traditional emotional symbolism, the brain can introduce questions of perception, identity, and consciousness. Its folds, signals, and hidden workings help poets imagine the mystery of being aware from inside a living body.
Example
Example in poetry:
Emily Dickinson begins, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,” using brain as the setting for psychological distress; “The brain kept sparking after the room went dark” compares thought to electricity; “A bird pecked at the locked brain of morning” turns waking confusion into surreal imagery; “His brain catalogued every loss” portrays memory as an involuntary, painful habit
Additional Notes
The brain can contrast intellect with emotion or instinct. Images of brains, nerves, and skulls may also suggest memory, trauma, or confusion.
Also Known As
Encephalon pate
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