For over a century, people have gladly filed themselves into two camps: left-brained and right-brained. If your left brain is dominant, you’re logical and methodical. If your right brain has control of the wheel, you’re creative, emotional and artsy. Certain parts of the brain do control certain things. Language, for instance, is controlled by the left side. It was this discovery, made by neuroscientists Paul Broca and Carl Wernicke in the 19th century, that led to a wider Victorian obsession with “dual-brain theory.” Robert Louis Stevenson played upon it in his novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, in which the protagonists—one good, one evil—turn out to be the two personalities of one man. This story is from Kinfolk Issue Thirty-six Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 22 Pattern & Repetition Science writer Philip Ball speaks on the intertwined relations of our brains and the patterns they perceive. Arts & Culture Issue 49 Karin Mamma Andersson Inside the moody, mysterious world of Sweden’s preeminent painter. Arts & Culture Issue 49 Jenny Odell The acclaimed author in search of lost time. Arts & Culture Issue 49 Amalie Smith The Danish arts writer finding clarity between the lines. Arts & Culture Issue 49 Ryan Heffington Meet the man bringing choreography, community and queer joy to the desert. Arts & Culture Issue 49 Nell Wulfhart Advice from a decision coach.
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