Oliver Sacks: The Healing Power of Gardens
- kaylakleven
- May 25, 2019
- 2 min read
This New York Times article is an excerpt from “Everything in Its Place,” a posthumous collection of writings by Dr. Sacks. Dr. Oliver Sacks was a neurologist and author. Plants and nature were something he found mesmerizing, and gardens in particular to be calming and invigorating. In his article, he states “In 40 years of medical practice, I have found only two types of non-pharmaceutical “therapy” to be vitally important for patients with chronic neurological diseases: music and gardens.” This article does not touch on music, but it goes into depth on the effect of gardens. Dr. Sacks talks about his experiences in gardens around the world, and particularly in New York City where he lived for 50 years. He says that as a physician he would take his patients to a garden near the hospital and that their time there was medicinal. He had a patient with Parkinson’s that was able to move about as though she were not afflicted, and a patient with Tourette’s that was relieved of ticks and triggers while in the garden. He also noted that patients with severe dementia seemed to regain normal cognitive abilities while working in the soil.
The article concludes by supposing that nature and interacting with it may have a deep positive effect on the human brain. It draws attention to the fact that many people are stuck indoors most of the time and have very little contact with nature which may contribute to the decline in health some people experience as they age. The article was thought provoking and the conclusion sums up these large ideas very well.
The writing style of this article is more of a story than a news piece. It begins with a lot of background information that does not add a whole lot to the main point, which is the benefit of nature, but rather the personal connection to gardens unique the author. It does however create a feeling that the author is an authority on the subject, and greatly increase his credibility. This credibility is essential because there are no quotes or citations within the article. The evidence from personal experience is more than enough to convince the reader of the benefit of visiting a garden. The author’s use of active voice and specific word choice also made him seem a credible source of information. There was, however, no opposing viewpoint presented. The article was specifically aimed at persuading the reader that nature and plants are a positive influence on the human mind, which is not a very controversial topic. It would be interesting however to examine whether other outlets could provide the same benefit, or if there could be drawbacks.
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