Аннотация:Recent developments in neurophysiology reveal a unique plasticity of the brain which determines the way a reader perceives a written text. Unfamiliar (or defamiliarised) parts switch on the analytical area of the brain that in its turn activates micro movements of speech organs - as a result we have a sensation of mental hearing during silent reading of such parts. While familiar elements are automated and stored in our long-term memory, we recognize them with our eyes as we read the text but the speed of reading is so fast that there is literally no time for the kinetic instrument to switch on. As a result they remain dumb and relatively dark to us in the context of speech.