Lobes of the Brain

Learning Objectives

  • Identify the location and function of the lobes of the brain

Forebrain Structures



Figure 1. The brain and its parts can be divided into three main categories: the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain.

Lobes of the Brain


An illustration shows the four lobes of the brain.

Figure 2. The lobes of the brain are shown.





Beyond the damage to the frontal lobe itself, subsequent investigations into the rod’s path also identified probable damage to pathways between the frontal lobe and other brain structures, including the limbic system. With connections between the planning functions of the frontal lobe and the emotional processes of the limbic system severed, Gage had difficulty controlling his emotional impulses.


Link to learning

Watch this clip about Phineas Gage to learn more about his accident and injury.

You can view the transcript for “Phineas Gage (LEGO Stop-Motion Video)” (opens in new window).

Image of the motor cortex, detailing how specific areas correlate to distinct body parts, like the throat, tongue, jaw, lips, face, hands, and other body parts.

Figure 4. Specific body parts like the tongue or fingers are mapped onto certain areas of the brain including the primary motor cortex.

One particularly fascinating area in the frontal lobe is called the “primary motor cortex”. This strip running along the side of the brain is in charge of voluntary movements like waving goodbye, wiggling your eyebrows, and kissing. It is an excellent example of the way that the various regions of the brain are highly specialized. Interestingly, each of our various body parts has a unique portion of the primary motor cortex devoted to it. Each individual finger has about as much dedicated brain space as your entire leg. Your lips, in turn, require about as much dedicated brain processing as all of your fingers and your hand combined!


Figure 5. Spatial relationships in the body are mirrored in the organization of the somatosensory cortex.

Because the cerebral cortex in general, and the frontal lobe in particular, are associated with such sophisticated functions as planning and being self-aware they are often thought of as a higher, less primal portion of the brain. Indeed, other animals such as rats and kangaroos while they do have frontal regions of their brain do not have the same level of development in the cerebral cortices. The closer an animal is to humans on the evolutionary tree—think chimpanzees and gorillas, the more developed is this portion of their brain.


An illustration shows the locations of Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas.




Try It

Food for Thought

Consider the following advice from Joseph LeDoux, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at New York University, as you learn about the specific parts of the brain:

Be suspicious of any statement that says a brain area is a center responsible for some function. The notion of functions being products of brain areas or centers is left over from the days when most evidence about brain function was based on the effects of brain lesions localized to specific areas. Today, we think of functions as products of systems rather than of areas. Neurons in areas contribute because they are part of a system. The amygdala, for example, contributes to threat detection because it is part of a threat detection system. And just because the amygdala contributes to threat detection does not mean that threat detection is the only function to which it contributes. Amygdala neurons, for example, are also components of systems that process the significance of stimuli related to eating, drinking, sex, and addictive drugs.

Try It


auditory cortex: strip of cortex in the temporal lobe that is responsible for processing auditory information
Broca’s area: region in the left hemisphere that is essential for language production
cerebral cortex: surface of the brain that is associated with our highest mental capabilities
forebrain: largest part of the brain, containing the cerebral cortex, the thalamus, and the limbic system, among other structures
frontal lobe: part of the cerebral cortex involved in reasoning, motor control, emotion, and language; contains motor cortex
motor cortex: strip of cortex involved in planning and coordinating movement
occipital lobe: part of the cerebral cortex associated with visual processing; contains the primary visual cortex
parietal lobe: part of the cerebral cortex involved in processing various sensory and perceptual information; contains the primary somatosensory cortex
prefrontal cortex: area in the frontal lobe responsible for higher-level cognitive functioning
somatosensory cortex: essential for processing sensory information from across the body, such as touch, temperature, and pain
sulcus (plural: sulci): depressions or grooves in the cerebral cortex
temporal lobe: part of cerebral cortex associated with hearing, memory, emotion, and some aspects of language; contains primary auditory cortex
Wernicke’s area: important for speech comprehension



Improve this pageLearn More