On fictionless vacuums and oversimplification
“Fiction affects reality–”
Absolutely! The tools it gives us to grapple with complicated issues and explore responses to some of the thorniest situations humans could imagine facing, the empathy and imagination it cultivates, the solace and emotional release it provides, its power to persuade and inspire–none of that disappears once the story is over. It’s one of the many inputs we evaluate to form opinions and decide on courses of action, and… uh… wait, sorry, you weren’t done, were you?
“Fiction always affects reality in the exact, arbitrary, painfully literal, simplistic way I’m about to condemn at high volume!”
That is… well, to be charitable, that is anything but obvious.
Discussion ¬