Why You Should Probably Read More Fiction
Reading fiction and being transported to imaginary worlds can have surprising benefits
The storytelling animal
We tell stories. We can’t help ourselves.
Choose any culture in any time period, and it will have stories.
Storytelling does not only make us human, it may even have helped our ancestors survive. In modern hunter-gatherers, for example, storytelling is associated with improved cooperation. Or, in the words of the authors:
We conclude that one of the adaptive functions of storytelling among hunter-gatherers may be to organize cooperation.
Add writing, the printing press, the spread of literacy, and — boom — our stories are unshackled from the physical presence of the storyteller.
Interesting observation two: the stories we’re talking about here often include a fictional component. The stories that shape our lives and cultures are not simply boring descriptions of what happened during the day or where good food can be found. The stories that move and inspire us are ‘larger than life’.
What’s so good about fiction then? We all know reading can unlock deep focus and relaxation. To let yourself be carried along to…
