Fiction People Watch Read Stories Movies Tv Shows

People spend a lot of time with "fiction" (stories that aren't true) in some "form" (type) or other. They watch movies, TV shows, and/or read novels. Could what we watch or read have a bigger "impact" (affect; influence) on us than we thought?

Jonathan Gottschall, who wrote a 2012 book about storytelling, "argues" (gives evidence to support his idea) that fiction "shapes" (changes) the way we see ourselves and other people, helping us develop empathy for others. "Empathy" is the ability to feel what other people feel and to understand them. According to the studies or research he "cites" (mentions as evidence), the more "involved" (deeply caring about) we are in the story, the more influence the story has on our empathy for others.

According to Gottschall, fiction "enhances" (increases) our ability to understand other people. It promotes a deep "morality" (feeling of right and wrong) that "cuts across" (is not limited by) religious and political "creeds" (sets of beliefs).

In fact, Gottschall argues that we respond to fiction in a very different way than we do to "nonfiction" (stories or writings based on facts, real people/events, and more, such as the news). When we watch or read nonfiction, our "defenses" (ways of protecting ourselves) are up and we tend to be "skeptical" (not believing; are not easy to convince).

On the other hand, when we "encounter" (meet) fiction - in movies, TV shows, and novels - our "guard is down" (not watchful for something to harm us) and we're more easily "shaped" (changed).

Of course, while fiction may be able to make people more empathetic, it can also make them more angry, "militant" (aggressive; wanting to fight), or "bitter" (feeling hurt and resentful). However, according to the research that Gootschall cites, fiction tends to have a more positive than negative effect on us.