I wonder if the tale of
Harry Potter would hold the same excitement if we all deemed Hogwarts to be a
real place. I wonder if Emily Dickinson’s poems would be as intriguing if they were
a true recollection of her life. I wonder if truth and realism has any place in
fiction at all.
Escapism is a key reason to read. We read to forget the
mundane reality and fall into unrealistic yet thrilling worlds. If our favourite
stories only featured the bland truth of our lives, why would you bother to
read them? The truth can be a harsh mistress. It would be impossible for
Sleeping Beauty to be revived by a kiss, doctors would have eventually turned
off her life support. Why kind of comforting bedtime story is that? I like
stories that feature optimistic hope, as so often, true life can be just the
opposite.
Elements of truth can be engaging; the quest to find the
identity of Dickinson’s “master” a case in point. But if every tale followed
the moral code of truth, then there would be no story. Juliet would have
attended Romeo’s funeral, attended bereavement counselling and then attended a
speed dating evening. Truth cannot elbow its way into fiction. The space is
already filled by romantic naivety, hopeless daydreaming and the love of an
unrealistic happy ending. Just the way it should be.
This is funny and really engaging and above all, true! I agree that why would we want to read the truth when we live it? We want to read, as you said , to escape from the, most of the time bitter, truth.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with this. The truth can be very harsh hence why we read and write in order to find that escapism.
ReplyDeleteI think you might be confusing "truth" and "realism". Harry Potter remains beloved because the characters are relatable; they ring true for the reader. Without characters who seem like real people, readers would find themselves with no stake in the story. This is why people like Lord of the Rings but not Eragon.
ReplyDelete(Apologies if you do like Eragon, but that's never going to be as influential as Lord of the Rings is.)
Escapism in reading other blogs is also good procrastination for studying
ReplyDelete