The brain is constantly responding to stimuli in our environments and rarely has to make life or death decisions on a daily basis(at least for the most part I hope). So how could it possibly prepare for potential dangers when they spontaneously come up? A recent study done in the University of Toronto, by psychologist Keith Oatley, argues that different scenarios created in stories may help us protect ourselves, if a dangerous event should occur in real life.
Fiction gives us a sense of problems that we face in reality. The sole purpose of fiction is to provide us a realistic experience without risks or death. We get to feel what it would be like to experience intense scenes, like facing a sociopath, with the main character as sort of a " dummy " to test it out. Oatley’s studies even show that the more fiction we consume, the higher we score on tests of empathy and social ability. In summary, fictional universes prepare us with information and somewhat " experience " for the real thing.
Given this research, the next time anyone asks why you always have your head in the clouds or a nose in a book, tell them you're just preparing yourself for a future " life-on-a-thin-line " situation. Being off into another world actually benefits you more than you think.
Source;
"Mystery Story: Why Do We Love Fiction? - World Science Festival." World Science Festival. 18 May 2012. Web. 4 May 2015.
Media;
"Brain Art (Good Galleries)." Brain Art (Good Galleries). Web. 4 May 2015.
Very interesting. You have to admit that they theory makes sense!
ReplyDeleteI like how you are getting so deep into this, I didn't know a lot of this stuff! This theory explains a lot
ReplyDeleteI loved your presentation! It made me feel so much better about our human obsessions over fictional characters. It all makes sense now and im relieved im not the only one with this emotional attachment to these characters!
ReplyDelete