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vandrendehareThis article is infuriating. Not only because it says something with which I disagree in a way I find insulting, but also because I find myself formulating her argument for her in a way that I can rebut, because the point it's trying to make is muddled and mired in stupid.
So let me try: The argument I am interpreting from this word salad, the way I interpret meaningful advice from effing tarot cards is this - what with the state of the world deteriorating because of factors that require course-work to even grasp, let alone react to, and the finite and dwindling time people spend reading, we're better served doing said course-work than reading fiction for escape.
There, now that I rewrote the thesis into something a little sturdier (is there a term for reverse straw-manning, because I feel like it would come in handy talking to facile twits... "brick manning"), let's refute.
0) To keep the baby once the bathwater's gone, yeah, we could all use to be more informed about the complex socioeconomics behind late capitalism, 21st Century Nationalism, environmental degradation and all that shit. Good point.
1) Fiction serves purposes other than escape. It's proven to develop empathy, abstract reasoning, and complex problem-solving skills. THE THREE VERY THINGS THAT MIGHT SAVE US FROM ALL THIS.
2) A wonkish understanding of the factors that lead us all to this state is not sufficient on its own to formulate any action to improve our lot. Not only that, but in many cases, such as the financial actions that caused the 2008 recession (and the one that's just arrived in 2018, you heard it here first), not only will the most eloquent and complete work in layman's terms fail to get you sufficient wonkish understanding, even full-time course-work might not get you where you need to be. Part of the seeming insolubility of the financial crisis in 2008 was that no one fully understood what was going on. Thomas Picketty is not going to get you there on his own, nor would he ever claim to.
2a) That said, I do want to read his book.
3) "Escape" as in from prison, and all that. I forget who I'm badly paraphrasing, but for many of us, the state of the world today involves a seemingly gratuitous and spiteful parade of outrages. Snowflakes you say? Search your feelings. Doesn't it sting and stab at you, too? They might not be the same things, but I notice that left, right, and middle (such as they are) all seem to have no shortage of things which cause pain. Knuckling down to endure some pain is healthy and necessary. Enduring it all without end or relief is really not.
So yes, we could use to learn a little more about our situation and how shit it is. But swearing off fiction is not the solution we need.
As a side note, I put forth my own little corner of literature. In SF, Gods love us, we have our problems and our failings, but we do feel the responsibility of writing ourselves and our society out of this peri-apocalyptic corner we're in, and I still think that's kind of cool
So let me try: The argument I am interpreting from this word salad, the way I interpret meaningful advice from effing tarot cards is this - what with the state of the world deteriorating because of factors that require course-work to even grasp, let alone react to, and the finite and dwindling time people spend reading, we're better served doing said course-work than reading fiction for escape.
There, now that I rewrote the thesis into something a little sturdier (is there a term for reverse straw-manning, because I feel like it would come in handy talking to facile twits... "brick manning"), let's refute.
0) To keep the baby once the bathwater's gone, yeah, we could all use to be more informed about the complex socioeconomics behind late capitalism, 21st Century Nationalism, environmental degradation and all that shit. Good point.
1) Fiction serves purposes other than escape. It's proven to develop empathy, abstract reasoning, and complex problem-solving skills. THE THREE VERY THINGS THAT MIGHT SAVE US FROM ALL THIS.
2) A wonkish understanding of the factors that lead us all to this state is not sufficient on its own to formulate any action to improve our lot. Not only that, but in many cases, such as the financial actions that caused the 2008 recession (and the one that's just arrived in 2018, you heard it here first), not only will the most eloquent and complete work in layman's terms fail to get you sufficient wonkish understanding, even full-time course-work might not get you where you need to be. Part of the seeming insolubility of the financial crisis in 2008 was that no one fully understood what was going on. Thomas Picketty is not going to get you there on his own, nor would he ever claim to.
2a) That said, I do want to read his book.
3) "Escape" as in from prison, and all that. I forget who I'm badly paraphrasing, but for many of us, the state of the world today involves a seemingly gratuitous and spiteful parade of outrages. Snowflakes you say? Search your feelings. Doesn't it sting and stab at you, too? They might not be the same things, but I notice that left, right, and middle (such as they are) all seem to have no shortage of things which cause pain. Knuckling down to endure some pain is healthy and necessary. Enduring it all without end or relief is really not.
So yes, we could use to learn a little more about our situation and how shit it is. But swearing off fiction is not the solution we need.
As a side note, I put forth my own little corner of literature. In SF, Gods love us, we have our problems and our failings, but we do feel the responsibility of writing ourselves and our society out of this peri-apocalyptic corner we're in, and I still think that's kind of cool
