Spring Break
Prof portrays fiction in new light
by Nashrah Rahman
Editorial assistant
News | 10/28/08
Posted online at 2:44 AM EST on 10/28/08
"Why do we enjoy stories?" Prof. William Flesch (ENG) asks in his new book, Comeuppance: Costly Signaling, Altruistic Punishment and Other Biological Components of Fiction, which he introduced at a Meet the Author event last Wednesday.
Prof. John Burt (ENG) introduced Flesch and revealed that in Comeuppance, Flesch does not interpret fiction but concentrates on exploring the mindset of the individual reading the text. He said the relationship Flesch develops between science and the humanities to examine why we get attached to stories is "unusual."
Flesch elaborated, saying that he is critical of Literary Darwinism, a branch of criticism that examines literature in the context of evolution through natural selection, because it is "overly dedicated" to a simplified interpretation of text. Literary Darwinists believe that a text can only be understood and appreciated fully by remembering that humans behave in universal ways as specified by genes.
He claimed that readers do not relate to a piece of fiction simply because readers notice patterns of human behavior in fictional characters associated with their own behaviors. Flesch acknowledged that it is "standard" to think that we identify with the emotions of literary characters, which leads us to become engrossed in fiction, but he remains a firm believer that such "identification is not enough." On the contrary, literature motivates readers to step out of their boundaries.
Flesch affirmed that fiction is adept at isolating and celebrating the "vicarious part" of the human experience, which makes people want to live the lives of others. He said signal selection; the ability to influence the perception of an onlooker by carrying oneself in a particular manner, is one such method by which literature can prompt the reader to step into the shoes of the characters. In this way, Flesch argued the "direct experience of the world is dependent on the vicarious experience."
He further discussed why readers derive pleasure from a happy ending and gain satisfaction when the wicked get their comeuppance. Citing Achilles and Hamlet from Homer's Iliad and Shakespeare's Hamlet, he suggested that our fascination with fiction may revolve around non-conformist characters who take it upon themselves to delegate punishment. The character extracts contentment from despising and therefore condemning something, he explained. The "strange, wonderful" interactions between the punisher and the punished draw in the reader and allow him to displace his own frustrations onto the actions that take place, thus becoming immersed in the tale.
In the end, stories, Flesch implied, are the medium through which readers can try to make sense of the world around them.
Prof. John Burt (ENG) introduced Flesch and revealed that in Comeuppance, Flesch does not interpret fiction but concentrates on exploring the mindset of the individual reading the text. He said the relationship Flesch develops between science and the humanities to examine why we get attached to stories is "unusual."
Flesch elaborated, saying that he is critical of Literary Darwinism, a branch of criticism that examines literature in the context of evolution through natural selection, because it is "overly dedicated" to a simplified interpretation of text. Literary Darwinists believe that a text can only be understood and appreciated fully by remembering that humans behave in universal ways as specified by genes.
He claimed that readers do not relate to a piece of fiction simply because readers notice patterns of human behavior in fictional characters associated with their own behaviors. Flesch acknowledged that it is "standard" to think that we identify with the emotions of literary characters, which leads us to become engrossed in fiction, but he remains a firm believer that such "identification is not enough." On the contrary, literature motivates readers to step out of their boundaries.
Flesch affirmed that fiction is adept at isolating and celebrating the "vicarious part" of the human experience, which makes people want to live the lives of others. He said signal selection; the ability to influence the perception of an onlooker by carrying oneself in a particular manner, is one such method by which literature can prompt the reader to step into the shoes of the characters. In this way, Flesch argued the "direct experience of the world is dependent on the vicarious experience."
He further discussed why readers derive pleasure from a happy ending and gain satisfaction when the wicked get their comeuppance. Citing Achilles and Hamlet from Homer's Iliad and Shakespeare's Hamlet, he suggested that our fascination with fiction may revolve around non-conformist characters who take it upon themselves to delegate punishment. The character extracts contentment from despising and therefore condemning something, he explained. The "strange, wonderful" interactions between the punisher and the punished draw in the reader and allow him to displace his own frustrations onto the actions that take place, thus becoming immersed in the tale.
In the end, stories, Flesch implied, are the medium through which readers can try to make sense of the world around them.
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