Prelude II

The prelude on reading fiction highlights the pleasures fiction brings readers of fiction in short forms and longer ones. Just what are the pleasures of fiction? Why do stories hold such appeal for readers? What is their allure? We read stories largely for the emotional and intellectual pleasures they bring—the pleasure of being surprised or disturbed by an unexpected turn of events, or of being satisfied as our expectations are met, or surprised when they are not. Well-told stories involve us emotionally in the lives of their characters. Stories enthrall us; their words and images bring characters and their passions to life. Stories provide us with the pleasure of recognition and the thrill of vicarious experience. They allow us to live in the minds and worlds of others, widening our circle of sympathy and enhancing our capacity for empathy. Stories delight with their plots, taking us on journeys of adventure and discovery. They instruct by showing us things we had not noticed or known; they help us see things in new ways, often from a different perspective or an alternate reality. “[W]hat if,” asks Zadie Smith, “things were other than they are?” ( Feel Free , 337). Reading stories and novels enables us to enter many differently imagined worlds, all the while enlarging our imaginative capacities, deepening our perception of the actual world, and enriching our understanding of other people and of ourselves. Stories help us understand ourselves; they help us make sense of where we come from and how we have arrived at wherever we find ourselves. Stories trace the trajectories of our lives. In giving our lives form and shape, they create meaning for us. With its made-up stories and invented characters and details, fiction conveys deep truths about our human experience. Fiction, paradoxically, helps us make sense of reality.