Mardi, août 18, 2009
I’ve just been skimming through an interesting thread about the differences between, and the various merits of, fiction and nonfiction. To be honest, I love them both; I’m not sure how one could argue that one of these genres is in any way inherently better or more effective than the other, especially since the line between the two genres seems to fade upon closer study of them. One ambiguity arises, for example, when you examine the common assertion made by fiction advocates that their favored genre is easier to identify with, or that it’s more effective at conveying truth or reality than what’s usually perceived as the more detached style claimed to be characteristic of most nonfiction. But then the aim is still to convey something “real,” which we might be able to identify with, is it not? It’d be interesting to think about whether or not there’s anything about fiction itself (if there is such a thing) that makes one more inclined to read it. I.e., does anyone read fiction precisely because there’s nothing real about it, because it’s imaginary? Or is the debate between advocates of the two genres simply a debate over which genre is a more effective means of conveying a reality to us?

I’ve just been skimming through an interesting thread about the differences between, and the various merits of, fiction and nonfiction.

To be honest, I love them both; I’m not sure how one could argue that one of these genres is in any way inherently better or more effective than the other, especially since the line between the two genres seems to fade upon closer study of them.

One ambiguity arises, for example, when you examine the common assertion made by fiction advocates that their favored genre is easier to identify with, or that it’s more effective at conveying truth or reality than what’s usually perceived as the more detached style claimed to be characteristic of most nonfiction.

But then the aim is still to convey something “real,” which we might be able to identify with, is it not?

It’d be interesting to think about whether or not there’s anything about fiction itself (if there is such a thing) that makes one more inclined to read it. I.e., does anyone read fiction precisely because there’s nothing real about it, because it’s imaginary? Or is the debate between advocates of the two genres simply a debate over which genre is a more effective means of conveying a reality to us?

Publié à 17:13 3 notes

Notes

  1. bmkk a publié ce billet