Not everyone loves the fantasy genre. That may come as a shock to some of the diehard fans, but others already lament this fact. We’ve had people ask us what we’re reading, but when we excitedly hold up our book in progress, they just say, “ohhh” and politely excuse themselves.
Or maybe you’re on the other side of the fence, wondering why people waste their time reading stories that have nothing to do with the real world—thinking your time is better spent on something educational, or at least closer to home.
Whichever camp you’re in, I understand: not everything is to everybody’s liking. But in this blog series, I’m going to provide multiple reasons why you should give the fantasy genre some serious consideration.
The classical elements of fantasy stories contain lessons of tremendous value about ourselves, our experiences, and our world—yes, our world, not just a galaxy far, far away.
But before we get into fantasy’s specific virtues, it’s important to understand the value of stories in general.
Why are stories valuable?
As humans, we’re wired for stories. Stories touch the deep parts of our hearts in a way that mere facts don’t. As a result, they hold great power to affect the way we feel and think—to help us see things in a new way or urge us to a different choice.
Truth is easier to see, evaluate, and accept in a story rather than in theory statements. Our lives are often overwhelmed with a muddle of details and emotional reactions so that any prescriptive statements put us on the defensive. Truth in a story comes from enough distance to make it simple and clear. We can evaluate in a non-threatening way as we see it in others before we decide whether or not to take it to heart and apply to ourselves.
There’s an old story about a king who had a man killed in order to steal his wife. As king, he thought he’d gotten away with it. Anyone daring to tell him he’d done wrong would likely meet the same fate. But the king’s friend instead told him the story of a rich man who had many sheep in his fields, and a poor man who had only one that he fed from his hand and let sleep next to him in his home. The rich man, though he had plenty, wanted the other man’s sheep–and took it for his own table while letting the poor man starve.
This story enraged the king, and he vowed to bring justice on the rich man—only to have his friend point out that he was the man. Instead of reaching for his sword, the king was cut to the quick. In sympathizing with the plight of the poor man, he understood the wrong of what he had done and sought forgiveness. The story opened his eyes to a truth he’d rather have not seen, but desperately needed.
And maybe that story, even its shortened form here, just did the same for you in demonstrating the influence of narrative. The power of story rests not on its quick conveyance of facts, but on the revelation of character that shows truth more deeply. In seeing through the eyes of another, we can better discern who we want to be in our own lives.
Fantasy shows us with exquisite clarity truths about our world and who we are that other genres don’t usually touch on. As a result, it contains beautiful treasures that you might not find anywhere else. This blog series will uncover and put on display some of those gems—and hopefully demonstrate how you can mine the benefits of what you read.
How has a story affected your life? Let me know in the comments—and tune in next time for the first treasure: how to identify and resist your archenemy!
You can also read more about why I write and why good stories are crucial.
Read more:
10 Ways Reading Fantasy Improves Reality
Next Post: Real Life Dragons
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