This morning I want to be in a book, curled up on my couch, lost in the woods somewhere. I don’t know why I continue to always prefer books over reality, but I can’t seem to stop. It’s not that I don’t love my life, I do. It is a life filled with blessings, loving friends and family, a fulfilling job. Yet right now, as I sit and prepare myself for my day, all I can think is “do I have enough time to finish a chapter of The Near Witch?”
Lately my love of books has focused on the fantasy genre, specifically young adult fantasy (the good kind, no vampires please). And as much as the literary snob in me would love to say that I exclusively read Hemingway and Faulkner, that is simply not true. In fact, I have to be in a fairly academic mood to devote myself to those kind of books.
Only recently did I realize why.
It began with Mr. Green-something. I think it was Mr. Greenberg. He was a teacher I observed while I was getting certified to teach. We were talking about literature and he said, “I don’t care how well it’s written, I only care if it’s a good story. If it isn’t a good story, I don’t even waste my time with it.” At first the English major inside of me rose up with great offense at such a statement, but then
I got to thinking that the fact of the matter was that most famous stories were not really good stories.
I couldn’t pinpoint why until I read this:
"Oddities only strike ordinary people.
Oddities do not strike odd
people. This is why ordinary people have
a much more exciting time; while
odd people are always complaining of the dullness of life. This
is also why the new novels die so quickly, and why the old fairy
tales endure for ever. The old fairy
tale makes the hero a
normal human boy; it is his adventures that are startling;
they
startle him because he is normal. But in
the modern psychological
novel the hero is abnormal; the centre is not central. Hence
the fiercest adventures fail to affect him adequately, and
the book is monotonous. You can make a
story out of a hero among
dragons; but not out of a dragon among dragons.
The fairy tale
discusses what a sane man will do in a mad world. The sober realistic
novel of to-day discusses what an essential lunatic will do
in a dull world."
Suddenly it all made sense. This is exactly why I love fantasy and fairy tales. The stories about lunatics in a dull world are not good stories. They function more like a visit to a therapist. The reader becomes the normal person in the equation, the oddities the characters and there is no connection, or if there is, the reader is mainly disturbed to find that he has a connection with such an abnormal character. Then the reader feels HE needs to go visit HIS therapist and the relaxation and pleasure derived from reading is lost.
I am self-reflective enough as it is, I don’t need a Hemingway character to help me out with that.
Besides, why would I want to read a book about broken, messed up humans? Why would I want to read about broken homes, broken hearts, broken lives – with no resolution of this brokenness, only more brokenness? Why would I want to read about a dragon among dragons, when all I see when I come up for air out my book are people like me – treasure-hoarding, lonely people, with a thick hide toughened over long years of withstanding brutal attacks. I want to read about someone I want to be like, about heroes and the villains they face. And yes, that can be trite, but it can also be beautiful. These stories have lasted this long for a reason.
All of these realizations helped me feel more comfortable pulling all those old fantasy books off my shelf and even discovering some new ones. It also made me realize that I will always love fantasy books and fairy tales. There is a truth in them and a connection to real life that is sometimes missing from the books that try harder to make that connection. They make you feel like you can do anything. They make you realize that good DOES win over evil, even though at a high price. They make you trust in the good – not in people – but in our Creator. And they help you take your own dull, reality filled world a little bit less seriously.
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