MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Humans need to read to feel more empathy with others.

Steven Lyle Jordan · 12-31-2011, 08:49 AM

Funny, I remember how certain movies and TV shows altered my view on the world... but very few books that have done that. But I guess the point is made.

And I agree with the suggestion that internet activity is, by nature, less supportive of empathy. It's a combination of the distance placed between others, and the anonymity of most web-based contact, therefore removing almost all real and potential intimacy with others, that encourages aggressive behavior and discourages empathy.

I suspect that, somehow, the removal of the possibility of intimacy created by reading a book (or watching a show) increases the desire to be intimate with those you are watching but removed from, creating a greater empathy for them.

12-31-2011, 08:49 AM	#4
Steven Lyle Jordan Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,478 Karma: 5171130 Join Date: Jan 2006 Device: none	Funny, I remember how certain movies and TV shows altered my view on the world... but very few books that have done that. But I guess the point is made. And I agree with the suggestion that internet activity is, by nature, less supportive of empathy. It's a combination of the distance placed between others, and the anonymity of most web-based contact, therefore removing almost all real and potential intimacy with others, that encourages aggressive behavior and discourages empathy. I suspect that, somehow, the removal of the possibility of intimacy created by reading a book (or watching a show) increases the desire to be intimate with those you are watching but removed from, creating a greater empathy for them.