Quote:
Originally Posted by DiapDealer
I'm fascinated by how so many talk about liking, caring about, or being interested in characters as if they are actual people, rather than successful or unsuccessful constructs of the author; used to propel the plot. I'll go as far as to notice whether the characters are "believable" in their plot arcs (and I may even "like" or "dislike" some of them), but I never see them as fully autonomous entities. I'm almost always generally apathetic to their fictional plights in the long run. But that's probably because I don't strive to hop into their heads (or their worlds) when I'm reading about them. For me, escapism includes the freedom to not have to be truly invested in these fictional contructs' drama/joy (like I need to be in real life). They're disposable: and the author either did them well or they didn't. *shrug*
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Of course I don't see them as real people. But I do need to be interested in their "plight", as you call it, even if it's only imaginary. And no, I'm not invested in this as I would be in someone/something in real life. It's wholly imaginary and I may forget all about those characters when I'm reading another book. But if I'm totally indifferent what happens to the characters, I'll grow bored and toss the book. For me that means the characters aren't well done.
I doubt anyone here is as emotionally invested in fictional characters as we are in real people. But for many of us, there must be
some emotional investment, or we just lose interest.