Writing Prompt: The Future of Storytelling-Updated Janaury 24, 2014

Image Credit:  The Future of Storytelling

Which of the following emotions best describes how you feel after hearing Ben's story?

A.  Distress
B.  Empathy
C.  Both Distress and Empathy

Don't know what distress means: click here
Don't know what empathy means: click here

Watch the videos before answering:

"Stories are powerful because they transport us into other people’s worlds but, in doing that, they change the way our brains work and potentially change our brain chemistry — and that’s what it means to be a social creature."

Include in your answer why?  Your answer must be written in complete sentences.  A minimum of five sentences is required.  Start Scribbling!

More Recent Research on the Benefits of Reading Good Literature:

Can reading Chekhov or Alice Munro improve your social skills? According to a study published yesterday in the journal Science, researchers "found that after reading literary fiction, as opposed to popular fiction or serious nonfiction, people performed better on tests measuring empathy, social perception and emotional intelligence--skills that come in especially handy when you are trying to read someone's body language or gauge what they might be thinking," the New York Times reported. 

The researchers, social psychologists at the New School for Social Research in New York City, suggested the reason for this is that literary fiction "often leaves more to the imagination, encouraging readers to make inferences about characters and be sensitive to emotional nuance and complexity," the Times wrote.

"This is why I love science," said author Louise Erdrich, whose novel The Round House was used in one of the experiments, adding that the researchers "found a way to prove true the intangible benefits of literary fiction. Thank God the research didn't find that novels increased tooth decay or blocked up your arteries.... Writers are often lonely obsessives, especially the literary ones. It's nice to be told what we write is of social value. However, I would still write even if novels were useless.”-Shelf Awareness

 

The Power of Empathy:  Brene Brown

 

 

Answer the following Questions:

1. What does Ms. Brown say is the difference between sympathy and empathy?
2. Give an example when you showed empathy toward someone.
3. Do you agree with Ms. Brown's conclusions about empathy?

Start Scribbling!

Happy Writing!

The Writing Whisperer

Believe In Truth, Beauty, Freedom, Love, and the Power of the Written Word!