Tuesday, February 19, 2013

"Literature engages us because it is rooted. It tangles itself in the quotidian, concrete, individualized nitty-gritty of human experience." — Daniel Taylor



"Stories teach us how to live. We are born and raised in stories, and stories answer all the big questions in life: who am I? why am I here? what should I do? Stories are especially suited for answering the 'ought' questions, perhaps the most perplexing questions of all. For a hundred years and longer intellectuals and culture shapers have been nervous about the categories of right and wrong. We have tried to live as though these are merely words for opinion or personal preference. One unintended consequence has been widespread moral paralysis and passivity. We have, as individuals and as a culture, a greatly diminished ability to say, 'This is wrong, and this is right.' We still say these things, of course, because they are rooted in our nature; but we have a hard time either defending or acting on what we say. Stories can help."
— Daniel Taylor (from his essay The Ethical Implications of Storytelling)
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