Does Reading Literature Make You a Better Person?

In many cases, great literary works have a special moral meaning, and we will lead us to a moral path, looking at humanity from highness. However, professor of philosophy Gregory Curry objected to the statement that reading a good book made you a better person. He said that for beginners there is no evidence that this is the fact. "Most of the studies that have been done so far rely on short stories designed for experimental purposes, not serious literature, and those who cast doubts about the impact of literature on morality and social development There was almost nothing. "

Our moral sense is complex muscle, it can be said that it consists of many things. It is almost impossible to separate the literature as a target of strength training (imagine planning experiments to test readers of Tolstoy). To Currie it is very important to find the causal relationship between reading and morality: probably not the other way: people who are bright, socially competent and understanding interact with humans over other people Probability is high. Do you find pleasure in complex performances we found in literature? "

"This is a great honor for Showalter, she wrote a book that simplifies many of her virtues related to literature: Curiosity, Empathy, Compassion. It is also a very personal job, people are literature It is said that you will read better, it will not make you better, but reading this book will be a better teacher for you, perhaps you will think better about literature. " Times Higher Educational Supplement Supplement

Please explain your personal relationship with literature and reading. Let us first consider the meaning of literature. What does literary terminology mean to you? What is the reason why you have your own literary work? If literature means different from person to person, who defines what is literature, not literature? Next, let's consider the relationship between reading and literature. What kind of reading will make you interesting? What is attractive sentences for you? Did you think that it is meaningful to read sentences? If so, please explain the satisfaction you received from this process. Please think about how you read. For example, are you taking notes or marking text during reading? Or are you just absorbing the material on the page?

After the project like the present, it is easy for people to say that "reading literature makes us a better person" or "an inevitable question like" Does this make us more ethical? " You may think of an answer. Even though this might make them seem to avoid some people, the answer has to be carefully designed. In fact, however, there are some indications that reading the literature may increase the validity of our moral reflection. Why do we need to be so cautious? First of all, there are few data to support this claim. Secondly, we can only infer the influence of 'more appropriate moral reflection' on our moral judgment in real life. Reading stories, for example, may cause action decisions about more thoughtful thinking about hypothetical situations. However, I do not know if this reflection will offset the personal costs often associated with altruistic behavior. Thirdly, little is known about the exact cause of these effects.