Hey all,
This weather is great and I wish it could stay that way in Madison. After reading our prompt, I thought about it while on my jog. Can a work of fiction be as influential as a work of non-fiction? While running, I came up with the conclusion that yes it can be and that in some cases a work of fiction can be even more influential than non-fiction. Whether it is Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncles Toms Cabin or F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby it appears as though a great work of fiction immediately precedes a great man-made calamity. While many other causes can be attributed to these events, I believe it is the rhetorical power and freedom that fiction provides allows an author to discuss a wrong or problem in society.
An authors ideas and values are imbued in the text that they put forth. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncles Toms Cabin is a perfect example of this. While the story is fiction, the plotline provides a rebuke of the southern practices of slavery. This fictional story of black slave who serves his white masters became one of the most published works during the mid 19th century. The work was very popular in the abolitionist north and helped stir anti-slavery sentiment their. A few years after publication, a little skirmish between the abolitionist North and pro-slavery South broke out. After four years and 600,000 lives, the issue was resolved and slavery in America was abolished.
While some works have a direct impact on historical events, others can be viewed as startlingly accurate predicators of events. F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a good example of this. Fitzgerald’s story about life on Long Island during the roaring 20’s describes the social norms of the time period. Nick Carraway, the main character of the novel, is symbolic of the greed, extravagance and aimlessness of the time period. The decade after the Great War is accurately depicted in F Scott Fitzgerald’s work. A few years after the text was written, the greatest finical calamity in American History struck. In October 1929 the stock market crashed prompting what is now called the Great Depression. Historians have concluded the exuberance, similar to Nick Harraway’s parties, fueled by easy money lead to a stock market bubble that burst and started the Great Depression.
While the events in fictional novels can foreshadow future events, they can also describe the mood and fears that can arise after these horrific events have occurred. George Orwell’s work 1984 fits into this category. Orwell’s novel takes place forty years in the future in which the world is separated geographically into three areas. The main character Winston lives in one of these areas where the government has complete control of everyone’s thoughts and actions. The omnipresent though police arrest, torture and kill anybody who does not follow exactly what Big Brother says. Despite being one of my favorite works, the story highlights the fears over fascism and communism that plagued the world immediately after it was written. 1984 was written a few years after Hitler’s reign in Germany and during Stalin’s leadership in the Soviet Union. Remarkably, fifty years after the death of these tyrants, 1984 is still relevant today. The term “Big Brother” is often used by politicians, media and political activists to protest laws that they feel infringe upon their rights as an American Citizen. This argument has been used for everything from the Patriot Act to the Stimulus Bill. Overall, the text has made people weary of the federal government. They believe that while these laws may have good intentions, they believe the government can use them to commit nefarious crimes. At this point I would like to discuss how the argument, while often overused, can be used legitimately when discussing things like the Patriot act, rendition and Abu Ghraib, however it would deviate from my thesis and purpose of writing this essay.
The three examples, I provided are only a few examples of the impact fiction can have on society. Thousands of works could have been used, many which probably would have been better examples, and in the coming years many more will be produced. Fiction allows writers to connect with their readers and explore subjects on an emotional level that is unparalled by any mode of communication known to man. It is for that reason; fiction can be an invaluable rhetorical tool
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I agree with what you said in this post. Normally when a person chooses to read a work of fiction it is to get away from reality and read about a made up persons life or a fake event. However once a person starts to get into the book they quickly learn that what they are reading relates to real life, either in the present time or the past. This give fiction writers the chance to write about real topics from a different perspective. Rather than just writing a boring work about real life issues, fiction allows the issue to be blended into an interesting story that can hold the readers attention. This is what gives fiction the ability to have an impact on society.
ReplyDeleteGreat works of fiction are never considered great just because of the story it tells, but also because of the issues that it is able to address. The three books mentioned, 1984, The Great Gatsby, and Uncle Tom's Cabin are all examples that fit into this. All three are interesting books to read and are read in schools as part of an English class. If you do read one of the books in a class then it is at this time that you realize that fiction has an impact on society. I know in my class when we read books such as The Great Gatsby and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn our teacher pointed out issues that were talked about in the books. Learning about these books was what made me realize that a completely made up story could effectively discuss issues in society and still be able to hold the readers interest and make a connection to a character in the story. What helps to make these books great is that they are able to give us a look into the daily life of a person who lived during a certain time. This is useful when a story is based on events that happened in the past. Rather than just reading an essay which may only tell about the facts, a work of fiction is able to weave it into the story line. This can give the reader an idea as to what life was like in the setting of the story, which helps to enforce the underlying issue.
Fiction is a good form of public argument. It is an opportunity for a writer to take a stance in a creative way. Reading a great work of fiction is proof of this. People reading a work even years after it has been written shows that it has sparked interest in many people.
Fiction does however have a limitation when it comes to talking about a public issue. It is still fiction, which means that some may not take it seriously or even consider reading to gain knowledge about something. It takes awhile to write an entire book, which means that by the time a book is done, the issue it discusses may not be in the spotlight anymore. In these cases a work of fiction may be looked over because it may seem dated to many.