WHY I READ GOOD FICTION

I have been reading the novels and stories of Stefan Zweig (1881-1942) and have been fascinated by his insight into the psychology of his characters. Zweig was an Austrian who knew and appreciated Sigmund Freud and his theories of the unconscious. His knowledge of human nature was profound. In his stories he explores the thinking of ordinary men and women, what motivates them, what tempts them, what drives them on to do foolish things, what excites them, what bores them, what paralyzes them. He invites you into the dreams, the nightmares, the dilemmas, the fears and hopes of that characterizes human life with all its challenges. You find yourself being carried along by decisions and indecisions, entanglements, thoughtlessness and the possibility that it could happen to you, or has happened to you. If a novel were written of my life which included, not just the biography of events, but the inmost revelation of my thoughts and their impact of others, would it look like these kind of stories? We have been schooled to keep our inmost thoughts to ourselves, to never let other people know what we are thinking. But if we wrote out the story of our lives that included our thoughts, our desires, our temptations, our guilt, our likes and dislikes, our hates and our loves, it would be quite a revelation to those who think they know us.

This is why I like to read fiction, and encourage others to read fiction. Novels are often autobiographical because they contain details about the authors and their inner life disguised in their characters. They enable the readers to explore human nature, the workings of human consciousness, the possibilities of life, the challenges of relationships, the difficulties of intimacy, the desires of the heart, and the necessity to cope with circumstances beyond our control. They deal with good and evil, self-delusion, hypocrisy, seduction, obsession, the fragility of love, our secret faults, and our blindness to our prejudices and pride.

Bob Buford, the founder of Leadership Network, described his visits to his mentor, Peter Drucker, the management guru, at his home in California.

“One of the first things, I noticed on my early visits to his home were the books on his shelves: mostly fiction, with occasional histories – Shakespeare, Dickens, de Tocqueville – but a conspicuous absence of ‘business books.’… ‘Peter, it appears you read a lot of novels,’ I said. ‘Somehow I would have thought your bookshelves would have been lined with books related more to your discipline.’ Drucker replied, ‘Books about business deal with functions and strategies – the mechanics of running a successful company. Fiction teaches you about human beings – how they think, how they behave, what’s important to them. I’m more interested in people than I am in how businesses work.’” (Drucker & Me, Bob Buford, p.52f.)

I was fortunate in having access to a public and a private library in my childhood. My love of reading led me to many different authors. Today I am still discovering new authors, like Stefan Zweig, who stimulate my curiosity and help me to understand myself and other people better. As I reorganize my library in retirement I am excited by the possibilities it provides for me to enrich my life. New books are being written and published every day that extend and deepen our understanding of what it means to be human beings and what is important to us.

Let me encourage to you read good fiction. I know there is plenty of bad fiction around. Read the reviews so that you do not waste your time and money on trash. Use your public library. It can get any book for you on inter-library loan if they do not have it on their shelves. You can also get a loan card from your local university (I have one for the University of North Florida) which allows you to borrow from its extensive collections. You will never be lonely if you can read or use an audio book. Remember that God the Son is the Word of God, who invented words and reading and instructs us through his written Word.

“The words of the wise prod us to live well. They are like nails hammered home, holding life together. They are given by God, the one Shepherd.” (Ecclesiastes 12:11, The Message)