Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/the-gift-of-fiction/5023634/
“Fiction gives us empathy: it puts us inside the minds of other people, gives us the gifts of seeing the world through their eyes.”
Neil Gaiman, American Author (2013, p. xvi)
Neil Gaiman, who writes across genres and audiences in a way that few authors are able to, and who crafts books as rich in literary device for four- and five-year olds as for adults, recognizes the power of empathy in storytelling. This empathy is developed within the readers who have access to new characters and places, but also within the authors themselves, who must take on the viewpoints of both their characters and the audience for whom they write. Storytelling has been a device for connection from the beginning of humankind (Zipes, 2012). Often, when engaging in investigations around storytelling with young children, we think about plot and story arc. “What happens next?” is a common question that educators ask. Conventions around voice and audience are typically introduced later, sometimes not until authors are in adolescence or beyond. Empathy, however, is recognized as a crucial aspect of human development (Siegel, 2012).
In this modern era, when we are witnessing the rise of technological tools — tools that have as much potential to divide us as ...