|
|
Post by Ricky on May 7, 2011 18:32:24 GMT -5
I'm about to finish reading "Looking for Alaska" for the third time since i bought the book. If you haven't read the book, get out of this thread. If you have, read the spoiler. I'm in the chapters after Alaska dies, and every single time I read this book I find my self really sad and quiet for the rest of the day/week thinking about her death even though I know she is not real.
Is that weird? I mean I realize its probably more the topic and the circumstances that many go through in this unfair life that saddens me more than the death of the character. That being said, I can see how being moved by something that never happened might seem dumb to others.
Anyways, has it ever happened to you that you let something fictional affect you that much? If so, how often does that happen to you? and what was it?
|
|
|
|
Post by Insane_Zang on May 7, 2011 19:01:24 GMT -5
Emma (emmcatt) through herself into an emotional coma after watching David Tennant die in The End of Time... I'm not kidding
|
|
|
|
Post by Ryan on May 7, 2011 20:00:29 GMT -5
Fiction, and even other forms of non-personal entertainment interact with the empathic part of your brain. Otherwise there's no purpose to them. (Think of why you would watch sports? or a movie? These events trigger different emotions -usually happiness - which allow you to enjoy them through the creation of dopamine).
So it's not surprising at all, that sad sections of a book, sad movies, or tragic plays could make someone feel sad. In essence, it's the purpose.
|
|
Andrea
Meteorite
Fighting evil by moonlight!
Posts: 8
|
Post by Andrea on May 7, 2011 21:48:44 GMT -5
Bbeing able to pull in the readers and having them invest themselves emotionally in your book like that is pretty much what writers aim for. No writer wants to hear their readers say, "Oh, I couldn't get into the story at all, this book didn't affect me in the slightest." That's part of why Alaska is John's most acclaimed book, because it impacts people like it did to you.
Also, think of why Harry Potter got so big! Fans still wish they had gotten "the acceptance letter", they're still talking about the characters, they're still emotionally "at" Hogwarts -- I think it IS the purpose of books and movies to pull us in like that. To me, movies and books are a more sophisticated, "grown up" alternative to asking mom to tell us a bedtime story when we were five.
It's happened a few times to me, with both books and movies. I don't think it's weird at all, and I usually take it as a sign that the writing/acting/story were superb.
|
|
|
|
Post by Flags_Forever on May 7, 2011 23:39:51 GMT -5
I remember sobbing when Cheetah, a sentient super computer, committed virtual suicide by purging his hard drive in Factoring Humanity . That was back in '02 or '03, and it can still make me shed tears. It was a great read, though, and that was one of the reasons. I'd say it happens to everyone once in a while, and you know what? That's okay. Fictional or not, a well written character should feel like a real person, so it makes sense to grieve a little if they end up suffering over something or dying. ryan: I typed out my own opinion this time. Still think I'm a sheep? |
|
|
|
Post by bombmaniac on May 7, 2011 23:42:54 GMT -5
youre always a sheep  watch out for teh welsh  |
|
|
|
Post by Flags_Forever on May 7, 2011 23:50:04 GMT -5
youre always a sheep watch out for teh welsh I didn't ask you... |
|
|
|
Post by bombmaniac on May 8, 2011 0:03:23 GMT -5
i volunteered im just kind like taht |
|
|
|
Post by Flags_Forever on May 8, 2011 0:11:36 GMT -5
i volunteered im just kind like taht Oh, **** you!  |
|
|
|
Post by bombmaniac on May 8, 2011 0:25:58 GMT -5
i dont play for that team...ill take your mother though |
|
|
|
Post by Freddy on May 8, 2011 0:31:14 GMT -5
wait a sec. Could you please move this to the Official Bombmaniac Hating Thread? (or whatever it's called?)
kthxbai.
BACK ON TOPIC:
Yes, I've also felt that. Mainly with books, because for some reason I don't relate much to characters in movies.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ryan on May 8, 2011 9:32:16 GMT -5
If you post your own opinion - you are not a sheep.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ricky on May 8, 2011 10:26:41 GMT -5
Insane_Zang: I'm also a doctor who fan and yea I felt kind of sad when Tennant died, although it wasn't as strong a feeling as what I described from the book. ryan: I guess you are right. Although from an outside perspective it would seem strange that we, as humans, try to also trigger sadness and grief, even though for many of us there is enough of that already in our lives. Maybe there is something to be learn from those emotions after all. @andrea: To some degree I think you are right, but not entirely. The twilight books/movies were able to obtain countless numbers of fans, but I don't think they can be considered as great works of art. In a way I think that, as you suggested, the worth of a book depends highly on how much you can relate to it, but also on how well it can share countless interpretations. @flags: I don't think I've ever read Factoring Humanity, although now that I know the ending maybe i shouldn't xP That being said, if a book can make you care that much about a non-living character then maybe I should give it a read. I'll probably just buy it used on Amazon, like I did for most of my books. ^_^ asher: Pointless posting is pointless... @freddy: So you didn't cry the first time you watched the Titanic? I was like 7 or 8 but I remember crying my eyes out...
|
|
|
|
Post by Insane_Zang on May 8, 2011 11:46:42 GMT -5
I don't think you get what I mean. She literally wouldn't talk to her family and sat in her room and cried
|
|
|
|
Post by Ryan on May 8, 2011 21:28:41 GMT -5
Ricky, we appreciate feeling every emotion. If we only ever felt emotions of happiness by watching entertainment, then when we encountered real sadness or real fear, our minds would hardly be able to cope. Feeling the entire emotional spectrum is extremely healthy. That is one reason why we as humans enjoy sad books, sad movies, sad plays, horror films, gore and violence, action and adventure, and fantasy. We want to feel happy yes, but we also want to understand what its like to feel sad - without having a real reason to feel it. We enjoy being afraid, when there's nothing to really be afraid of. We also enjoy wonder and thrill. These emotions are not ones that are often felt in many peoples life, which is why they enjoy them so in entertainment.
On the flipside of this, you will find that someone who lives a sad life, and is really depressed, will not find the same enjoyment out of a sad book, as someone who is happy. That is because instead of appreciating the emotion the book conveys to the reader, they identify and may recall events from their own life, and real emotions instead of fictional ones.
|
|
|
|
Post by Ricky on May 8, 2011 22:26:41 GMT -5
That's still sort of strange isn't it? I mean we know of physical pain but most of us don't enjoy to cause harm to ourselves (with exception of people who cut themselves). Yes, you could make the argument that fights in UFC or people getting hurt in Football proves that pain is a part of our entertainment, but I think those events speak more of our competitive nature than a drive to inflict pain. It might seem like we don't need constant physical pain to be able to understand what its like to feel hurt. So why is it different for emotions?
|
|
|
|
Post by Ryan on May 9, 2011 1:59:14 GMT -5
emotional and physical pain register in different parts of the brain. You're trying to compare apples to oranges.
|
|
emmcatt
Moon
panda coffee
Posts: 282
|
Post by emmcatt on May 9, 2011 2:11:14 GMT -5
Emma (emmcatt) through herself into an emotional coma after watching David Tennant die in The End of Time... I'm not kidding LOL gts |
|
|
|
Post by Flags_Forever on May 9, 2011 7:16:37 GMT -5
@ricky: Well, Cheetah's 'death' wasn't the ending, actually. I do encourage you to read it though, I thought it was pretty good!  |
|
Quinn
Star
[AWD:191c07]
The eye of compromise.
Posts: 580
|
Post by Quinn on May 10, 2011 18:03:02 GMT -5
I love Looking for Alaska with all my heart, and it is my favorite book.
I think everyone feels like that a little whenever they see or watch something sad. In Looking for Alaska, the sadness completely caught me off guard, and it really was pretty strong.
|
|
meow
