why read literature? (midnight thoughts)

A long philosophical rambling on the nature of literature, truth and empathy. From my midnight desk to yours.
Enjoy!
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[@ToReadersItMayConcern]

"Soothe my heart with the medicine of words"-yes, medicine of another mind, medicine of quiet between the words, too. I find the quiet between so key: there seems to be lingering questions in great works and in the silence that rests after reading. Perhaps some of the truth that you describe, that transferring between writer and reader, is the importance of the questioning as much if not more than the answering. That's what I find myself struggling with after reading, that openness after the text is done. "Those ways of thinking are a life inside of me"-so perfect the way you say this. Complex characters are our selves removed from current context; it is so easy to be moral when life is easy, and so difficult when we're scared. Some literature invites us to understand how a shift away from ease, toward desperation, can change us if we let it. These midnight musings fit you well. So fascinating throughout, and you discovered such inspired phrasing, too. Really got me thinking. Thank you so much for that. I might midnight muse, too, sometime. If I do so for the channel I'll point others your way, of course. Such a great, great idea.

[@strange.lucidity]

Thank you for this wonderfully thoughtful comment!

[@michaelm7823]

Thank you so much for making this deeply thoughtful video. I just watched it twice, there's so much food for thought in your discussion. This is such an important topic and actually for all that I watch book channels and writing channels I think this is the first time I've seen the topic addressed. And when addressed the way you did it's so inspiring. For us who already read it fires us up to double down and do it more effectively, intentionally, carefully. It provides in a way clarity and purpose to something we already enjoy. For a casual reader I'd say it can persuade them to give literature a chance. All of it deepened with your midnight theme and the lighting. The black and white. The mysteries only found in the middle of the night, the mysteries only found in literature. I really love you started with an Emerson quote. He gave so much brilliant attention to why we read or should read. One of his quotes I love: "I have forgotten many books that I’ve read, as I have many meals I have eaten; but they both helped to make me." Your comments show you really absorbed Animal Farm deeply and quickly. Only halfway through the book you have processed it's levels better than I ever did. I made notes of your comments so the next time it comes up I hope to sound smart! Lol. I remember it was a funny book, too. Funny in a laugh or you'll cry way. I loved several phrases from today: my midnight desk...we need a moment of humility...misses the important questions... Another gem. Stepping back from the books, taking an eagle's view of what we are really doing, happily hunched over the black ink on the white pages. Bravo. Loved it. Thank you for sharing.

[@strange.lucidity]

Endlessly grateful for you thoughts as always!

[@lamarschlabach3933]

Because we've needed it so desperately and for so long, I love the part where we get something like Trump.

[@limeparticle]

Re. empathy - with reading, it’s even more nuanced than being able to feel with someone. Reading fiction has been shown to augment the reader’s imagine-other skills, as opposed to just imagine-self skills. So not only is reading instrumental in developing empathy in general, but it also increases our capability of seeing the world from the perspectives of others we may not be able to identify with at all.

[@strange.lucidity]

Yes, such a true and beautiful addition. Thank you!

[@TheMarkofMerc]

I enjoyed the style of this midnight reflection, I look forward to many more 🙂I appreciate your thoughts surrounding empathy. I think it's beautiful how you can extract from a text, in order to gain perspective on values you deem important. Literature is so incredibly valuable. Whether it's science, religion or the arts, whatever can guide a person is a great thing. There will always be people like Trump all over the world, the best antidote is food for thought which you've achieved with your video. Thank you for sharing! 🙂

[@strange.lucidity]

Yes. Thank you for leaving this comment. It resonates a lot! ❤

[@wordswordseverywhere9113]

Wonderful. Thank you for sharing these thoughts, they really resonated with me.

[@booksandpoets]

Liebe Maria, erst mal vorne weg, was für ein stimmungsvolles, angenehmes Video. Ich würde mich sofort zu deiner Mitternachtssessions dazu gesellen, einen Tee oder einen Aperol mit dir trinken und dann könnten wir lange dahin philosophieren über die spannenden aber doch auch schwierigen Fragen im Leben. Ich finde du hast absolut recht - Literatur kann uns Dinge auf einer ganz anderen Ebene vermitteln. Und dass wir mehr Empathie und ein Umdenken auf dieser Welt brauchen ist auch offensichtlich. Ich finde es schön zu hören, dass es für dich so ein Antrieb ist, um dich mit den Texten auseinanderzusetzen. Ich selbst merke manchmal, dass es mich überfordert, mich so genau mit einem Buch auseinanderzusetzen und zu versuchen es richtig zu "verstehen" oder tiefgreifend zu analysieren. Es setzt mich manchmal fast ein wenig unter Druck, wenn ich zu einem Buch greife, weil ich das Meiste aus der Leseerfahrung ziehen möchte - und es gleichzeitig überfordernd finde. Ganz liebe Grüße, Natascha

[@strange.lucidity]

Das hört sich wundervoll an und ich finde das sollten wir absolut mal machen! Danke für deine Worte ❤

[@jackintheworld6639]

The sumptuous hour with a book is a wonder of everyday life. And so has spending this time with your thoughts, Maria.

[@testcardII]

What a wonderful video 🌻

[@swedish_art]

Your thoughts on truth and empathy can be described as great. Moreover, your performance at midnight is more natural than usual. Through this video,my good impression towards Austrians has also improved

[@mattvrabel2072]

Beautiful: Truth and Empathy. And indeed, we see every day, how prideful, self satisfied, and self serving ignorance breeds fascism. But you had me long before you got there. Thank you for taking the time to express and share your thoughts about reading literature. I agree with you.

[@radiantchristina]

First things first - I vote for more midnight thoughts videos. 🖤 "soothe my heart with the medicine of words" - that went straight into my reading journal. I agree with you that authors insert meaning into their works. I believe it is up to us to decode the author's intention in a fictional story and the meaning can be different for different people. I think fiction is a wonderful way to learn about people and about the world in general. A good book opens my mind and heart to humanity and helps me understand others better but also to understand myself better. Truth and empathy - yes, 100% 🖤

[@strange.lucidity]

🙏🏻 Thanks so much for this!

[@sakup8782]

I understand your stance that literature works better for you than science and religion, but what about philosophy? I would say it is something in between all of those three and there are so many types of philosophy that everyone can find something that speaks to them.

[@strange.lucidity]

Good point, yes. I'm intrigued by philosophy and I'm most likely gonna take some classes during my degree. Let's see how I like it. I have a feeling it might be a bit too head-y for me, but as you said, there's so many types and directions, it's probably just a matter of finding what resonates.

[@DrGBhas]

I agree with sakup8782 --- As I see it, Philosophy is like a meta view of life in all of its converging and diverging aspects. Philosophy , in Will Durant's view is in many ways , all about bringing the bigger picture to illuminate the many smaller events and experiences of life and living. A book that I read and read again ( by Will and Ariel Durant ) is titled " Interpretations of Life " : The Lives , opinions and works of major contemporary authors of the twentieth century -- combines Philosophy and literature in an interesting way . The book ends with a note " But the poets and the artists and dreamers are not dead ; they will tell new stories, paint new pictures, of our heroes, our achievements , and our possibilities ; we shall be inspired and strengthened again ; and we shall go on to add to our heritage . Philosophy is a sister to many subjects such as Literature, Medicine and Science. Some philosophical schools of thought such as Hegel are rock - like, but that is an awesome journey too. Then again, Philosophy from the east too, is rather challenging to comprehend, but it is an awesome experience : to read a work that is thousands of years old such as The Upanishads ... Good luck and thanks

[@chrissmithdoe2100]

@@DrGBhas "Some philosophical schools of thought such as Hegel are rock - like" - I'm curious what you mean by that...?

[@tj-wn8ye]

Really enjoyed your thoughts and video. Speaking of science and politics and truth and empathy, there have been several studies which have shown that a person’s tendency to react with disgust and repulsion corresponds with left and right politically. In other words the more likely a person feels disgust (from many varied stimuli such as uncleanliness) the more likely they are to be right wing. Fascism is afoot on the planet, not least where I live in the USA. Populism and anti immigrant sentiment is seeing a big boost in Europe as the lastest EU election show. These results are rooted in fear of the Other, immigrants, the unclean, the different. Orban and trump and Le Pen are appealing to the same dark human impulse. Anyhow, I’m rambling. Love your channel. Peace from the not so peaceful USA. ❤

[@bastianray6334]

Muchas gracias por tu bello video sobre literatura Saludos desde Chile ❤

[@mmclaug907]

I too found myself in a similar place and broke that drought reading with The Prince and the Pauper last night. What I don't understand is - you speak of reading. But what makes reading special? What in particular makes it unique from looking at a painting or listening to music that does it for you? In America, I think George Orwell has suffered from a unique indignity - 1984 and Animal Farm seem to be popular with people who are relatively new to reading and those works are/were ubiquitous in our High School English reading book schedule. The result of this is that the lessons from these stories have been and continue to be spouted loudly from those who have little experience in life and/or critical analysis and can come off as naïve; they've become modern platitudes. It's unfortunate here in my country where it feels political fanaticism has increased, mental health has decreased, and politics has almost turned into a form of entertainment or sport. I think your take on choosing art over religion and science is a great take on what many people are going through. You could say you're choosing life in a way. It's not unsimilar from one of the main take aways I got from Ulysses. This pursuit of truth I'm unsure is not that difference from science. Perhaps you mean a different kind of truth? Science is Knowledge. Separating knowledge and truth would result in some sort of aimless mysticism.

[@greatedges]

All of human history is based on narrative. The religions (gods), science, our endeavors to understand and control, are all based on stories we have created and that make up our historical tapestry. To be "human" (our species) is to create narratives. We seem to be the only species with the brain capacity to do this. It defines our species. As for "truth"...... ?

[@richarddelanet]

"Words are like the ebb and flow of the wind-blown sea..."

[@Stephen937]

I know this is off topic, but what are your thoughts on social media? :) do you not use it? I go back and forth with it, as I find it distracts me & takes time away from me, time I could be reading. Thanks!

[@MatW1lson]

From now, make all your videos with this b&w lighting. And then you can offer special, extended and in-color videos to patrons. So then you can afford the new camera and stuff you want to get. Just an idea! Make German versions and I will become a Patron. 💰 🤝 Record some audio literature in German and I will become a Patron. I listened to Animal Farm in French last year. I read the first few chapters of 1984 in German about 6 months ago.

[@strange.lucidity]

Haha, thanks I appreciate it. There's definitely some plans in this direction happening at the moment 🙂

[@alannothnagle]

Yes, Maria would make an excellent narrator for audiobooks!

[@MatW1lson]

@@alannothnagle Especially German audiobooks and narrations! Keep reminding her when she posts a new video! ;) I already do Audible every month for like 15 years now.

[@sublimeister9630]

Terrence McKenna - Language is Best used to LIE…. & Osho - A Buddha will be Misunderstoood… 🙏🏼😊

[@francescodelorenzo1379]

thank you for making this vedios

[@SwampOnaMountain]

Orwells Werke waren immer gut darin, gewisse Symptome einer kranken Gesellschaft zu kritisieren. Bin persönlich nicht der Ansicht, dass er eine großartige Anslyse zur generellen Politpsychologie gewährt. Hatte aber auch nie den Gedanken, dass er das versucht hatte. Wenn du da mal was lesen willst, "Der Begriff des Politischen" und "Die Psychologie der Massen" sind sehr zu empfehlen. Manchmal recht trocken geschrieben, manchmal düster was die Implikationen angeht, dennoch lesenswert.

[@richarddelanet]

By way of challenging thought or throwing out a contrary view... I feel like a bit of a sceptic with respect to literature. The problem that I have identified with literature - sooner or later - is the tendency towards documenting life, without any subsequent thought; that is literary value.

[@MatW1lson]

1st! 🏆 🎉 🥇

[@doberman_hund]

I don’t see the point of justifying literature like this. Anyone who disregards literature is simply someone who has not read much. “Why read literature?” “Read a few books and find out”

[@paulcouillard4993]

Trump does equal fascism & ignorance. Trump is known to be a non-reader. Great video !

[@mullerss1]

Read some St. Thomas de Aquino, then you'll see about the religion opinion of yours.

[@germanfranco4863]

This is from Harold Pinter (1930-2008): "There are no hard distinctions between what is real and what is unreal, nor between what is true and what is false. A thing is not necessarily either true or false; it can be both true and false." He wrote these words in 1958. Later on (much later on, I guess), he wrote the following: "I believe that these assertions still make sense and do still apply to the exploration of reality through art. So as a writer I stand by them but as a citizen I cannot. As a citizen I must ask: What is true? What is false?" Contrast this with the following from a British KZbinr (I'm omitting the link on purpose): "When I was at school Animal Farm and 1984 had been mandatory parts of the curriculum in the UK to teach the dangers of socialist ideology and make us afraid to pursue change (...) imagination and creativity were also stamped out of [children] from a very early age [by the educational system] making it difficult to have the imaginative muscles necessary to (...) create a better world." Please don't get me wrong; I agree with what you say (mostly). I admire your courage in sharing your thoughts, they come from the heart. I don't believe that works of literature set out to change anything or anyone. Then again, we all say, "that book, those words changed something in me, did something to me". What I am trying to say is that reading is anything but an innocent activity.

[@richarddelanet]

I think Emerson is wrong with respect to your quote. Gosh an opinion! seat belts optional? There is literature, yes, but there is a profound depth of wisdom in history, and I mean proper academic history.

[@user-iq1lv7qp9s]

I don't think that Biden is much better than Trump. For me the main reason of all most worst world problems is in authority in general.

[@cerdic6586]

You lost me at 'fascism = Trump'

[@jeffwest2037]

Perhaps, you should read the book, mentioned at the beginning of this video: Animal Farm.

[@cerdic6586]

@@jeffwest2037 I have read it many times

[@greatedges]

@@cerdic6586 Fascism is a movement with little to no ideological insights or fundamentals. It is always based on lies and self-enrichment for its leaders through raw power. This sounds very much like the MAGA movement and Trump himself. People who are very unhappy, and who feel powerless (for whatever reason) can easily be bowled over by the entertainment of a charismatic, albeit vapid, showman.

[@jackintheworld6639]

You're obviously a man with a rich mind or you wouldn't be watching a late night literary video. Yet something as silly as a throwaway political line stops you cold. What in the world...?

[@KyleMaxwell]

Consider learning what that word means and thinking about why someone might use it in this situation.