ENC2135

Amanda May

FICTION AS A GATEWAY
Alexandria Rogers

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There are times when friends or sibling read a book about heroic tales and then seem to
transform into a braver, more confident person. Maybe a particular friend likes to switch between
mystery novels and romance novels and it is easy to tell exactly which one they are reading by
the way the way they greet someone. This is not because they happen to mimic the feelings and
lessons from the books they read, such as a sibling suddenly becoming courageous after reading
Harry Potter, or a friend greeting someone with a morose hello while reading Stephen King.
Rather, it is because their personality has actually been affected by these books and the subjects
within them, and if you have been reading I bet yours has too. Psychologists, over the years,
have been researching how fiction and the different genres within fiction can affect the
personality of the reader, as Mac Barnett says, A Good Book is a Secret Door. A door that,
once stepped through, allows a person to learn about and change themselves both consciously
and subconsciously by relating to characters and their plights, by seeing themselves as a partner
in the characters adventure. This is due to a number of factors, but it all comes down to who a
person is, and who they want to be.
Fiction is a way to escape the current reality- or a lot of people view it that way. There are
people who talk about reading as a way to avoid social interaction because they believe
themselves- or those who read a lot, more often the case- to be awkward and anxious when in
social situations. In actuality, however, it turns out that reading narratives- especially fictitious
ones- actually stimulates interpersonal sensitivity (Fong et al., 2013) and a persons capability to
empathize (Appel & Mara, 2013). The genre someone reads will not only affect their ability to
empathize, but may also have an impact, or at least a correlation to their personality traits (Fong,
2013). These are called the big five and are extraversion, conscientiousness, openness,
emotional stability, and agreeableness (Fong et al., 2013). There was a strong influence on

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interpersonal sensitivity by the genres Romance, Suspense/Thriller, and Domestic Fiction.

Exposure to Fiction, Nonfiction, and Domestic Fiction correlated largely with the trait of
Openness. Exposure to Fiction, Nonfiction, Domestic Fiction, Science Fiction/Fantasy, and
Suspense/Thriller correlated largely with the trait of Introversion. All other correlations made
were not strong enough to be certain, but there were others as well (Fong et al., 2013). The
trustworthiness of the characters in a novel can also change a persons reaction to the novel. If a
character engaging in an issue- such as climate change- is presented as trustworthy any reader is
more likely to want to take action or to change their feelings toward the issue than if the
character is presented as a liar or untrustworthy (Appel & Mara, 2013). This is because, while
reading, the reader treats information from characters like they would treat information from a
real person they meet on the street (Djikic & Oakley, 2014). If someone knows someone else is a
liar, they will be unlikely to pay attention to what the liar is talking about, even less so to actually
take action on it. This is the same for fictional characters. So all those people who think that
people who read are antisocial people who cant hold a conversation, they are entirely wrong.
Reading makes the reader a better people person, not a worse one.
Beyond just increasing the ability to interact with other people, reading can actually make
the reader better, it strengthens a persons brain, how fast they are able to think, and their
problem solving skills (Bergland, 2014). This overall development is partially due to an increase
in things like empathy and growing as a person, any change in your brain will constitute as
growing, but reading can actually improve how you think, not only objectively. When a person
reads they are exposed to new experiences without having to live through them, their ability to
read and their understanding of the language increases, as does the speed in which they read and
process this information (Bergland, 2014). This is why so much stress is placed on reading and

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literacy within primary schools, and is a large cause for the increasing literary requirements for
secondary and post-secondary educations as well (Reading and Writing Project, 2014). The
change is palpable, it can be monitored and collected as quantitative data. Reading fiction allows
for a persons Theory-of-Mind to increase, as well as their abilities to analyze situations and
come a solution (Oatley, 2012). Due to the simulation aspect of fiction people learn how to think
ahead and analyze situations. This allows for better situational experience in real life, as people
grow and learn they continually add new situations to their theoretical databanks. So when a
similar situation comes up in real life they can relate the experiences and act on them in a
rational and calm manner, no matter how crazy it may be. This is not the only tool that fiction
provides, as with in the case of 826LA. This storefront is a seemingly ridiculous shop that serves
only as a formality in order to keep the space within a commercial district for a writing workshop
center meant for students. The storefront had an unexpected effect on the students ability to
learn and interact with the information. This is because they had to walk through the space- one
of fantastic whimsy- and through that process opened their minds and dropped their expectation
of what should be reality, becoming more willing to learn new truths (Mac Barnett, 2014). Due
to this suspension of disbelieve that fiction requires a student is able to learn without being
bound by established rules and convention, raising critical thinking skills and creating well
rounded learners, whether they are learning from books, or from a writing center.
What a person reads not only shapes them and helps them grow, but can say a lot about
who they are and a lot of the culture they are in (Shafak, 2010). In some places, it is of serious
concern what children are allowed to read. The list of Banned Books exists at several levels, in
the 2014-2015 school year in the book Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami, was contested
and pulled but not banned from Rickards High Schools International Baccalaureate students

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reading list in Leon county- a county that encompasses fifty schools and five- six at the timeuniversity campuses (Leon County Schools, 2016). The particular program it was removed from
is meant to provide advance and well-rounded teaching to students. The book was contested by
parents and pulled from the reading list because in displayed sexual acts, some of which were
seen as taboo by the parents. The next year, the 2015-2016 school year, Leon county banned a
book from their educational repertoire for high schoolers. These are students ranging from age
thirteen- sometimes, but rarely younger- to eighteen, some staying until they are removed from
the system at age twenty-two. The book is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by
Mark Haddon, which was removed from Lincoln High Schools summer reading list because it
displayed atheism and profanity (Doyle, 2016). This book, also, was contested by parents rather
than students. The school- all schools in theory, but especially high school- is supposed to be
raising future adults who are supposed to be able to think for themselves, but this school was
overturned in its choice of a summer reading book because of displays of atheism- a school of
thought. It isnt uncommon for places to ban or even burn books displaying religions different
than their own, as well as books of educational systems and killing those educated in them. For
instance, the invasion of Alexandria and the burning of the library there, or the countless Nazi
book burnings- for which the wonderful book The Book Thief is a great way to understand these
concepts without doing tiring and enraging research. Many books are also banned for displaying
sexual content (Doyle, 2016). This raises issues of its own when raising young people. Along the
topic of these genres affecting the readers personality and how, parents and schools that contest
these books may be thinking that these books encourage teens to become sex crazed. In actuality
the teenagers are more likely to absorb information about how to deal with a grown up
relationship, sexual intimidation, and other topics revolving around sexuality. After all- when

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reading- the changes are not necessarily changes that make the reader more like the character
(Hsu, 2012), but rather the reader makes choices and changes in ways completely unique to
themselves (Djikic, 2011). For instance, there was a study done on fans of Harry Potter on the
personality traits of people who associate themselves with particular Hogwarts houses, and while
they expected everyone to exhibit certain traits based on the house they were placed in by the
official Harry Potter Website, PotterMore,
Need for cognition and placement in Ravenclaw (known for wit and learning), and
between the Dark Triad traits and placement in Slytherin (known for using any means to
achieve their ends). We expectedbut did not findthat those in Gryffindor (known for
bravery) would be higher in extraversion and openness, and that Hufflepuffs (known for
loyalty) would be higher on need to belong. (Crysel et al., 2015)
Not all expected results were found. Some people identified as these houses because of the traits
outwardly exhibited within the book, while others chose to see traits that were not as loudly
pronounced, taking away the lessons they wanted. So banned books can- for people who arent
particularly gullible or rooted to their beliefs- and should be returned to the freedom of the
readers, unless parents have no faith in their almost-grown children.
With all this information laid out, there is still a large chunk of it missing. This
information is the how. While it is a debated topic as to whether this research is true to its word
and as monumental as most people seem to think, Mirror Neurons are generally the accepted
explanation. These are the little things that allow someone to learn without having to actually do
something for themselves. They are why a child or adult can watch someone touch a hot burner,
hear them yell and hold their now blistering hand and know, without a shadow of a doubt, that
they should not touch the hot burner because it burns. Science has found that these little guys

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allow for a person to, in essence, mirror others, allowing them to learn complex actions
without having to do them for themselves (Clay & Iacoboni, 2011). Its like someone who has
never used a sewing machine in their lives knowing how to sew and being able to use one
because they saw it on a YouTube video. Just like they can watch a person do something online
and learn something, like how to change breaks on a car, they can read about the actions of
fictional character and learn something (Clay & Iacoboni, 2011), like how to kill your uncle for
killing your father and marrying your mother (Shakespeares Hamlet). These little guys buried in
a special place in our brains have allowed for the human race to advance at somewhat ridiculous
levels and continue to allow for us to learn from others experiences, even those who are
fictional. This helps facilitate empathy, interpersonal relationships, and over all understanding of
the world (Clay & Iacoboni, 2011) without having to go out and interact with people who pose a
danger to our mental health. This may sound familiar, and that is because these traits that mirror
neurons facilitate are the same ones that are gained by reading fiction.
Readers feel what the characters feel, they are genuinely scared when one is on the brink
of death and genuinely overjoyed when one finds love. They even categorize themselves into the
books, take Harry Potter for instance. It has already been discussed how people sort themselvesor get a website to sort them- and so these psychologists tested the personalities of their
participants and checked to see if any of them correlated, and some of them did (Crysel, 2009)! It
is like a student choosing a college because they like both the Alma matter and because they
know a few people who go there and like them as people, relate to them, even though there are
people who dislike the school for reasons that are publicized more often, like sports teams or
crime rate. Thats how reading with mirror neurons works, a person relates to characters and
situations and they then make a connection. With mirror neurons a persons brain mimics what

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they read, allowing for them to experience the situations and for them to be categorized in the
same way as actions completed by the person themselves. Mirror neurons, as currently known,
are a subset of neurons found within those responsible for motor movement and coordination.
This was found when psychologists were monitoring the movement of monkeys and viewed the
area of the brain that lit up when they performed an action, and observed that a subset of these lit
up when they observed someone else did the same action (Clay & Iacoboni, 2011). There has
been a lot of research done on these neurons in the hopes that they are the future of neurology,
and in turn in the hopes that they could be the future of fiction and other media, take Virtual
Reality for example. For now, however, they help explain why people love and are actually better
for the love of reading fiction.
A Fiction book opens doors to the mind in unexpected ways, ones that help people
empathize, that simulate real world experiences, ones that allow for people to question what they
are taught to be true, and ones that open literal passageways through the mind to tie in cutting
edge science and fictional worlds. That doesnt mean that all people understand the importance
of reading, nor that research is done. A certain mindset should be kept while choosing a book to
read, the reader should keep in mind which books they enjoy reading- genre, writing style,
authors- but they should also keep in mind the changes that they want to take place within
themselves and use that information to help them choose the books they read. They are not
devices by which another person alters who they are, or for which a person is taught things they
shouldnt be taught, but is instead a device for someone to change themselves for the better and
to learn things that they want to learn. Books are a wonderful experience that are more than just a
secret door, they are a passage to a deeper understanding in both yourself and others.
[2496 words]

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Hypertext Bibliography
16personalities. (2016). Retrieved 11/7, 2016, from https://www.16personalities.com
Mirror neurons interactive exercise. Achor, S. (Director). (2016, March 29, 2016).[Video/DVD]
TedTalk.
Why a good book is a secret door. Barnett, M. (Director). (2014).[Video/DVD] Ted.com:
TedxSonomaCounty. Retrieved from
https://www.ted.com/talks/mac_barnett_why_a_good_book_is_a_secret_door
cosmiccontinuum (Producer), & . (2013, April 7). Neurons and what they do ~ an animated
guide. [Video/DVD] Youtube.
15 book morals in 3 minutes. Sabrina Cruz (Director). (2013, August 3, 2013).[Video/DVD]
YouTube: NerdyandQuirky.
Young adult adventure. Sabrina Cruz (Director). (2014, April 13, 2014).[Video/DVD] Youtube:
NerdyandQuirky.
The Time Travel Mart. (2011). The echo park time travel mart
The Time Travel Mart. (2014). 826LA tutoring
Wikipedia. (2016). List of book-burning incidents. Retrieved November 7, 2016, from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_book-burning_incidents

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Wikipedia. (2016). List of most commonly challenged books in the united states. Retrieved
November 7, 2016, from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_commonly_challenged_books_in_the_United_States

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References
Appel, M., & Mara, M. (10). The persuasive influence of a fictional character's trustworthiness.
Journal of Communication, 63(5), 912; 912-931; 931.
Why a good book is a secret door. Barnett, M. (Director). (2014).[Video/DVD] Ted.com:
TedxSonomaCounty. Retrieved from
https://www.ted.com/talks/mac_barnett_why_a_good_book_is_a_secret_door
Bergland, C. (2014). Reading fiction improves brain connectivity and function. Retrieved
10/11, 2016, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-athletesway/201401/reading-fiction-improves-brain-connectivity-and-function
The danger of a single story. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichi (Director). (2009).[Video/DVD]
Clay, Z., & Iacoboni, M. (2011). Mirroring fictional others. Retrieved 10/22, 2016, from
http://www.emory.edu/LIVING_LINKS/publications/articles/Clay_Iacoboni_2011.pdf
Crysel, L. C., Cook, C. L., Schember, T. O., & Webster, G. D. (09). Harry potter and the
measures of personality: Extraverted gryffindors, agreeable hufflepuffs, clever ravenclaws,
and manipulative slytherins. Personality and Individual Differences, 83, 174; 174-179; 179.
Djikic, M., & Oatley, K. (11). The art in fiction: From indirect communication to changes of the
self. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 8(4), 498; 498-505; 505.
Doyle, R. P. (2016). Books challenged or banned in 2015-2016. Retrieved November 7, 2016,
from https://www.ila.org/initiatives/banned-books-week/books-challenged-or-banned-in2015-2016

R o g e r s : F i c t i o n a s A G a t e w a y | 11

Fong, K., Mullin, J. B., & Mar, R. A. (2013). What you read matters: The role of fiction genre in
predicting interpersonal sensitivity. Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts, 7(4),
370-376.
Hsu, C. (2012). Psychologists discover how people subconsciously become their favorite
fictional characters. Retrieved 10/11, 2016, from
http://www.medicaldaily.com/psychologists-discover-how-people-subconsciously-becometheir-favorite-fictional-characters-240435
Leon County Schools. (2016). School directory. Retrieved November 7, 2016, from
http://www.leonschools.net/domain/30
Oatley, K. (07). The cognitive science of fiction. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews.Cognitive
Science, 3(4), 425; 425-430; 430.
The politics of fiction. Shafak, E. (Director). (2010).[Video/DVD]

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Rhetorical Rational
Among the hyperlinks are two videos explaining options for books that you can read,
which were chosen because of their connections with the Essays topic- that is, Fiction and
genre. The videos run through several books and their morals, talking about different ways to
view each book and giving the persons personal opinion on them. This particular Youtuber
focuses a lot on fictional topics and often also brings up historical topics in other videos, but
these particular videos were chosen for their topics and the time space between them showing
that the youtuber was still reading and interacting in fictional worlds four years later. There is
also a link to Mac Barnetts TedTalk and two pictures of the storefront he talks about because it is
a wonderful reference about how fiction is viewed by all, though he talks especially about how
children view it. A large part of the Essays topic stemmed from this TedTalk, so it was an
important thing to keep within the essay. Three more links were the list of burned books, a link
of banned books, and a link of Leon Countys list of schools. This was more so if the reader got
curious that they could look at quick links and do a little research of their own. They helped
support the points I was making at the time by showing the extent to which the two events
occurred, and the extent of the countys reach. There is also a link to a video about the way
mirror neurons work, they are newer in the field of neurology, and I should have added more
hyperlinks about their history, how they work, what they look like, and so on for the same
reasons I have the list of banned books and book burnings, but because of their indirect relation
to books I did not. I should have, but I didnt. The last hyperlink is the sixteen personalities quiz,
that stuck around after the title was changed because the main purpose of the essay was how
reading fiction affected your personality, and this particular test is a popular one due to its
diversity and break down of traits based on a list of fifty varied questions. All of the hyperlinks

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were found through the wonderful search power of Google, and worked well with the topics at
hand, and so were kept through each edit of the paper.
[400]

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Research Paper Rubric (

Thesis Statement
0

The thesis statement names the topic of

the essay and outlines the main points to
be discussed.

The thesis statement does not name the

topic AND does not preview what will
be discussed.
Evidence and Examples
0

Evidence and examples are NOT

relevant AND/OR are not explained.

Writing Conventions
-

The essay has at least ten total, eight of

which are academic, scholarly, and/or peerreviewed sources, two of which are nonscholarly, and follows MLA 8 or APA 6 intext and on the works cited page and
hypertext bibliography.

The essay does not meet any of the source

requirements, does not follow current
standard conventions required for the
academic essay genres, or have a works cited
page/hypertext bibliography.

All of the evidence and examples are

specific, relevant, and explanations are
given that show how each piece of
evidence supports the author's position.

Sources and Formatting

0

Meets or exceeds (to a reasonable extent)

minimum word count and adheres to
editorial correctness, including logical
organization. Effectively communicates
message to intended audience.

Research essay does not meet minimum

word count OR contains numerous
grammatical errors that distract from the
meaning.
Closing Paragraph
0

There is no conclusion - the paper just

ends.

The conclusion is strong and leaves the reader

solidly understanding the writer's position.
Effective restatement of the position statement
begins the closing paragraph, and conclusion
indicates why research is important.

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Rhetorical Rationale
0

Meets or exceeds (to a reasonable extent)

minimum word count while adhering to
editorial correctness. Thoroughly explains
choices in terms of what, where, and why
hypertexts were used.

Does not meet minimum word count and

does not adequately justify the usage of
hypertexts.

Annotated Bibliography (Current Score)

0

Additional Comments:

12

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