What's The Deal With Fiction?

Some of you may remember that I blogged about the positive influence of fiction almost exactly a year ago. The argument was that fictional stories stories shape us for the better and make us more understanding of other people, since the majority of these tales teach us that crime doesn't pay and that the good guys ultimately win.

But the other day I read an article in the New York Times by Gregory Currie that basically says: "Not so fast. Where's the evidence for that?" Of course we like to tell ourselves that it's true, especially if we count ourselves among those that enjoy reading great literature. Yet Currie makes an interesting and important point regarding the correlation of being a good person and reading good fiction:

It's All A Matter Of Interpretation

I love me some Cliff Goldstein every now and then. If the whole 28 minutes is too long for you, at least check out the last few minutes (starting at the 25 minute mark), where he makes his point. But if you're as fascinated by language as I am, you might want to watch the whole thing...



So, what do you think? How can we know if our interpretation is correct?