How Literature Has Shaped Me (In response to "C.S. Lewis on Why We Read")

When asked in a college interview the other day what my favorite thing is (the interviewer clarified she kept it vague on purpose), I responded with “I guess my favorite thing is also my least favorite. You know that feeling when you are about to finish a really great book, and it is amazing because you have gone on this great journey and it is all about to come together, but it is also sad because it usually means saying goodbye to characters that you have connected with and our now in an odd way a type of friend? Yeah, that’s my favorite thing.” I am sure she thought I was a little crazy as a I rambled on, but she laughed and admitted that while the feeling was new to her, she did understand. I have always loved to read and I think books are something I have taken for granted in my life. While I found stories to be a way for me to escape, throwing myself into places like the halls of Hogwarts and Margaret Mitchell’s antebellum South, I never really stopped to consider how books have shaped who I am today. Literature has given me access to not only a thousand different worlds, but also a thousand different perspectives. C.S. Lewis said, “… in reading literature I become a thousand men and yet remain myself.” Reading has provided me with a way to discover myself in different contexts. It has helped me to understand my own privilege as I look through the life lenses of those who are oppressed. Facts and figures are one form of understanding, but by being able to put a person to those statistics, as literature does, readers are able to feel the emotions of an identity they may never hold. Writers walk the fine line of creating characters that are relatable, while also not having them hold all the same backgrounds. The avoidance of the “single story,” as Chimamanda Adichie puts it, is critical, but readers also must be able to engage with the characters and find common ground. In a way, they must be able to put themselves in the shoes of the character. It is in this way that the ability to empathize with those who are different than ourselves is developed, and that is the first step to equality. Reading has pushed me to better myself, not only academically but also personally. Through reading the works of a diverse group of authors, I continue to strive to broaden my view of our world and society one page at a time.