Can classic lit make you more ethical?
That’s among the questions raised in a study by psychologists and English professors (full study here—PDF alert). One more reason to rejoice over the spread of free public domain archives on the Net?
At least some Victorian novels were intended to encourage moral behavior, the researchers say. But did the intended result actually happen? To extrapolate, did Dickens‘ fiction really contribute to the end of sweatshops by making people more ethical?
It’s an issue of personal interest to me. I wrote The Solomon Scandals to tell a story, not elevate morality in D.C. I doubt it’ll reform the place, though this would be a nice byproduct.
Note: I’m going just by the summary. Right now I can’t access the PDF of the complete study.
February 4th, 2009 at 1:44 pm
Well sure. What else are the Bible, Greek and Norse myths, fairy tales, etc. but ways to teach a lesson/make a point/pass on values in entertaining and memorable ways? More recently, what about Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle, which helped lead to reforms in meatpacking plants? I doubt it’s as simple as “read a classic novel – become more ethical” but surely reading has some effect on one’s ethical development.
February 4th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
Reading affects your thinking, so it can certainly affect your ethics. Even stories that do not make any attempt to change your world view, can do so. Literature, magazines, movies, television etc can all affect your ethics, for better or for worse.
February 5th, 2009 at 9:03 am
All true enough. But before anyone decides that the classics will make you a more ethical person, it wouldn’t hurt to check out Peter Thorpe’s book Why Literature Is Bad for You.
Bests to all,
–tr