Tyler Cowen is unquestionably a very smart guy. The video below shows him talking about stories at a TED talk. He makes some very good points in the video but they aren't about stories. In fact, I'd argue that he doesn't have a very good grasp on what stories are at all.
That's the uncharitable way of putting it. A more charitable way would be to say that this video shows a kind of mistake that is perennially attractive to very smart people.
You are certainly an energetic blogger, Jules. I've listened to Tyler Cowan's speech here and found it amazingly empty headed. Perhaps he should stick to economics. Right at the end he touches on literature rather than stories. The point of literature is to show us how a character faced life, to make a point that can be helpful to us in our own lives. It may or may not resonate with us individually, most likely because it appears true to us or not based on our own observations and experiences. Of course, there are lesser works meant simply for entertainment.
ReplyDeleteCowan makes a point about advertising that has been made so many times over that it is trite. People may not respond to common sense in a car purchase...but I suspect most do respond to economic sense. People who grow up live in a real world where they must deal with daily challenges that are similar, but at the same time unique. Cowan seems to believe we all exist with a rote mentality. Or maybe he believes this is true only of the great unwashed, although I think he knows few of them.
From what few posts of yours I've glanced at (time is limited), you seem to believe that stories can guide us through life. I think bits and pieces of some might...and I think the work of Jane Austen presents a unified, strong world view that could be a definite guide to navigating the quicksand immorality of our times. But this is a guide only. The individual circumstances will differ. Ultimately a person makes and deals with her own choices.
Thanks for the kind words.
ReplyDeleteI write for a living and cranking out a few thousand words a day is something I have been doing for 25 years now. With the blog I am trying to write on series of themes that interest me. Thank you for taking the time to read it.
I mostly agree with you, by the way, although I am certain Cowen could put up a pretty good fight for his side if he had to. The TED talks—despite the "stories" attendees like to tell themselves—never do more than brush the surface of an issue.