I can't get even quite intelligent people to admit to really basic flaws in their mutual interactions. Given, I may just be terrible at it,-
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-but it seems to crop up with any people who are somewhat in touch with reality, that getting people out of storytelling is nigh-impossible.
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i'm interested to hear more about this - what do you mean by "getting people out of storytelling", and why is doing so desirable?
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@ParadoxNow_ talks about how storytelling can be a means for transformative growth, and how stories usually have some hidden truth.
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supports and underpins this view with his own experience & example.
I think I agree with both of those things, as stated.
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What I'm struggling with here, is that it seems especially hard not just to get people to abandon stories (bad, for reasons I'll touch on),-
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- but that getting any traction at all in changing the thrust of those stories is nigh-impossible, even with empathy & opportunity.
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Storytelling is inextricably linked with survival. Without a story to tell, people die. No meaning -> no reason to live.
No conflict there.
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So we need stories and I'm not saying we should get rid of those, just so we're clear. I don't think that's desirable.
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We use stories to get around the world, define ourselves against others, try to understand ourselves and countless more things, obviously.
The problem is some of these stories are poisonous, to ourselves, others or both.
E.g. "I'm all that matters," the story of a sociopath.
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Let's return to heuristics. Stories are heuristical. They teach general truths at the cost of precision when applied to individual cases.
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