So…here we are.
I deliberated for a while what my first post should be (edit: it stretched out to be a long time) It involved thinking of what I’ve been up to, and what’s something I care about. So when I finished Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, I knew I had to talk about reading.
My Reading Origins
I have been a book lover since I can remember. The first series I remember reading is Junie B. Jones in grade school, as well as Judy Moody. This turned into Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, Hunger Games, Divergent, and the beginnings of peak fandom culture at around the age of 14. Every book I read turned into a personality trait, something I embodied and made my own. It’s reached the point that when I look back now, I could probably trace my personality to the media I was consuming at that time. A blessing and a curse really.
To this day, I’m annoyingly fast at reading. Annoyingly because when I recommend a book to someone (a task I take very seriously), I’ll call it a quick read, and before either of us know it, it’s been three months and barely any progress, and everyone ends up frustrated. My book club friends are always in awe at the fact that I can crush the 300 page romance novel in a weekend when they’re finishing the last couple of pages in the hours leading up to the book club meeting. And while I don’t mean to brag, I love the fact that I can get through books quickly, and still remember, comprehend, and be capable of discussing character arcs and tropes after having finished it.
That being said, every so often, there’s a book that will Change My Worldview, and shift my personality yet again. At 14, that happened every other week, but that’s when you’re meant to be trying on different things and figuring out what fits. At 23, the pieces are clicking into place, and I’m deciding if I like that character that I’m becoming and what type of person I want to be at 25, 30, and so on. Then a book will come along and sit my ass down for about a week, and I’ll come out of my stupor rethinking who I want to be.
It’s fantastic, really. You can get a lot out of reading. Personality and paradigm shifts, yes for sure, but also lessons in perspective taking, empathy, and learning what your values can be. It’s something I want to take the time to discuss using themes from Bradbury’s dystopian environment.
Why reading makes you a better person
A “better person” for all intents of this discussion, is a kind, empathetic person. Everything else is extra. I truly believe that’s all humanity needs to be Good: kindness and empathy. So how do books fit into this? How does the printed word influence and hold a mirror to the type of person you are right now?
How many people did you know that refracted your own light to you?
Farenheit 451, Ray Bradbury
This actually happened in Farenheit 451, with Clarisse McClellan. With a name meaning clarity, that is exactly what she gave Montag. Her awareness of the world, as well as her curiosity as to why things happened was the pivot that put Montag on those questions as well. Without Clarisse, without clarity, this book couldn’t have happened. She called out his unhappiness, something he didn’t see or acknowledge before meeting her. People are grateful for having confidantes that know when it’s time to call out certain behaviours or moods or anything to redirect you to where you were originally headed.
That’s what this section of the book did for me, specifically with this quote. Seeing my own light refracted and reflected from someone would make me reflect how I feel receiving that light. And reflecting on your current situtation, especially in times of high uncertainty, is critical to determining the path you want to take from there.
Self-reflection goes hand in hand with admiration in real life, and book characters are no different. You put yourself in the shoes of a character going through a situation you’ll likely never see, and you wonder and question, would you do anything different? If they did do something you couldn’t imagine yourself doing, can you see why others might react the way they do? What is it about that character in that situation that you admire?
In Montag, this moment is when he wakes up, and his curiosity wins out against the role he’s been playing seemingly mindlessly. After wondering why he’s not happy, he is more aware of his home life, his wife, and what his job contributes to the rest of society, and also realizes that maybe he doesn’t have the whole story. Self-reflection leads to self-awareness, and self-awareness is the first step to becoming anything you want to be.
A lesson in Empathy
This book highlights the necessity for critical thinking and having a range of experiences and perspectives. The one-way path that time takes makes it impossible for one person to visit all the places, meet all the people, and see even a fraction of all the things. Again, books come to save the day. Beyond supporting voices of authors from different walks of life, you as a reader cannot avoid the change in perspective set by the narrator. If you are a man reading a book narrated by a woman, you’ll get a tiny glimpse into how the woman thinks. While you can’t generalize this to every woman you know, it doesn’t hurt to have seen that perspective, and maybe see examples of it in your life.
“The things you’re looking for, Montag, are in the world, but the only way the average chap will ever see ninety-nine per cent of them is in a book”
Farenheit 451, Ray Bradbury
There’s also books that describe horrific events that are historical, or that you wouldn’t wish to ever see. The Martian by Andy Weir for example. Crazy situtation that is fun to imagine being in (maybe? interesting at the very least) but odds are we won’t all step foot on Mars. While these events aren’t any you lived through, you still benefit from going through the experience of imagining it and cheering a protagonist on. You absorb the experience the book put you through unknowingly, and it’ll leave an impression on the person you are. Some books will make deeper impressions than others, but just like any experience, they’re all there. Each one with a lesson, an emotion, or knowledge you’ve stored since. Everything adds, and the best way to get a variety of impressions is either blow your budget on never settling ever, or read.
I would say that this is the biggest lesson from reading for me. You never know what people are going through, and you never know how you would react in their shoes. Perspective-taking is crucial when understanding the people around you, and begin to form (or deepen) a relationship with them. Books don’t grant you the instant ability to empathize with people, but it can certainly be eye-opening. Next time you read a book, I invite you to think at the end of it “What is the author is trying to say? How is it relevant to me?” Granted, not all books are always like this, there’s definitely books meant for pure escapism and that’s fine. But I promise you, there’s always a lesson to take away. There’s always something you can find out about yourself if you ask enough questions.
It’s likely I’ll unpack books that stay with me here. Every story has a lesson, a nugget of wisdom to take away. The one for Farenheit 451 is crucial to keep in mind in our digital age: Critical thinking is the reason we’re here today and necessary to our development, as individuals and as a society. I’ll be doing my part by yapping critically about books I enjoy.
I’m also hoping to make my publishing a little more regular. It is indeed the season of change, and that’s what I’m cooking up for this blog. Thanks for reading.
-S
Character Development 
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