Review: The Science of Storytelling

Review: The Science of Storytelling

The Science of Storytelling
Category:
Author:
Publisher:
Published: 2020
Page Count: 310
The compelling, groundbreaking guide to creative writing that reveals how the brain responds to storytelling How do master storytellers compel us? There have been many attempts to understand what makes a good story, but few have used a scientific approach. In The Science of Storytelling, Will Storr applies dazzling psychological research and cutting-edge neuroscience to our myths and archetypes to show how we can tell better stories, revealing, among other things, how storytellers--and also our…

Did I read a book about storytelling, or did this book read me?

This book was a wonderful surprise of a book, and about so much more than storytelling. It was, in many ways, a book on anthropology, through the lens of storytelling. I feel I learned just as much about myself and what it is to be human as I did about the science of storytelling.

For example, this was a fascinating insight not only into fictional characters, but how we think about people.

“Everyone is flawed in their own interesting and individual ways. Our flaws help define our character. Who we are is how we’re broken.”

I think I tend more towards thinking about interesting aspects of people as their unique personality, perspective, passions, and creative expression. Great literary figures, however, are defined primarily by their flaws: those traits through which they see and engage with the world. The man who lacks patience and is hot-tempered. The woman who lacks confidence and is too much of a people pleaser. But really, this is true also of people in the real world. Sometimes our flaws, whether large or small, moral (a liar) or mundane (a lover of fried chicken), is part of what makes people uniquely interesting. Of course, particularly major or moral flaws can be at least as annoying and frustrating as interesting – this is not an argument for become more flawed!

Of course, I’m not saying that flaws are the only interesting thing about people. Personality, passions, and so on, are very important features that make us each unique. But it was a new insight for me to consider how flaws can form part of how we make sense of people, and sometimes find them rather fascinating.

Who wrote it

Will Storr is a British author and journalist.

Why I read it

Storytelling fascinates me. It has application for my work in crafting a sermon. But I also (now not so) secretly harbour desires to one day write a novel.

I enjoy learning about the craft of stories and storytelling, and it grows my appreciate for the well told stories I read or watch.

What I liked

This was a great read. I wasn’t sure whether it would be a little dry (though the endorsements on the cover suggested not). It was engaging, interesting, enlightening and one of my favourite reads of the year.

What I didn’t

Nothing.

Major Takeaway

This fascinating insight into the power of stories:

“We think in tribal stories. It’s our original sin. Whenever we sense the status of our tribe is threatened by another, these foul networks fire up. In that moment, to the subconscious brain, we’re back in the prehistoric forest or savannah. The storytelling brain enters a state of war. It assigns the opposing group purely selfish motives. It hears their most powerful arguments in a particular mode of spiteful lawyerliness, seeking to misrepresent or discard what they have to say. It uses the most appalling transgressions of their very worst members as a brush to smear them all. It takes its individuals and erases their depth and diversity. It turns them into outlines; morphs their tribe into a herd of silhouettes. It denies those silhouettes the empathy, humanity and patient understanding that it lavishes on its own. And, when it does all this, it makes us feel great, as if we’re the moral hero of an exhilarating story. The brain enters this war state because a psychological tribal threat is a threat to its theory of control – its intricate network of millions of beliefs about how one thing causes another.”

This confronting observation:

“To help us feel in control of the outside world, our brains lull us into believing things that aren’t true. Among the most powerful of these beliefs are the ones that serve to bolster our sense of our moral superiority. Our brains are hero-makers that emit seductive lies. They want to make us feel like the plucky, brave protagonist in the story of our own lives.”

This one was more specific to storytelling, but it has application for all kinds of storytelling, written or spoken.

“The job of the plot is to plot against the protagonist. Its causes and effects always revolve around some sort of story event – an episode that brings the character into a new psychological realm. Once they’re in this hostile and alien place, their flawed theory of control is tested and retested, often to breaking point and beyond.”

Who should read it

Anyone interested in storytelling; anyone who works in a role where communication is important.

3.5Overall Score

The Science of Storytelling

Did I read a book about storytelling, or did this book read me? This book was a wonderful surprise of a book, and about so much more than storytelling. It was, in many ways, a book on ...

  • Difficulty to read
    2.0
    Easy to follow. Fascinating.
  • Overall Rating
    5.0
    Brilliant. Insightful not only about writing, but what it means to be human.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *