I think the effect of fiction on people's dreams and motivations is a fascinating blind-spot for many (and I'm also guilty of that blind-spot). I know for a fact that I've been deeply inspired by fiction, and that fiction has probably formed many of my desires. What romantic ideals I have. What type of man I want to be. What I see as moral. When I was trying to get disciplined in my late teens I always internally referred to "burning my house down", which was a reference to how Ed and Al in Fullmetal Alchemist made sure they could never return to their safe haven - in order to cement their quest.
Yet when I imagine others I often think they're driven my much more rational motives, for some reason. When it comes to propaganda it's easy to imagine others to be susceptible (see Third Person Effect), but when it comes to a being moved by fiction, for me it's the reverse. It's common to imagine others less complexly than yourself. But also, it can feel weird to think that people just want to emulate the fiction they see. I was amazed to hear anecdotes form the book "If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution" that slogans and ideas from Hollywood movies were a prominent feature in mass protests all over the world in the 2010s, from Ukraine to Hong Kong to South America people were referencing The Hunger Games and Lord of The Rings. Fiction is powerful.
I think the effect of fiction on people's dreams and motivations is a fascinating blind-spot for many (and I'm also guilty of that blind-spot). I know for a fact that I've been deeply inspired by fiction, and that fiction has probably formed many of my desires. What romantic ideals I have. What type of man I want to be. What I see as moral. When I was trying to get disciplined in my late teens I always internally referred to "burning my house down", which was a reference to how Ed and Al in Fullmetal Alchemist made sure they could never return to their safe haven - in order to cement their quest.
Yet when I imagine others I often think they're driven my much more rational motives, for some reason. When it comes to propaganda it's easy to imagine others to be susceptible (see Third Person Effect), but when it comes to a being moved by fiction, for me it's the reverse. It's common to imagine others less complexly than yourself. But also, it can feel weird to think that people just want to emulate the fiction they see. I was amazed to hear anecdotes form the book "If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution" that slogans and ideas from Hollywood movies were a prominent feature in mass protests all over the world in the 2010s, from Ukraine to Hong Kong to South America people were referencing The Hunger Games and Lord of The Rings. Fiction is powerful.