Are you a sucker for fiction novels? Don’t you love how easily they have the power to transport you to a magical place, far away from life worries? Fiction novels are a great way to chase away a bad mood or give your imagination meaning. They can act as your free therapist or drug to help you cope with heartbreaks, bad days, and moments of doubt or loneliness.
Even though reading fiction novels can be a quick fix for your gloomy days, certain studies have reported it dangerous.
Wait! Hold on! Dangerous? Are you saying reading can cause harm how?
Have you heard of the saying, “Excess of everything is bad?” this applies here as well. Whether you accept this or now, numerous research has proven that too much reading can be bad for your social, psychological, and intellectual health. Let’s explore this notion in detail.
Fiction Makes Your Mind Flaccid
Contrary to a previous belief, where people used to read for fun without taking the moral of a book with them, it’s not being practiced nowadays. Fiction tends to deteriorate the brain’s thought process, causing people to become double-minded whenever a new concept is introduced.
Moreover, novel critics never brought the real issues out into the limelight since it was considered more activity than a need. When book reading gained momentum back in the day, the high society-based books became hit reads due to a celebrity tell-all. These pseudo characters enticed curiosity among readers to figure out the main characters, which led to a decrease in deductive reasoning. Thus, to some extent, reading too much fiction inhibits a person’s ability to think with logic.
Fiction Stories Create a Gap Between You And Reality
People remain not satisfied with their life most of the time. This is why they turn to books. Readers enjoy thinking of characters and plot twists even after closing the book. People love to stay in the fantasy world to escape the troubles existing in their current life. But the real threat was that readers would hold these fanciful ideas in their heads and stop being grateful for what they have. They start wishing for a life that’s more adventurous, romantic, thrilling, and fun.
They would be more susceptible to daydreams, which “destroy the mental balance” or, worse, forget the duty towards the church, the family, and the work, and run away, willy-nilly, in search of self-exploration. It is no way to go about life. One should have their priorities set straight for things they wish to achieve in life. Most of the time, anyone who lives in their fantasy world will be getting cut off from the world.
Novel Stoke The Emotions
Romance novels were the main culprits here, as religious leaders and educators felt these “domestic” novels irritated the reader too much. Young men and women can identify so strongly with the characters that they become obsessed with the promise of love and seek better relationships rather than learning to settle for the available person. The thought that people wanted passion and excitement was scary. If people started doing what they wanted, the critics reasoned, chaos would reign, and communities would crumble. If that was true and they had Danielle Steel or Johanna Lindsey, the world would probably have exploded.
Wrap Up
These side effects may seem ridiculous to you, but trust me, they exist. If you are someone who reads a ton of fiction books in a week, I suggest you tone it down a little.
