Story is a powerful tool. I can't quote much of what Plato, Aristotle, or Caesar said, but I could recount fables by Aesop all day. The words of the prophets get a little muddled up in my mind, but Jesus' parables are there to stay.
Great stories can change the world. Here are a few that have done just that:
Uncle Tom's Cabin put a face on the cruelty of slavery. It did what years of debate and analysis could not do and ushered in the Civil War.
To Kill A Mockingbird, likewise, exposed the voicelessness of the downtrodden and became a story the civil rights movement could rally around.
The Good Samaritan tells, better than any theological textbook, what it means to be a Christian, a neighbor, a lover of mankind.
On a smaller scale, there are the books that shaped me personally-- stories like Tisha, Deadline, The Trouble With Jenny's Ears (seriously), The Great Divorce, and Anne of Green Gables. Little pieces of these stories lodged in my soul and found a place to grow there.
Some might add 1984, Animal Farm, or the Lord of the Rings Trilogy though many of these classics gave more commentary on the situation of the day rather than seeking to change it.
IYHO (In your humble opinion), what stories have changed the world? Did they change the world at large or just your own corner of it?
1 comment:
"101 Things to do with a Dead Cat" really changed my life. The pictures are especially insightful.
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