When memories from fiction become part of who you are | Psyche Ideas

the themes that people consider most important in their lives align with the fictional stories that they say most resonate with them, and the stories they choose to engage with also frequently mirror their identity.

Some people easily engage with stories, while others find them meaningless. A lot of it seems to come down to empathy. People with a greater predisposition to experience the emotions of others also tend to engage with their mental representations (of stories) as if they are part of reality, increasing immersion. Empathy can be thought of as extending the field of self to capture non-self-referenced information as if it is self-related. In turn, information organised around the concept of self is more durable than non-self-referential information. That’s why forming empathetic connections with story characters deepens immersion and creates richer memories with higher emotionality than for those who don’t.within the hierarchy of memories, there exist rare fictional narratives that transcend their boundaries and offer a semblance of autobiographical significance. When we recall these stories, they serve not merely as fiction but as places where we feel truly at home. It is a home that can sometimes feel more real than the material existence from which we are seeking to escape.— Read on psyche.co/ideas/when-memories-from-fiction-become-part-of-who-you-are