Welcome to Open Book Blog Hop. You can find us every Monday talking about the writing life. I hope you'll check out all the posts: you'll find the links at the bottom of this post.
Does every book have to have a moral?
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The short answer: no.
Really, "every" and "have to" aren't words I like to see paired with works of art. Art is about self-expression, and sometimes the creator might have a point to make or an axe to grind, but sometimes they might just have a cool idea they want to explore.
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If we want to expand the idea of "moral" from life lesson to something more like having a point or a purpose, I can see that more easily, but I can still think of works I've read that I can't identify any grand purpose for.
"To entertain" probably isn't a moral. But it's the purpose of many books.
Sometimes having an obvious moral actually makes the book heavy-handed and pedantic and then I don't want to read it.
I do like seeing writers take on meatier topics and exploring moral questions…but I'm a big girl now, and don't need anyone to try and tell me what to think.
How about you? Do you like a moral message in the stories you create or enjoy?
On my part, what ever I write is purely meant as entertainment. How you see it (as a reader) was probably not how I did (as an author).
ReplyDeleteLOVE the line - Really, "every" and "have to" aren't words I like to see paired with works of art. That's the truth.
ReplyDeleteI tried to tweet but Twitter won't let me in.
Thanks for the attempt. Twitter is even weirder than usual here of late.
DeleteThere's no reason not to write a book for entertainment only.
ReplyDeleteIf a writer just focus on writing a good story the morals or themes will fit into place naturally.
ReplyDeleteI like to write books that make people think. A moral is there, but readers have to look for it if they've a mind to.
ReplyDeleteSimilar, here. I'd be happy if something if my books left a reader thinking, but I'm not about to hit them over the head with it.
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