Life Through A Literary Lens

So, I previously have said that for us to see something as literature, there needs to be layers. There is a connection between related ideas or experiences or items. What one character thinks about pets and what another character thinks about pets are conflicting thoughts, beliefs, philosophies, and those same deeper principles reveal themselves in different ways.

From here, you have the beginning of a literary lens: a way to view stories so that you can see and explore the deeper layers.

Once you have that literary lens and you've developed it a bit, start looking around yourself. In real life, the same kinds of things happen. Different people hold different beliefs and philosophies, which affect what they think, say, and do. Where are the common themes for you to explore?

Do your friends or family have pets? Why do they have them? Companionship? Protection? Entertainment? To feel like a parent without the full responsibility of raising a child?

How does a person's view of the role or purpose of a pet affect what pets they have and how they are treated? Does it affect other parts of their lives, like how they treat friends or coworkers? In what areas of their lives is this belief not kept, and why is that?

The literary lens can be used for any subject, like smoking or fashion or love. Just because we do it for characters in stories does not mean it cannot also be used for life. (It's just usually not as clean and purposeful).

The beauty of the literary lens is that it can not only allow us to understand other people better, but it allows us to understand ourselves. How do we feel about any of those subjects? How are we affected by our beliefs? Where else does it come up in our lives. We can understand ourselves by studying those around us.

All you have to do is point that literary lens at life, and at yourself.