Fiction

I'm aware that I've spoken about fiction before, but in that entry, I was referring to the genre of literature. In this entry I'll be going over another type of fiction. The type I'm referring to is one that is ever present in the world around us, yet we rarely pay it any mind. The type of fiction I'm referring to makes up so much of what we know, and it is so ingrained in our very humanity, yet it is a concept that we have come to accept as just another aspect of the world, without a second thought. The fiction I'm referring to, is the very concept of fiction itself.

Yes abstract concepts. Things such as "laws", " society", "corporations", "religion" "governments". These words undoubtedly make sense to anyone who just read them, they understand what they mean, and they make sense. However what seems to have been haunting my mind relentlessly in recent days, is how all of it is quite simply made up. None of these things have a physical form, they're just concepts that we up and decided existed one day, and when you stop to think about it, that's either remarkable or absurd depending on your feelings towards such institutions.

None of it's real. None of it. None of these things are naturally occurring. Giraffes don't gather in a building and decide what acceptable conduct is, trees don't form an abstract group entity based on a common purpose, Lemurs don't decide that there is some otherworldly deity that they must perform rituals for, or they will face it's wrath. Nothing else in this world of ours makes things up. It's just us.

I've always struggled with whether I believe humans are just animals, or if we are something different, and while humanity's ability to fathom the abstract is certainly a trait that separates us from the rest of creation, I must say I'm not sure what the significance of that actually is. So we can wrap our heads around a notion that isn't part of the already existing world around us. So what? Despite this remarkable trait, we still act like animals. All the time in fact. We basically just pulled half of the notions we accept as part of our reality out of our odd primate brains and now we just accept that as part of what is.

I feel as though I'm talking in circles so perhaps I should delve into an example.

Law. What is law? Why does the notion of breaking it evoke such a stigma? Law as we understand it, is nothing more than a figment of our imagination. However that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It exists because we as a group collectively decided it was. Long long ago, a bunch of people got together and decided that since humanity is getting so large, we need to set down some ground rules, they agreed on what is acceptable, got it in writing, and decided anyone who doesn't agree with the law, should be punished.

Again, made up, all of it, every last bit. But once again, it's still real, because we acknowledge it as real.

Now what am I getting at? Honestly, nothing. I just think it's astounding. I think it's remarkable that so many things in the world I live in, exist simply because people believe they do. The concept of fiction, the ability to fathom the abstract, to will notions into the realm of reality simply out of acknowledging them, is a bizarre, yet singularly remarkable quirk of humanity, and I find it utterly fascinating.