When you tell a story, you spark a connection.
That is how humans have communicated since the beginning of time —by telling stories.
Stories have been told since even before humans learned to read and write.
Everyday events became stories to tell children, scribes and priests told stories of religious affairs, and leaders told heroic tales of their adventures.
These stories have passed on through generations: some of them fill up history books, some are integral to culture, and some are embedded in family values.
Why Are Stories Important?
Stories are central to human cognition and communication. We engage with others through stories, and storytelling is a lot more than just a recitation of facts and events.
As human beings, we are automatically drawn to stories because we see ourselves reflected in them.
We inevitably interpret the meaning in stories and understand ourselves better.
But we now live in the fast-paced information age, where information, concepts, and ideas continuously bombard us from every direction. Do stories really matter to us anymore?
Here are six reasons why stories have mattered and will continue to be essential to human existence.
Stories are universal
Every culture has stories to tell. These stories form the basis for how we think about the world and live our lives.
Stories preserve culture and pass on cultural knowledge from one generation to another. In essence, stories keep cultures alive.
Stories provide a timeless link to ancient traditions, legends, myths, and archetypes.
But they also connect us to universal truths about ourselves and our world.
Through stories, we share passions, fears, sadness, hardships, and joys, and we find common ground with other people so that we can connect and communicate with them.
Stories are universal, conveying meaning and purpose that help us understand ourselves better and find commonality with others.
Stories help us understand our place in the world
Stories transcend generations. They create connections with others. It is through stories that we experience rich emotions and feelings of joy, sorrow, hardships, and failures. We learn about behaviors and consequences.
Stories show us what we have in common with others, and we learn to engage with others in spite of our differences as we come to understand who they are and where we stand in this world.
Stories give us the opportunity to experience narratives in our imagination as if they were real, and feel raw emotion even though the reality of our experience is only in listening to the story.
Your brain experiences imagined narratives as if they were real. There is little difference between how our brain processes information when we read or hear stories and when we experience reality. To our brain, it’s all the same.
Stories help us create our identities as we tell stories of how we think, what we feel, and how we justify our decisions.
Through such rich experiences, we come to understand our unique perspective and our place in the world.
Stories help us learn how to act wisely
Stories make us human. There are a great many lessons to be learned from stories.
The human brain is hard-wired to communicate through stories. And through stories, we understand many aspects of life including social norms—that’s how we learn what is right and what is wrong, through lived experiences and stories.
Stories make learning effective, and that is why children engage so well with storytelling. Kids can’t wait to hear a good story because they’re naturally curious and want to learn more about the world.
We tend to remember and process information better when we hear or read a story because narratives reach deep into our psyche and provide a deeper understanding of concepts, thoughts, and ideas.
For centuries, stories have been used to pass on knowledge, and when important teachings are embedded in a story, we embrace that information uniquely because we tend to remember the underlying emotions in a story rather than the actual elements of that story.
When a story moves us, we are motivated to take action. And persuasion becomes unnecessary.
In its purest form, stories teach us good from bad, and how to act wisely with others in social situations and on a personal level, while we also learn about the consequences of not doing so.
Stories help shape our perspective of the world
Everyone has a story to tell. You have yours, and if you pay close attention to your story, you will realize that your stories are collections of your experiences.
It is your perspective that shapes the meaning of your stories.
In the same way, when you hear stories, you come to realize that you share the same fundamental experiences as others, and yet your experiences differ from each other because everyone has a different perspective.
Stories help us explain everything in our experience from science to relationships, from feelings to memories, and from questions to objections.
And with every story we hear, read, or listen, our mind makes cognitive and emotional connections that shape our perspective of the world.
The stories you tell shape your perception of the world, and your perception of the world shapes the stories you tell.
Stories help us understand other people and their perspectives
Have you noticed how you are drawn to someone when they tell their story? Or how people around you are attentive when you share a story about your own life?
Stories have a way of transporting us away from our realities, and our mind opens up to new experiences and perceptions of other people and how they think and feel. You’ll bore most people with a presentation about financial numbers, but just about any room of people will be captivated by a decent story told well.
Stories engage our attention and trigger our imagination. When you hear a story, you step out of your reality and place yourself in someone else’s shoes, and you get to experience their perspective and engage in their emotions, actions, and decisions. When you listen to a story of someone else’s life, it’s as if you’re living their story for those brief moments, and that experience allows you to learn from other people’s experiences.
Simply put, stories help you learn to empathize with other people as you come to understand their point of view.
In fact, research shows that reading makes you more empathetic.
Stories pass down knowledge and morals
We know that some of the most exceptional teachers and luminaries from different cultures have passed on wisdom throughout time, and they have done so primarily through stories. If you look at some of the most influential religious books or manuscripts of all time, you’ll notice they’re mostly “just” filled with stories. That’s because stories help us transfer knowledge and morals across thousands of generations. You might not recognize the words in the original writings of the bible, but you’ll certainly be able to empathize with characters like Joseph or Sarah if you read their stories.
If you want to transfer knowledge across many generations, the way to do so before the internet was to tell stories. And, even today, stories tend to win more attention than simple presentations.
Parables contain morals, which are basically patterns of behavior that work well in society and are passed on from one generation to another. This is incredibly valuable information, because if you don’t behave appropriately, you’ll become a social outcast, and that means you’ll lead a much less fulfilling and successful life.
If you’re already reasonably successful in life, then you have stories to thank for it, because that’s how you learned much of what you know, and that’s how your parents and ancestors learned too.
And because stories play such a foundational role in our culture and behavior, we will continue to pass on this knowledge to future generations through stories—whether new or old ones.
Why Stories Matter
Even as technology presents so many dynamic opportunities to create new content, humans will still crave stories so we can make sense of the world. The more information we create, the more valuable stories become, because without them we lose perspective on what matters. And in a world with more information than ever, it’s harder and harder to discern which information truly matters.
Stories help us solve that problem.
If you want to know how to solve a specific problem, you’ll need information, and you can get it from many sources and in many ways.
But if you want to know how to live well, you’ll need stories. And there’s no substitute for that other than living your own story, making mistakes, and learning as you go.
Stories will always matter, now and in the future.
So let us know, how have stories impacted your life? What’s your favorite story?
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
- AI Writing Machines: The Future of Fiction?
- Point of View Explained: Writing POV Correctly Can Save Your Story
- 22 Free Online Short Stories to Read on Your Next Break
- 8 Reasons You Should Be Writing Short Stories
Tom Corson-Knowles is the founder of TCK Publishing, and the bestselling author of 27 books including Secrets of the Six-Figure author. He is also the host of the Publishing Profits Podcast show where we interview successful authors and publishing industry experts to share their tips for creating a successful writing career.
this is such a fantastic article! if you had to write an essay about how stories shaped humanity what would your first paragraph be about?
You might start with the earliest storytellers (oral storytelling, cave paintings, etc.) and discuss how that relates to stories and why we tell them today :)
Good evening I have found your article interesting and very helpful for my assignment and thank you for sharing.
We’re so glad you found it helpful, Hibah!
. . . trying to find your article on contests for kids.
Here you go! :)
According to your article it is a useful article to my assignments.
How family stories show change over time?
Hi Arsann, I’m glad you found the article helpful for your assignment!
hi! i’m writing a paper and I was wondering when this article was made. I need the date for an APA citation please!
Hi Ayah, this article was originally published 6/12/2018 :)
how do stories help us understand ourselves and world
Hi Kayla, I think because certain themes are universal and speak to our experiences as humans. These themes can be seen in different stories from different places and generations – the details might be different, but the messages or central themes are universal.
I am in the throes of developing a research proposal aimed at encouraging and supporting parents to create digital stories for their children, particularly those parents of children who have low level literacy skills. I will start with one simple sentence pattern in a digital story template (thinking of using a Google Doc) and then conference via Zoom with a group of parents to discuss ways we could create a simple story. It occured to me that the emergent level readers have very simple sentences, and wondered whether children might be more inclined to ‘learn to read’ if the images and the story included them, their pets, their familiar places. While the focus is on creating a set of digital readers…I believe it has the potential to shift families being passive partners in education to active partners plus it builds technological capabilities. So look forward to any feedback/suggestions.
Hi Violet, I think your work sounds amazing! I don’t know how much science or existing research is already behind it, but your theory makes sense, and with any subject I think kids are more engaged (and learn better) when they see a bit of themselves in the material.
Is there a way you can put this brief article in a journal-format? I would like to use it for a paper that I am writing, but I cannot cite a internet website?
Hi Daniel, I’m not really sure what you mean by journal format.. we’re not an academic journal, so I can’t really publish it any other way. Were you specifically told not to cite a website?
Hey there thanks for your response. Well, not technically. I am currently writing my dissertation and I am/was looking for content that explains the significance of story telling; and this information is perfect. I wanted to cite this information but I am sure my profs will not let me get away with citing from a website. So, yes I was wondering if this information was available in an academic journal style formatting, or is it even possible to download this page. I just dont want to directly cite from a website. Thanks for your time!! :)
If you can, tell the author to put it in a kindle format and I’ll gladly purchase it for my schooling. :)
Hi Danial, if you find academic paper/journals relating to this, could you possibly post the links or titles in a reply to this comment please?
Can you have the author put it in kindle format? I’ll gladly buy it!
I’m trying to write a persuasive text. I was just wondering how stories shape us as who we are.
I meant to say how storytelling shapes who we are as human beings.
Hi Rahul, thanks for your comment! There are a lot of ways that question could be answered, but I think the main thing is that stories have been told for thousands of years as a way to preserve and pass down history and culture. They also often serve as ways to teach lessons.
I read this and I liked it. Good article.
We’re so glad you enjoyed the article, David!
Hi all… any examples of old stories that shaped new generation. I want to write an essay for my school project.
Thanks :)
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Hi Ezzy, thanks for your comment! I’m not sure if this is the kind of answer you were looking for, but I’d say classic fairytales have definitely shaped new generations as they’ve been passed down and changed (often drastically) from the original over the years. Also, classic books like To Kill a Mockingbird, Things Fall Apart, The Great Gatsby, and many others are read and taught in high school literature classes today, so they continue to reach and inspire new generations of readers.
This is well written, with an important message reminding us writers of why we do what we do. Thanks!
Hi Rose, we’re so glad you enjoyed the post! :)
Why would you fear god? God is lord. The undying master of happiness yo!
Hi Jeff, used in that context, “God-fearing” describes a person who follows the rules of their religion and acts in a moral way :)
Not really. It is more so that the individual understands the character of God and comes to him with a posture of humility and reverence.
I like that you said people tend to embrace important teaching if it’s passed on through stories since we tend to remember the underlying emotions from it rather than the actual elements. My husband and I would like our children to grow up as God-fearing individuals. Perhaps I should make them read faith-based stories so religious role models would inspire them. Thanks for this!
Why would you fear god? God is lord. The undying master of happiness!
haha my friend. God fearing dosn’t mean you are afraid of God. It just means you try your best to obey him and keep out of trouble :)
HI Levi, I think that would be a great way to teach your children! (same for many other lessons and morals too). Stories definitely help us relate to and understand larger concepts, which is why they’re so important and effective. :)