Why do we tell stories?

Brainstorming for my Factual Story Assessment piece, caused me to reflect on the purpose of story telling. Why is it important that we tell stories, especially those that are factual? As perceptively noted by Bill Mooney and David Holt, in their text, The Storyteller’s Guide, “stories are how we learn.” Such a fact was evidently realised by civilisations such as the Indigenous Australians, who passed on stories from generation to generation. Storytelling was for them a powerful and integral part of society.

Nowadays, telling stories, particularly factual stories, still remains a socially vital practise. It is through stories that we, I humbly believe, grow. For example, hearing and reading tales about religion can make people more tolerant and accepting. Stories can work as reminders of humanity’s flaws and failings so that we remember never to act in such a manner again. As Annette Simmons, author of The Story Factor, eloquently puts it, “[s]torytelling is a vaccine against war.”

Gaffiti artwork by Banksy