I remember when I was growing up, I would keep my lamp on at night so I could read my books into the late hours of the night, listening close so I knew when to turn my light off if my parents woke up. Reading was always important to me and I did it constantly, always eager to see where the next chapter might take me and how the characters and I might connect. Admittedly, I read less and less now, but I continue to find these connections in books, movies, and TV shows.
My favorite aspect of any work of fiction or entertainment has always been the characters. There was never a character I couldn’t find something admirable about or something I had in common with them. As a kid, there were characters I desperately wished to be or wished I could have had as friends. I mean, honestly, who didn’t want to run around Hogwarts with Hermione and Ron? Who didn’t want to help the Baudelaire orphans out of fantastically miserable situations?
As I’ve grown older, I find that I have stopped admiring characters from afar but started to empathize and connect their lives to my own. I’ve become frighteningly well at finding the emotional value of a fictional character and the circumstances they’ve experienced. In fact, I often look to these characters for guidance in my own life. I might go through a particularly stressful event and think to myself, Well, what would Percy Jackson do if this happened to him? or How might Arya Stark feel about what’s going on? I always try live by the standards that some of these characters have set or the ideals they represent. It’s almost a silly thing to say, but I feel absolutely terrible any time I might disappoint one of my favorite fictional people.
However, what’s great about this whole idea is the fact that it is continuing with each generation. My heart lights up any time I see a child dressed up as a character or playing pretend as one of their favorite princesses, superhero, or something of the like, especially when they take the role seriously: “Princess Belle would never be mean someone and neither will I!” I even get excited when I see people my own age wearing merchandise from their favorite franchises because if they’re anything like myself, they are wearing that Mockingjay pendant to show they have a rebellious spirit or they have donned their Hogwarts house colors and are keeping in mind the traits that are unique and special about them.
If anyone tries to argue with you and tell you that cartoons and other forms of entertainment aren’t important or that they are just complete nonsense, remember that this claim is nonsense. These fictional worlds and people inspired hundreds of thousands of people to live in the ways they want, to go out and do the things they love. Better yet, fiction continues to do this as it keeps providing strong and unique role models for every kind of person out there. Trust me, everyone looks up to someone, and fictional characters often uphold the best of values. So, if you’re in the market for a new role model, I suggest turning to fiction first.
