Kelsey Steven - Stories as a Solo Activity

Walter Ong, in his book Orality and Literacy, explains how stories, in an oral culture were all about experiencing a story with others as they too experienced the story. One couldn't hear a story without interacting with at least one other person who had different ways of thinking about the world with different perspectives. A person could form their own thoughts about a story, but they would also get influenced by other who might be able to present a new perspective that the person might never have thought about on his or her own. But when stories starting getting told in books, a person did not have to see anybody or interact with anyone but his or herself. A person could form an idea uninfluenced by anyone else, which could be a good thing but it doesn't allow for ideas to be spread except from author to reader. People can discuss the book after the fact, but never during the actual experience of reading it and living the story. Only hearing an oral story will do that.