Re:Pupils Reveal ‘Aphantasia’ – The Absence of Visual Imagin...
by jiggawatts on Saturday April 23, 2022 @05:49PM
(#31138953)
I have read literally thousands of science fiction and fantasy books. Something I enjoy is watching the film or TV show versions of a book I had read before — I get to enjoy the same story twice in two different ways. I’ve heard many people complain about such adaptations because it didn’t match what they were visualising while reading the novel. For me this is not a problem so I get more enjoyment out of adaptations.
Even while reading, for me the joy is not about picturing any specific image or scene. It’s about the feeling of immersion in a world. I love stories where I can a idea of what living in that context would feel like. This is an abstract notion without any specific visualisation.
Not everyone can do this, and I think they’re missing out. I can “step into” the shoes of someone and look at the world through their eyes, see their perspective, and feel what they feel. My partner can’t, for example. She just stares blankly at the news about the war in Ukraine. It means nothing to her past the visuals. Burnt out cars, damaged buildings, etc…
I instead “see” the terror, the sleepless nights, the unmaking of everything you have built and the destruction of your children’s future. I imagine hiding in a dark tunnel clutching a heavy gun cold from the winter air, listening to your own breathing — too loud — and hoping you’ll hear the Russians’ footsteps before they hear you. But there’s too many of them, and there’s just you and this antique weapon defending you neighbours.
Even while reading, for me the joy is not about picturing any specific image or scene. It’s about the feeling of immersion in a world. I love stories where I can a idea of what living in that context would feel like. This is an abstract notion without any specific visualisation.
Not everyone can do this, and I think they’re missing out. I can “step into” the shoes of someone and look at the world through their eyes, see their perspective, and feel what they feel. My partner can’t, for example. She just stares blankly at the news about the war in Ukraine. It means nothing to her past the visuals. Burnt out cars, damaged buildings, etc…
I instead “see” the terror, the sleepless nights, the unmaking of everything you have built and the destruction of your children’s future. I imagine hiding in a dark tunnel clutching a heavy gun cold from the winter air, listening to your own breathing — too loud — and hoping you’ll hear the Russians’ footsteps before they hear you. But there’s too many of them, and there’s just you and this antique weapon defending you neighbours.