--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Individuals who frequently read fiction…" description: "\"“Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and see the world from their perspectiv..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg" --- # Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better… ![“Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and see the world from their perspective.” quote by Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg) > ““Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and see the world from their perspective.”” [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reading fiction improves the ability to understand and share others’ feelings by exposing readers to diverse perspectives. **In simple terms:** Fiction boosts empathy. Key Takeaway Read more stories to grow empathy. Themes empathy reading perspective social cognition Mood insightful thoughtful Type educational inspirational When to use this quote - education - therapy - team building - conflict resolution Key Concepts theory of mind narrative transportation Questions to Reflect On - How does fiction change your view of real people? - Can reading replace real-life interaction? A Different Perspective Empathy also requires practice beyond reading. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [“those who do read fiction are better able to understand the emotions of others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-marselle/those-who-do-read-fiction-are-better-able-to-understand-the-emotions/) [Terry Marselle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-marselle/) > [I don't mean that literary fiction is better than genre fiction, On the contrary; novels can perform two functions and most perform only one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-haddon/i-don-t-mean-that-literary-fiction-is-better-than-genre-fiction-on/) [Mark Haddon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-haddon/) > [“All fiction is better with explosions," said Jared. "Basic fact of life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/all-fiction-is-better-with-explosions-said-jared-basic-fact-of-life/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [I have to conclude that fiction is better at 'the truth' than a factual record,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/i-have-to-conclude-that-fiction-is-better-at-the-truth-than-a-factual/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“Fiction is better than Truth”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-verma/fiction-is-better-than-truth/) Krishna Verma > [If it's fiction, then it better be true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/if-it-s-fiction-then-it-better-be-true/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Over the years, I have come to realize that no matter how satisfying fiction is, it becomes that much better when it actually happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elin-hilderbrand/over-the-years-i-have-come-to-realize-that-no-matter-how-satisfying/) [Elin Hilderbrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elin-hilderbrand/) > [The best way to bring people in and have them empathize with others is through storytelling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-unkrich/the-best-way-to-bring-people-in-and-have-them-empathize-with-others/) [Lee Unkrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-unkrich/) > [I think that fiction has this special responsibility or this special ability to help people to empathize, to demand of people that they understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-h-winters/i-think-that-fiction-has-this-special-responsibility-or-this-special/) [Ben H. Winters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-h-winters/) > [As an actor, what you dream of is being able to portray people that people empathize with and understand and really feel for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-sharman/as-an-actor-what-you-dream-of-is-being-able-to-portray-people-that/) Daniel Sharman > [Miranda's this girl that everyone's just laughed at online for years. I want people to empathize with her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-ballinger/miranda-s-this-girl-that-everyone-s-just-laughed-at-online-for-years/) [Colleen Ballinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-ballinger/) > [Some of the best actors think they're terrible; that's what keeps you connected to a vulnerability that makes it possible for people to empathize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessie-mueller/some-of-the-best-actors-think-they-re-terrible-that-s-what-keeps-you/) [Jessie Mueller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessie-mueller/) > [If you can identify with people, you can empathize with people and therefore you understand things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-pacino/if-you-can-identify-with-people-you-can-empathize-with-people-and/) [Al Pacino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-pacino/) > [In art, in music, in everything, I think the more you experience, the more people can empathize with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seo-in-guk/in-art-in-music-in-everything-i-think-the-more-you-experience-the/) [Seo In-guk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seo-in-guk/) > [It's hard to get people to empathize with the poor. You can get some people to sympathize with the poor, but to empathize is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sendhil-mullainathan/it-s-hard-to-get-people-to-empathize-with-the-poor-you-can-get-some/) [Sendhil Mullainathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sendhil-mullainathan/) ## More by Annie Murphy Paul > [“We often respond to today's world with yesterday's adaptations. (quoting Dan Fesster)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/we-often-respond-to-today-s-world-with-yesterday-s-adaptations/) [annie murphy paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) > [“Reading literature makes us better people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/reading-literature-makes-us-better-people/) [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) > [“In any case, psychological type has built a private world around itself, an intimate universe that has no need for external validation . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/in-any-case-psychological-type-has-built-a-private-world-around/) [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) > [“The world has its way with us long before we're born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/the-world-has-its-way-with-us-long-before-we-re-born/) [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) > [“For many centuries people have believed that there is continuity between the individual in utero and the individual in the world; now there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/for-many-centuries-people-have-believed-that-there-is-continuity/) [Annie Murphy Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) [Explore all 6 Annie Murphy Paul quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/) ## More Books quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [My sentences got sharper and my stories more efficient, and I gradually learned to imagine the reader more clearly and to empathize with that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-thompson-walker/my-sentences-got-sharper-and-my-stories-more-efficient-and-i/) [Karen Thompson Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-thompson-walker/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [“Within the pages of books, I've journeyed to Mandalay, the Milky Way and Santa Fe, without once having to leave my armchair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-ansbro/within-the-pages-of-books-i-ve-journeyed-to-mandalay-the-milky-way/) [Kevin Ansbro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-ansbro/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Tacitus did not write a most dangerous book. His readers made it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-k-krebs/tacitus-did-not-write-a-most-dangerous-book-his-readers-made-it-so/) Christopher K. Krebs > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-herz/be-careful-about-reading-health-books-some-fine-day-you-ll-die-of-a/) Markus Herz > [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) [Browse all 59,485 Books quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with them and see the world from their perspective.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Annie Murphy Paul" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction-seem-to-be-better-able-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Books" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction-seem-to-be-better-able-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cdf/annie-murphy-paul-55901_books_individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction_2498591.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Individuals who frequently read fiction seem to be better able to understand other people, empathize with…” — Annie Murphy Paul", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Annie Murphy Paul", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-murphy-paul/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Individuals who frequently read fiction seem...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction-seem-to-be-better-able-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-murphy-paul/individuals-who-frequently-read-fiction-seem-to-be-better-able-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```