In Introduction, Tobias Wolff talks about the history of the short story, but more importantly, he explains the purpose behind good writing and the objective of reading good writing. According to Tobias Wolff, writing and reading are things that, “require isolation as the price of the best society.” (Wolff 6) Wolff believes that reading or writing literature puts people into a whole new world where ideas can be given or exchanged better than real society, which is why he describes it as “the best society.” Also, a writer’s objective of writing good literature is to move people and to plant their ideas and opinions about current issues in our world into the minds’ of their readers. However, in order to move someone with writing, the writing must have literary depth and the story should, “somehow take on flesh and blood” (Wolff 16) and come to life. This is also another purpose for writers to write good writing. To make their literature come to life in the readers’ minds so that the influence and the impact the writing has on the reader lasts forever. “They live and die, and yet do not die.” (Wolff 16) According to Wolff this eternal impact is something that can only be found in literature, which again, is why he describes the world of literature as the best society.
Now that we know Wolff’s explanation of the purpose of good writing, by reflecting on the information above, it is quite easy to realize what the readers’ motivation to read good writing is. Readers read good writing to be influenced. They want to know the writer’s opinion and they want to feel the text come alive in their minds. Additionally, readers want to relate to the honesty of the writing, so that they know what other people are thinking, and so that they know that they are not the only ones who are afraid to face some of the horrible truths of mankind, that are often the subjects in short stories. “As it happens, many of the stories in this book confront difficult material: violence, sickness, alcoholism, sexual exploitation, marital breakup.” (Wolff 14)
Jeffrey~ you bring up an interesting point in that Tobias Wolff, like many writers, state believe something to the effect of writing being a means to live beyond the scope of their very human existence. Shakespeare was notorious for inputting these ideas into his sonnets and other works and so this is nothing new for a writer to believe about their work and whether you scale in between an overt sense of self-importance or truth is another discussion altogether but I like that fact that you point out that by giving text a sense of life is what writers associate themselves as somewhat of a creator with their craft. Would you agree with such a statement?
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