I publish books because I believe in the moral function of the arts generally and of literature specifically, which is to say, I believe that literature should play a role in producing a just, compassionate, and ethical society.
I don't mean by this that literature should function as propaganda, where it advocates for one particular political or ethical position over another. Books can do that, of course, and sometimes need to do that, and occasionally even do so well, but the moral function of literature that I'm describing is not primarily connected with moral argument.
Neither do I mean that literature is moral in a romantic sense, where "true art" possesses some sort of essential force that morally elevates its audience into a new and higher consciousness. Even much more measured versions of the argument simply end up glorifying one kind of aesthetic appreciation over another, which also has little or nothing to do with the kind of role that literature plays for me.
Rather, what I mean by art's moral function is its capacity to foster different kinds of thinking and conversation than the ones currently dominating a social landscape. In our own world, for example, where political and ethical engagements are conducted at the pace of the twitter-length epithet, literature might offer modes of writing that are deliberately longer and more measured than can appear in social media, gesturing to the lack of subtlety and humanity that characterizes so much of our social discourses today.
But this would only be one technique among many. It might also try to use social media platforms in unusual ways in order to draw attention to the discursive limitations of these media. Or it might appear within social media in very standard ways, but only to direct people outward to other more thoughtful and more personal modes of conversation. The moral function operative here isn't about a specific technique, but in the gesture of fostering thoughtful, creative, informed, reflective, conversation.
My intent is not to pick on social media. I choose it as an example only because it's such a dominant force in our current social environment. I could choose many other examples just as easily, and the relevant examples would differ from historical moment to historical moment, from place to place, from social context to social context. The moral function at work here isn't about holding a particular position or employing a particular technique. It's about maintaining a posture that values thoughtfulness and curiosity and respect in the service of a more just and humane society.
Our time and place requires this moral function of literature as much as any. Our social and political discourses are increasingly polarized. Our mediatized conversations are characterized by disinformation, intolerance, group think, virtue signalling, personal attack, piling on, and outright hatred. In the face of this, I believe literature can and should stimulate better ways of thinking and being and engaging with one another.
