Depressing Literature

I decided to address the "depressing literature" problem in class today. As in - why is "classic" fiction so often depressing? And why should we read it? What should we get out of it?

Literature has always been a way to grapple with tough questions about this world. As far as it is truly trying to imitate life, it is imitating life in a fallen world. And life in a fallen world results in these questions: how can people do this to one another? Is there really a God and is he good? Can God be present in the midst of great evil and suffering? Can a sinner have any hope of salvation? Not all authors, obviously, have the right answer to these questions – many have only a counsel of despair. But as Christians we have an overarching framework—God’s story—to help categorize literature:

Creation | Fall | Redemption | Consummation

Even the simplest fairy tales reflect this structure:

Once upon a time | Enter Wicked Stepmother | Enter Handsome Prince | Happily Ever After

Fiction usually only tells part of the story, and yes, often camps out in the Fall - that's where we're living here and now, and that's the road down which dramatic tension lies. But every protagonist that sacrifices for others hints at Redemption. And every happy ending hints at consummation.

As a side note, most fiction that is categorized as "realism" is depressing. In the critics' worldview, a happy ending cannot be realistic. "It's all tied up too neatly," they say. "No marriage is a happily-ever-after...just wait till the honeymoon is over," etc. However, in the Christian worldview I think there is room for happy endings, because our view of what's real includes the reality to come. We already know there's one happily ever after marriage to look forward to, and after the wedding feast of Christ and his church, there will be an eternity of joy. A book with a happy ending echoes that surety.

But back to depressing fiction. What value does it have for us?  We need to be reminded that creation is groaning under the weight of the Fall. As Christians, we should use depressing literature not as a path to despair, but a springboard to Christ. In other words, we take it and plug it into the context of God's story; we see it as an illustration of the Fall that makes Redemption and Consummation seem that much sweeter.

I eventually applied all this to the specific book we're reading, Uncle Tom's Cabin. When looking at the book through this framework, I think we were able to see that despite the intense depiction of human depravity, the book is filled with the hope of redemption and consummation. As we read our hearts can grieve over the sinful state of the world and our own hearts, but be quickened with joy and hope in Christ as the Physician of the world.