They fall to their knees. Their face is full of surprise. They look at the main character. Their expression changes to one of regret and sadness. Then they fall to the ground, never to get up again. Never to laugh, talk, or contribute to the story ever again. They’re dead, and just like in real life, they’re not coming back.
Everyone has seen a scene like this before. A movie, a show, a game, somewhere in your life, I’m sure you have seen something like this happen. Did you cry? Did you feel sadness? Did you feel anger? Did you feel annoyed? Did you cry because you really liked that character? Did you cry because you were really into the story? Did you feel angry because you liked that character, and didn’t see why they had to die?
Whatever your reaction, one can notice that this event often brings out an extreme emotion such as sadness or anger. But think about it. Is it good that you feel sad or angry? Do you like to feel sad or angry? If not, then why is it that this typical scene is used so often in stories?
True, it does give the story drama. It makes it more real. But think about it. What is it then that makes “drama” attractive? It just comes back to my basic question: what is attractive about the idea of sadness and anger?
And really, there is no doubting that this idea isn’t attractive. Just think about all the movies, games, and animes that have a character die. Is that movie, game, or show one of your favorites? I can give a good bet that it is. I can’t give any specific examples, but just think. At the end of that story (through whatever media it came), did you think to yourself, “Wow. That was an amazing (insert media form here).” True, not all the credit can go to the character dieing, but just think. If that character never died, would the story be the same? Would it still seem as real? Would it still be as “dramatic”?
Of course this idea can only be applied to certain genres. This idea won’t work in stories where no character comes even close to any sort of physical danger. And of course, this doesn’t mean that these stories can’t be good.
What I’m trying to get at is the fact that in certain genres, a character dies to make the story what it is. Yet why is it that this death is often described as being the saddest, yet best part of the (insert media here)? Death is such a serious, horribly depressing reality, so why is it that it is in stories? Wouldn’t people want to avoid the whole concept of death? Wouldn’t people want to forget about the reality of it? I mean, isn’t that what stories are for? To give an account of something that could probably never happen in real life? So why not completely exclude death? Why not exclude the one thing that absolutely everyone and everything must eventually face? If the creator has complete control over their story, then why not abolish the very idea of death from their fictional world?
The answer is simple. Because that would not be real. It would not draw you into the fiction that was created for that very purpose. It would not be serving its reason for existing. Why is drama, death among other things, so well liked and respected in stories? Because it makes the story so real that you actually express one of our deepest, most complex emotions: sadness. People do whatever they can to avoid sadness. Yet this story has created that very emotion, bringing out that which you least want. The story has actually been able to manipulate your feelings, your emotions, your very mind, achieving its ultimate goal: to seduce you into its world.
I guess when you think about it, the whole reason is truly for entertainment. Some may say that a story’s purpose is to entertain. Yet I believe that it serves more than that. I believe that it can change the way you see things, the way you think, the way you live. And death is one of the ways that stories may achieve this end.
