People should read only those books that are about real events, real people

[Vsravan]

Topic : Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? People should read only those books that are about real events, real people, and established facts. Use specific reasons and details to support your opinion.

An author's purpose decides the content of his book. If his intention is to deal with a burning problem of the society, then probably he includes not only real life incidents but also the opinions of real people on that issue. On the other hand, in those books, which are intended to entertain children, neither the protagonist nor the story is real. While children relish reading “The stories of Mickey Mouse”, we all know not only Mickey Mouse but also the plot of the book is fictitious or imaginative. So, according to me, people cannot denounce reading a book just because it has unrealistic events or a fictitious protagonist.

Many times it is very difficult for us to verify the authenticity of a book’s content. For instance the Bhagavad gita, sacred scripture for all Hindus, contains the preaching of the lord Krishna to Arjuna during Kurukshetra war. Is it really possible for us to verify whether Lord Krishna actually taught this to Arjuna? Although archeological department has unearthed many evidences which support that the war did take place, what we can’t authenticate is “Did lord Kirshna preached Arjuna really in a war zone?”. However, irrespective of its authenticity or accuracy, the gist of its content is unparallel to that of any other book. Similarly; we can’t check the authenticity of either ‘the Bible’ or ‘the Quran’ for a simple reason that none of us who are alive today was actually present physically at the time when they were first written. Still, our culture, values, customs etc are dependent on the preaching’s of these books. We can’t refrain ourselves from reading them and following the teachings of those scriptures.

Sometimes, books based on imagination and fiction act as torch bearers for us in our daily life. Panchatantra, a book having a collection of many imaginative stories, is one such book which teaches us about many characteristics we should have to succeed in our life. While one story tells the importance of hard work, other story highlights the importance of perseverance and never say die attitude. Even though all those stories of Panchatantra are imaginative and no way near to reality, the gist of those stories makes it a must read book for all of us today. These stories help us not only in keeping our morale high but also inspire us and teach us how to fight with difficult situations.
It is true that reading books based on reality are very helpful for us because we can relate those incidents and characters to ourselves and our surroundings. However, importance of books based on unrealistic, imaginative characters or plots cannot be under estimated either. Reading is for learning. Hence I decide,whether to read a book or not, based on its content but not on its authenticity.

TOEFL listening lectures: Why do the Lascaux cave paintings probably not qualify as graffiti?
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Regards
Sravan
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Happiness is the every day sunshine of your life