For the most part, we process (“consume”) fiction, in its various forms, for divertisement. But fiction sometimes comes with a false bill of goods: that we will (somehow) learn (something) from it; we will walk away from the experience a better person. The promissory note is sometimes issued by the marketers of art. But it also figures in serious psychology of fiction. I have some cautions to add to this tale. And I would like to propose an exercise to help readers reflect on the transformational potential of fiction, and art more generally.

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