Experience-Taking

[Ollie Dee]

http://www.medicaldaily.com/news/20120514/9878/book-reading-experie...

Can anyone else relate to this? I know I can. I am forever absorbing the mannerism of the main character I am reading about in a book or story and despite what they say about it not happening so much for movies, movies too.

I thought this was because of my daydreaming but I guess it's separate. Now I have something to call it. Experience taking is the reason I have to be so cautious about some of things I decide to watch or read because not only with I start to absorb the character but I'll start daydreaming it too. Talk about double whammy.

[Sarah]

Yes! I can definitely relate. If I've been to see a film I often get worried on the way home that people will notice I'm behaving like one of the characters.

There's a nice bit about this in "Something Happened":

"It operates unconsciously (subconsciously?), whether I am sober or intoxicated (generally, I am a happy, pleasant, humorous drunk), with a determination of its own, in spite of my vigilance and aversion, and usually I do not realize I have slipped into someone else's personality until I am already there. (My wife tells me that at movies now, particularly comedies, I mug and gesticulate right along with the people on the screen, and I cannot say she is wrong.)"

[roxanne]

That is really interesting.  In a way, we are just an extension of that (apparantly normal) phenomenon.

[Ollie Dee]

Oh :O I need to read this book, it sounds interesting!