Why the arts are so important!

I’m in the mood to type so my apologies but I’m going to share my opinion on why I think the arts are so important! (spoiler: Abstract thought is the key to processing your emotions)

I was listening to a podcast a number of years ago (I forget which one). And the guest was telling a story about the original Cinderella. The German version. It’s a children's book, written to be read to children. But lets just say it would probably get an R rating here in North America. In the book when the evil step-mother is trying to fit the show onto her daughters foot and it won’t fit. She cuts off her daughters toes to squeeze them into the shoe. And there are lots of other similar story changes where the violence, gore, death, destruction, is far greater than the disney version we were all raised on.

And the guest is describing all of this and how their kids LOVE the original version of the story. And the host is like “Why do you let your kids read something so intense and mature?” And the guest replies, “It’s important for them to explore these emotions and experiences in an abstract setting. They aren’t personally attached to the characters. It’s not their friend or family member that’s being hurt. They are fictional, larger than life characters. So it’s a safe space where my kids can explore and get used to scary, difficult feelings and emotions.” And when I heard that I was like that’s it. That’s why the arts is so important.

But it’s not just about scary emotions. It’s about all emotions. The point of the arts is to explore abstract topics and concepts. Things that we can relate to, but it’s not our experience. We can imagine ourselves in these scenarios and how we’d react. They can remind us of our own lived experiences. But experiencing the arts is experiencing an abstract world. That’s why great art can be really weird, strange, odd, off-putting, wacky, wild, etc.

But it allows us to explore our thoughts and feelings in an abstract way. So that when we do encounter those feelings later on in our life, we have some experience with them, we’re more comfortable and confident in dealing with them.

There are obviously a myriad of other benefits that we can derive from the arts: team building, skills development, empathy, style, beauty, wonder, whimsy, connection, and so much more.

But to me, it’s the ability to explore complex and often difficult emotions in an abstract environment so that I’m better prepared to deal with those emotions when they come up in the rest of my life. That’s the true value of the arts.

I saw a really cool scientific study a few years ago that looked at the four types of problem solving. The first is troubleshooting. Just basic, quick, problem solving. The second is solving problems using existing methods and procedures. The third is developing new methods and procedures to solve the problem. And the final one, the one I’m most interested in, is abstract problem solving. The study showed that artists are often most effective at the fourth kind of problem solving. And that it is often the only method capable of solving some of the most complex problems we face as a civilization. So yes, scientists and engineers are important. But sometimes it’s the crazy artist who’s the won who’s going to think way outside the box to solve the problem.