Books vs. Music

When it comes to battling the oppressive symptoms of depression, reading books may be better than lying around and listening to music. The science is in! Well, if one can generalize from a study of a hundred teenagers:

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine studied 106 teens, 46 of whom were clinically depressed, over five weekends, and surveyed them repeatedly on their media use. The kids who listened to the most music were the most likely to be depressed; kids who read the most were the least likely. Other forms of media — TV, movies, magazines, video games, and the Internet — had no significant effect.

The lines of causation aren't clear, whether reading actually alleviates depression, or whether depressed kids simply turn to music rather than books. But I liked the other question raised: what is it about books that may be more beneficial than listening to music? I like this discussion:

So is reading better? Having a favorite writer is a little like having a favorite rock star, in that even though she might be The Only One Who Understands You, she's probably never going to be your friend. At the same time, many writers, at least of fiction, are less closely identified with their subjects than singers are with their songs. You don't really feel you know Charlotte Brontë when you read Jane Eyre — you feel you know Jane, and since she's fictional, you actually do know everything there is to know about her. You're as close to her as you can possibly be, and in a way, that's satisfying.

I don't mean to say that feelings of closeness are the only — or even the most important — things we can get out of art. And I don't think art's highest goal is to make us happy — my music library is so dripping with misery that it sounds like a party mix for a funeral. But I do think that for people who feel confused by and isolated from humanity — that is, teenagers — there's something to be said for reading. David Foster Wallace famously said that writing should make people "become less alone inside." And while sometimes you want to revel in your alienation, sometimes a little literary companionship is exactly what you need.

I would think that reading does make a more active partner out of the reader, as the words on the page are really only suggestive of the imaginary landscape that you are filling out with your own inner resources. Of course, the fact that reading takes more work might also help to explain why teens who are depressed may not care to pick up and stick with a book, preferring to just kick back and listen to those sympathetic tunes, deepening your dour mood.

In any case, have a kitty and some dolphins:

Books vs. Music

When it comes to battling the oppressive symptoms of depression, reading books may be better than lying around and listening to music. The science is in! Well, if one can generalize from a study of a hundred teenagers:

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine studied 106 teens, 46 of whom were clinically depressed, over five weekends, and surveyed them repeatedly on their media use. The kids who listened to the most music were the most likely to be depressed; kids who read the most were the least likely. Other forms of media — TV, movies, magazines, video games, and the Internet — had no significant effect.

The lines of causation aren't clear, whether reading actually alleviates depression, or whether depressed kids simply turn to music rather than books. But I liked the other question raised: what is it about books that may be more beneficial than listening to music? I like this discussion:

So is reading better? Having a favorite writer is a little like having a favorite rock star, in that even though she might be The Only One Who Understands You, she's probably never going to be your friend. At the same time, many writers, at least of fiction, are less closely identified with their subjects than singers are with their songs. You don't really feel you know Charlotte Brontë when you read Jane Eyre — you feel you know Jane, and since she's fictional, you actually do know everything there is to know about her. You're as close to her as you can possibly be, and in a way, that's satisfying.

I don't mean to say that feelings of closeness are the only — or even the most important — things we can get out of art. And I don't think art's highest goal is to make us happy — my music library is so dripping with misery that it sounds like a party mix for a funeral. But I do think that for people who feel confused by and isolated from humanity — that is, teenagers — there's something to be said for reading. David Foster Wallace famously said that writing should make people "become less alone inside." And while sometimes you want to revel in your alienation, sometimes a little literary companionship is exactly what you need.

I would think that reading does make a more active partner out of the reader, as the words on the page are really only suggestive of the imaginary landscape that you are filling out with your own inner resources. Of course, the fact that reading takes more work might also help to explain why teens who are depressed may not care to pick up and stick with a book, preferring to just kick back and listen to those sympathetic tunes, deepening your dour mood.

In any case, have a kitty and some dolphins: