Opinion on escapism

[Celeste]

Hello Iwaku!

Us role-players tend to have a fascination with escapism - we create multiple worlds and participate, at least for a short period of time, in immersing ourselves into fake lives. But is it really a healthy endeavor to participate in escapism so frequently? Do any of you ever worry that at some point, you'll start comparing your real life to the ones depicted in the roleplays?

Well, I did a bit of googling and found a fairly good Ted talk on the subject. (Well, TedX, but it is about as good as a Ted Talk IMO)
TED TALK

Anyhow, what are your thoughts on Dr. Lestay's short talk? Do vote!

 

[IntrusivePenDesperateSword]

Just about every story has a lesson. If that story's lesson is wrong, a reasonable mind should be able to discern the difference, like watching a bad movie and learning from it what you shouldn't do when directing one yourself.

And just about every good thing can be bad if in large enough amounts.

Comparing a real life to that in a roleplay is nothing wrong. To continously immerse oneself in roleplaying, to the point where it gets too obstructive of real life, that's a problem.

 

[Xaldin]

Like the above poster said, escapism in itself isn't bad. Hell you could consider video games and even TV shows escapism. If you just have fun with it it's all well and good, its when it becomes an obsession that it's a problem.

It's particularly easy to get too far into escapism when you have problems at home, even more so when you're too young to really do anything about it. Getting immersed in roleplaying is good fun but when you're using it to run away from reality, then it's less about having fun and more about running. And eventually reality will force you back, the difference is that it won't be on your terms.

I'm a firm believer in making your own life better and keeping yourself happy, and escapism can make you happy, but you still have to take care of your own life. If you can do that, then I say roleplay all you want.

So says me to no one in particular. XD Really I'm just talking from my own experiences here.