Ghosts of conscience
On George Bailey, the Epic of Gilgamesh, and why we need more ghost stories in popular culture
Ghost stories have been around for as long as we have records of human storytelling. A ghost bearing warnings even makes an appearance in the ancient Epic of Gilgamesh. Chances are good that ghosts have factored in human stories since well before we as a species figured out how to write.
â– It would be a mistake to think of ghosts merely as fright devices, when in the broader sense they symbolize the struggle to make sense out of conscience. Imagine for a moment that ghostly spirits really could appear to us, but only to say one thing: "You know better than that."
â– As a literary device, such a ghost could still make many a useful appearance in literature. After all, what is Clarence the Angel trying to tell George Bailey, other than "You know better than that"? It's a powerful thing to tell someone.
â– If you want a better world, perhaps you should encourage the writing of more ghost stories. Not for cheap frights, but because ghosts are the best literary vehicle for conveying the importance of conscience. The world self-evidently doesn't place enough value on conscience -- not if we can look the other way as grave cruelty is dispensed in so many places without shame.
â– We become the stories we tell ourselves, and not every story reflects a hero in the mirror. Sometimes the otherworldly needs to appeal to our better angels.
