Anna Nicholson<p>Prompted by a quip made elsewhere, I wondered afresh why it is that I sometimes like to rewatch films I’ve seen before (perhaps many times before), whereas I’ll almost never read a novel more than once</p><p>Partly it comes down to time and effort, I think: it takes much, much longer for me to read a book than to watch a film</p><p>(And the time it takes to watch a film is predictable, unlike the number of weeks it could take me to get through a book)</p><p>But I also wondered if has something to do with being aphantasic</p><p>If I even vaguely recall the basic plot of a novel, it can be tedious for me to have to reread all the words used to convey that plot (just to remind myself of a few forgotten details), unless they are particularly beautifully put together</p><p>Only in a very weak sense (I suspect) am I transported to the world of the story when I’m reading</p><p>Watching a film on the other hand, I am drawn in to the illusion of reality created by the immediate sense impressions of moving images and sound</p><p>I imagine that someone who is hyperphantasic (or just has more typical mental imagery) would find it easier to slip into an imaginary world when reading (making repeat readings more enjoyable), while being able to recall sense impressions from a film at will would reduce their interest in rewatching it</p><p>Does that make any sense?</p><p><a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/aphantasia" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>aphantasia</span></a> <a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/hyperphantasia" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>hyperphantasia</span></a> <a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/ActuallyAphantasic" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ActuallyAphantasic</span></a> <a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/novels" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>novels</span></a> <a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/films" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>films</span></a> <a href="https://eldritch.cafe/tags/movies" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>movies</span></a></p>