Do all stories have to teach a lesson?

[cherrystark]

Yes, but not all directly. It's one of the reasons why humanity created storytelling. We teach lessons that way. While I don't think you have to have a moral message in mind when you start writing, you should have a theme in mind. For example, a good second chance romance would likely explore themes of redemption and forgiveness. Readers will always draw their own lessons from your work, but the best stories all have some kind of take away.

[river121693]

Having watched Cromatie High, the answer is no you don’t have to.

But often times, it’s what people hope for when reading a story— not an explicit life lesson per say, but the story should reveal new something to them

[hakei]

As a fine connoisseur of comedy animes (/j) and a creator of comedy/slice-of-life comics, not really.

But the vast majority of the time — even if you're not explicitly out to teach a life lesson — the readers can pick up a creator's life/societal beliefs shown through how certain things are framed.

e.g. are bald men the butt of your jokes for being bald or are they simply a part of a comedic cast.

[AmazementComics]

Nothing has to do anything, but the stories people love most generally can answer the question "why are you telling me this?" It might be to share an outrage, as venting often is. It might be sharing what we think of as joys or sorrows. Or something unique that happened. It might be to say "here is a problem, what do you think?" It might be illustrative of a person or a community. And some of the one's we most attach to might deal with what we think of as right and wrong action. Morals.

A list of events? Think about a kid going first this happened, and then this, and then this. With no sense of connection between the events. No causation, not even trying to show either a similarity or difference between them. It is just imagination run wild without constraints and without actually trying to be able to communicate really anything. It is more a kid trying to figure out what a story is.

Does a story need a moral? No. But it does need a reason as to why it is being shared. It needs to have a point. It has to answer the question "why are you telling me this?"

If you can't do that, then you’re creating a story that’s a waste of time.

[powerplantanimations]

I remember hearing this from numerous writers and YouTubers and I found it interesting. Basically "it doesn't have to mean anything, but SOMETHING has to matter". It's a contradiction I feel all writers need to face. Especially ones starting off because I've met a lot that're like "BUT I DON'T WANT IT TO MEAN ANYTHING I WANT TO WRITE SILLY STUFF!".

Speaking of, I think you need to be careful of running the risk of ending up like those people who write off something as "there's no way this [blank] has any meaning to it despite being silly!". This is why I take every media I watch as seriously as possible. I just feel bad for people who go "HA HA, THIS STORY HAS RUBBER SUITS IN IT! LOOK HOW CAMPY IT IS!" but then you do an analysis on it and it's some of the hardest stuff ever. Like I was watching an old B-Movie "the Alligator People". A huge lesson there is "certain truths are not worth learning" and turns into this game of whether or not the woman is telling the truth or not. For example... after watching the movie you think it's a cut and dry "yes"... but then how did the main character manage get these dead people's perspectives in her story? It plays with the audience's expectations who'd just write it off as another cheap B-Movie. Especially with what the Alligator person looks like. The third act is downright silly, that you think "is this budget... or is the movie purposely doing this?". Like we're learning about all this in a psychiatrist's office and even THEY are like "Okay... ain't no way... but just to be sure, let's not tell her what she said when we used hypnosis on her".

ON TOP OF THAT, if you are doing a lesson, it has to match-up with the aesthetics. I see a lot of people who go "The lesson is no lesson here's a bunch of random imagry" IT DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY lol. Even the most random stuff like Bobobobobobobo was consistent. It was mocking the shonen genre. The anime ending is even the biggest "f you" to the concept of cliffhangers in manga. I remember feeling so cheated as a kid, waiting for the final episode, only for it to never come out. I then realized that IT WAS TEACHING ME A LESSON lmao. Bobobobobobo acted as an introductory to Shonen for SO MANY little children and it's funny is that it was basically telling them "When you grow up, be prepared for these tropes... because you're going to see A LOT of them".

Btw YIIK is the best case study of what not to do.... same with Hat in Time. Hat in Time is interesting because that game is STUPID fun. Its one of the few times where the content saved it... otherwise the aesthetic theme wise is holding it back.

[theyrebothakilogram]

I think that in a way, no matter if you mean to or not, all stories will teach a lesson, the characters actions and the other characters reactions as well as the framing in your story as to what's good and what's bad will indicate some sort of belief or moral standing. Example: if you have a character cheat, and then all the other characters hate them, and while it might not be 'the moral of the story' it could just be a plot point, it still sends the message Cheating is bad, even though you haven't outright said that. So I think it would be fairly difficult to write a story without a lesson

[miss.almuete]

I saved this quote from Ursula K Le Guin, that might interest you

“I try to not have a message. Messages are for texting something (…) I don’t think any art is rightly done if it’s just delivering a message. That would mean the message is the real thing and the art is just sort of like cake decoration, fancy ornaments to make the message edible or pretty.

I think working on any practise of any art (…) you are opening yourself up to a mysterious force and to have a message in your mind all the time is going to block that force, and it cannot speak through you. And I think you have to trust it knows things much better than you do”

It's from this 2014 interview.

I've definitely read stories that took a turn and felt really frustrating and unsatisfying... coming across this quote helped me realise that for a bunch of them, it was bc the author got caught up in Saying Something :o

[NickRowler]

In my personal opinion, unless your story is targeted as young children (6 and younger) or defined as educational, you are not required to make your story teachable or have a life lesson.

I think the reason why we thing this way, especially for kid's media (7-12 year olds) is that a lot of kid's shows from the 80s and early 90s were giant toy commercials and they wanted to hide behind the fact that they are "educational" in order to continue what they were doing. At least in the US, the Children's Television Act (1990) put pressure on networks to have educational blocks. Which meant that shows with an educational spin would more likely get greenlighted. Cable and Streaming don't really have to follow these laws.

I think you should focus more on making something that is enjoyable to read. There can be a message or moral but it's OK if there isn't. With kid's media, especially books, I think it is more important to have something engaging that also appropriate for the demographic. Think of something like Captain Underpants which isn't about teaching a moral, it's just a fun and silly story that kids enjoy reading.

[llobucervallince]

not really, I remember I saying that said
"mistakes sometimes are just that, there's no lesson, it was a mistake that came because you didn't pay attetion or because it was just bad luck, sometimes it's just that"
I feel it can be aplied to stories too

[vapidink]

They don't have to, but there's usually something a reader can take away from a book. Stories are usually about overcoming some obstacle or dealing with a changing situation, so the way that a character faces the obstacles in their way and the way they change by the end of the book can be something for the reader to take away from the story. Maybe they learn the importance of perseverance or how to deal with something intangible like loss.

Up to a point, it's also up to the reader, and some readers don't think about these things, they just want to be told a good story. So, yeah, don't get bogged down thinking about pushing a lesson into the story you want to tell, but instead think about the things your characters have to go through and how that changes them as a person.

[LunarScyphozoa]

Not all are made with the intent of a lesson, but one usually happens and is different for every reader if the author doesn’t start out with one message in mind.

[Katzalcoatl]

Stories do not have to include any lessons. They could simply be seen for what they are. A form of entertainment.

That being said I like sharing my knowledge in my stories. I think entertainment is one of the best ways to educate people be it in one form or another. It doesn't have to be deep it can be somethings as simple as learning that certain teas have vitamin C or it can be something more profound like teaching someone that they are not alone in this desolate world.

Stories can be a form of escapism but it can still help someone have a better day. And there is nothing wrong with learning something new by reading a new story that entertains you. Including a lesson in a story is like adding extra seasoning to your favorite food.

Add too little and it can become bland. Adding too much would make it super salty. In my personal opinion adding the right amount can bring the best flavor possible but it is not something you have to add since you can eat a plate without that extra seasoning just fine.

[Ordinaryaverageguy]

No, but... Good stories are often about how a character encounters some kind of challenge, battles with that & often emerges changed in some way. Even if there's no intent to make the story about teaching a lesson, that kind of story often leaves us with something we take along with us & we are changed in a small way. And I think that's like teaching.

[Zay]

No. Beavis and Butt-head exist and it's awesome.

[thepenmonster]

All art is the world filtered through the minds that made it. As such it will always have a message even if that message is, "Durr hurr. Boobs n booms are cool."

The difference is in how blatant that message is when presented.

[darthmongoose]

All art is the world filtered through the minds that made it. As such it will always have a message even if that message is, "Durr hurr. Boobs n booms are cool."

The difference is in how blatant that message is when presented.

Yeah, this is how I feel too.

No art is apolitical. It will always reflect your values and what you think is important, worth making art about, worth telling a story about, what you think is worth celebrating and depicting in a positive light, and what you want to vilify, make fun of or pretend doesn't exist.

You can either go in with your eyes open to it, or you can go in with your hands over your ears like "la la la! I'm not political, only people with opinions or values different from mine, which I consider "default" somehow, are political!"

[Lensing]

I agree with what you wrote
but there is a difference between a message and a lesson.

Every story, song, poem has a message, some try to teach a lesson

[allisoncandraw]

I don't think so. My comic is a funny slice of life, just meant to be silly and fun. I don't think everything needs a deeper meaning.

[Lensing]

Same here, I write funny / erotic slice of life stories, there is no deeper meaning
and no lesson I want to teach people, I also don´t want people to learn a lesson
from my story. You could say I have a message because I joke about relationship
stuff, but don´t, I just write what I find interesting

[GodbreakerComic]

A lesson for the reader? No it doesn't need that.

A lesson for the characters? Yes, at least for me anyways. Your characters should have learned and changed from beginning to end. You don't want static characters who start and finish the story as the same person. At least I find stories like that boring.

An example I can think of off the dome is The Batman. Batman/Bruce had to learn that it takes more than fear/violence to inspire change, and to not inspire more violence. In the beginning he was just angry punchy man, and(SPOILERS?) by the end he was a first responder and helping citizens, helping Gotham non-violently. Chefs kiss.

An example of a static character is Superman in Man of Steel. A bunch of stuff happens and hes the same as when he started. In the beginning he was morally-just hero... and the end he was a morally-just hero. The events didn't change him at all so I was like... what was the point of all that? Same person, same choices, no growth or change.