Stories are some of the most important forms of communication we have. Want to charm a date or make a new friend? Break out a funny story. Want to sell a product? Use a compelling anecdote about it. Want to change a mind? Tell someone a heart-wrenching story about the subject at hand.
For a large percentage of human history, oral tradition was the primary way of keeping in touch with your community. Stories were a kind of social currency that made a group of people connected in a deeper sense. Of course, the world has gotten a lot bigger since then, and it feels harder and harder to empathize with strangers.
NPR’s StoryCorp resurrects this sense of storytelling with their excellent animations. They are enjoyable, compulsively watchable, and will completely destroy you emotionally. Here are some of my favorites.
1. Driven
This one is a son talking about his father, Wendell Scott, who was the first African-American inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame. It’s a great story about quiet determination in the face of blatant discrimination. This one has a happy ending, so it shouldn’t be too sad.
2. The Saint of Dry Creek
Another story about a father, and one about discrimination in years past. It also has happy ending, but by now you might feel something welling up.
3. Clean Streets
This one is about two garbagemen, one retired, looking back on their decades long partnership. Got something in your eye? No? Let’s keep going.
4. A Good Man
This is a story about a gay man being kicked out of his home, only to connect with all of his siblings later in life. Endings are still pretty happy, but you might find yourself taking a breather.
5. Sundays at Rocco’s
Like many of the others, this is a tale about family and adversity. Only this one’s ending isn’t too happy. You might feel a lump in your throat right about now.
6. Danny & Annie
This is an emotional nuclear warhead. Holy shit. Maybe you could have stood strong if you hadn’t been worn down by the previous ones, but now you find yourself slowly sobbing at your computer screen.
These simple animations really drive home the power of a story. In just minutes, they can build you up and tear you down. So start listening more intently to others. They probably have a good story in them, too.
