Abstract
Although artificial intelligence increasingly rivals the data processing capacity of the human brain, its intelligence can never equal that of humans, especially in the literary realm. Language, narration, and empathy serve as three key dimensions that distinguish human “storytelling” from that of artificial intelligence. First, is language merely a description and representation of the external world or an expression and manifestation of the speaker's individual perception? Second, is storytelling an inorganic assemblage of heterogeneous materials, or an organic synthesis of the storyteller's embodied memory and associations? Third, do humans understand the world through self—understanding, or understand themselves through understanding of the world? In other words, do they create imaginative and spiritual communities through storytelling, or do they become trapped in an “information cocoon” that isolates them from the world and atomizes their existence? Unlike human literary writing, artificial intelligence language models and automated writing systems are fundamentally disembodied. Consequently, they cannot grasp the true meaning of linguistic expressions or storytelling as grounded in embodied perception. For this reason, they are incapable of genuine empathy or emotional resonance.
Keywords
artificial intelligence, language, narration, empathy, communities
First Page
211
Last Page
220
Recommended Citation
Zhang, Ying, and Xiangyu Wu. 2025. "Human Intelligence or Artificial Intelligence? A Few Questions about Literary Narratives in the AI Age." Theoretical Studies in Literature and Art 45, (6): pp.211-220. https://tsla.researchcommons.org/journal/vol45/iss6/21
