Leveling and sharpening

Leveling and sharpening are two contrasting automatic functions within our memory. Sharpening is the tendency to retroactively add vivid details in the retelling of events. Leveling is our tendency to downplay parts of events in memory, and to fill in memory gaps.

Explanation

According to a study conducted by psychologists in 1945 leveling and sharpening is involved in the retelling of stories. Imagine if a person is retelling the story about Noahs Ark. He might do it in the following way:

There was a world filled with sin, where God could not find one virtuous man but one, Noah. God descended to him and said voice: "This sinful world is coming to an end. You must build a giant vessel for me so that only the most virtuous specimen can survive." Noah tried to warn mankind, but alll they did was mock him and his project of building a colossal boat. They went on as usual: They murdered, stole, embezzled and acted in all other sorts of wicked behavior.

A pair of each of the finest animals in the world came to Noah and his boat. The animals traveled in a giant row. Noah said to his peers "This is a divine sign! You must come with me on my boat because something terrible will happen". But no one believed him. So whole humanity, except Noah's family, was drowned in a giant flooding. And all animals except one couple of every species drowned as well. For months Noah sailed the seas. One day when he was removing the covering of the arch, he noticed how the water no longer seemed as deep. The arch soon land on firm soil, and from there a new mankind and animal kingdom arose.

The sharpening in this case is the recount of Noahs interaction with the rest of the world, and the explanation of how the rest of mankind is evil. Leveling here is the omission of the parts about how God afterwards created the rainbow and the fact that Noah sent out a dove from his boat. Also, the fact that God made it rain to cause the flooding is forgotten (leveled).