Salt Path shows why people love a good story (even if it isn’t true)
There is greater tolerance for lies as long as a story has “truthiness”, to use US comedian Stephen Colbert’s phrase, by being plausible and emotionally resonant.
Raynor Winn and her husband Moth Winn at a screening of The Salt Path in May. Doubts have been raised about aspects of her memoir. Getty
What is more satisfying than a story of triumph over adversity by wholesome people? A takedown. These two strands came together in a much-discussed investigation by The Observer newspaper last weekend into author Raynor Winn’s memoir, The Salt Path, which was adapted into a film starring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs.
The Salt Path tells the story of Winn and her husband, Moth, who become homeless and embark on a 1000-kilometre journey along the Devon and Cornwall coast, free camping in all weathers. Nature proved not just spiritually healing but also physically, as Moth’s degenerative condition seemed to improve.
