Which should I choose: philosophy or fiction?
Philosophy contributes more to the development of logical thinking and reason than works of art? Is it true that when we read fiction, we experience the world based on our sensory and instinctive perception, which can deceive us by trying to impose the poet's fantasy on reality? Maybe you need a good combination here?
everything you have written about fiction is equally true of philosophy, even classical literature: any philosophical work is the fruit of someone's mind, and this mind was formed in very specific historical, social and individual conditions. so I don't recommend overestimating philosophy as something as rational and objective as possible 🙂
sometimes, after searching for an answer in philosophical texts for a very long time, you despair, let yourself relax, and suddenly find it in a novel 😉
but if we talk about the discipline of the mind and the development of abstract thinking, then philosophy really knows how to do this better than other areas of culture (except, perhaps, logic and mathematics). so it depends on what your goals are: if you are looking for answers, then literature can be as suitable as philosophy, and if you develop abstract thinking (and it is one of the foundations of intelligence), then you can become a student of philosophy:)
There is no problem here, there is a synthesis of philosophy and fiction. There are many examples: from the Strugatskys to Pelevin. Some works in the context of synthesis generally loosen the framework of genre affiliation: look at Burroughs, but what is the work “House of Leaves”worth?
So there is no need to appeal to a false dichotomy, because there are always alternatives.