Unlock the secrets of analytical reading, a skill that transcends mere comprehension. Dive into the art of dissecting texts, extracting deeper meanings, and fostering a more profound understanding. Let's explore this intellectual journey, enhancing your reading experience beyond the printed words.
Fourth part in my series on improving reading skills:
Know what kind of book you are reading
- State the unity of the whole book in a single sentence or paragraph
- Set forth the major parts of the book, and show how these are organized into a whole
- Practical vs. Theoretical Books
- Make the distinction between practical and theoretical works
How do you Find What a Book is About?
Classify the book according to kind and subject matter
There is a difference between a heap of bricks and a single house
A book is like a collection of houses
- The best books are those with the most intelligible structure
- Rules 2 and 3 determine the structure of a book
- Rule 2- the requirement that you state the unity of the book- cannot be effectively followed without also stating the parts that make up that unity
Fourth rule: find out what the authors problems were
The author of a book starts with a question or a set of questions. The book ostensibly contains the answer or answers.
- Readers try to uncover the skeleton of the book. The writer may or may not tell you what the questions were as well as give you the answers that are the fruits of his work.
- It is your task as a reader to formulate the questions as precisely as you can.
