Different ways to read books

After learning how to read at different depths, the author also provides a detailed introduction to the reading methods of various types of books. Generally speaking, most of the people around us only read story books like novels, but can we really read novels? How can we read and understand the philosophy and science books that we often leave behind? How can drama, epic, and lyric poetry feel its beauty?

In the appendix of the original book, the author provides a reading list that is suggested as a reference book for reading different readings. I also suggest that when reading the following content, we can write down the books that we are going to read. After reading today's content, try reading the books we are going to read in the following ways. Only in this way can we achieve "How to Read a Book" The real purpose of reading a practical book like "Book"

How do I read a practice book?

We can only learn how to read a book with this handy "How to Read a Book".

Currently, most of the bestselling books on the market are practical books, such as time management, financial planning, baking and cooking, long distance running and fitness, etc. These types of books, especially self-management books, are often thought of as spiritual chicken soup. In fact, the method for discerning whether a book is chicken soup for the soul or a good practical book is very simple: check whether the author proposes a plausible and executable method with testable effects. A good practical book, the author will use detailed theories to support his ideas, rather than using special cases like "I have a friend" to demonstrate the universal rules he wants to teach people.

In fact, good practice books are not inherently difficult. The author usually first provides a theoretical explanation of the rule, such as the purpose and principle of the rule and other supporting materials, then reduces the rule to an intuitive and executable solution. .

Let's take "How to Read a Book" as an example:

"The second rule of analytical reading is: use one sentence, or at most a few sentences (short paragraphs) to describe the contents of the entire book. The third rule is: list the important chapters in the book and explain How to form the overall structure of the order."

These are two sentences in this book, simple and easy to understand, almost no difficulty in understanding them. What we have to do is find an executable rule in the book based on belief in these rules, and then use the actions to solve the problem. It should be noted that the rules for reading inspection and reading analysis that we learned a few days ago do not contradict here, for example looking for the main theme is also the rule for practicum books.

In short, we must always remember that - practically every book cannot solve the actual problem it cares about, the real problem can only be solved by action. Therefore, even if you are reading a good and practical book, if you only read it and don't do it, then it is no different from spiritual chicken soup to you.
How to read imaginative literature?

Previously we talked about reading actively, but for imaginative literature, we can temporarily return to a passive state, because we need deep thinking, but we also need appropriate entertainment. Imaginative literature can take us temporarily to escape from reality and enter wider world. In a world further away.

The rules for reading imaginative literary works are generally similar to those of other types of books, but the author emphasizes two important things:

Don't fight imaginative literary influences on you.

Don't look for consensus, themes, or discussions.

Simply put, when we read, we should try our best to experience the perceptual experiences that imaginative literature brings to us, and weakens rational analysis. Although the author spends some space analyzing and interpreting rules, such as analytical frameworks and themes, he also says It is not a practice worthy of promotion. In other words, if you insist on rational analysis, then follow these rules, but you shouldn't. Therefore, the author believes that the task of finding the subject and frame is a secondary rule, the most important thing is that we must devote ourselves to the imaginative world of literary construction, and sufficiently mark the key contents of the book.

How do you read a story book (novel)?

Next, we will specifically analyze broader types of imaginative literature, such as novels, stories, plays and lyrics.

Novels can be said to be the favorite reading of most readers. However, reading novels of many people still survive in popular novels or bestselling books. For classic novels, most people still try to stay away from it. Many people complain they can ''. Don't read at all after trying to read.

Indeed, many great masterpieces are epic masterpieces, large numbers of intricate characters, large historical background narratives, full-page landscape descriptions, and storylines that seem boring and boring, causing many to read the first few. initiative to disarm and surrender, and stay away. But is it really that hard to read a masterpiece?

The author proposes a read-saving method quickly and heartily. This rule seems simple, but it is a very good solution to this problem. We often think that the initial state of ignorance will continue. In order to avoid the situation that after reading this book, most people begin to simply give up, and the author wants to clarify with gusto: reading the following content may be able to answer your previous question.

We analyzed the storybook reading method with the work "One Hundred Years of Solitude," which topped the top three on the "Unread Works" list throughout the year. The following is the contents of the beginning of the first chapter:

Years later, when Colonel Aureliano was standing at the firing squad, he would think of the distant afternoon when his father took him to see the ice cubes. At that time, Macondo was a village with 20 families. The mud house was built on the river bank. The water is clear and flows along the riverbed which is full of rocks. The rocks in the river were smooth and white like prehistoric times. giant egg.

This world is still opening, and there are many things that cannot be named, so I have to point with my finger. Every March, tattered gypsies set up tents in the village and introduce the scientists' latest discoveries to Macondo's residents amid the sound of flutes and drums. The first thing they brought with them was a magnet. A tall gypsy, calling himself Melgades, with a beard and fingers as thin as a bird's claw, presented the audience with the so-called eighth wonder of the world created by Macedonian alchemists.

After reading this short paragraph, you may come across a lot of dyslexia: Where's Macondo? What are flutes and drums? How could the name Melgades take so long? It's even possible that after reading the entire chapter carefully, you still can't understand the relationships between the characters. At this point, all you have to do is believe in initial cluelessness is normal, and then continue reading quickly with peace of mind.

Just try to analyze. “A Hundred Years of Solitude” describes Latin American history over a century and includes seven generations of the Buendia family. How can we try to fully understand it through an hour or two of reading? Even if it is not an epic work, but a book that seems thin, if the description and analysis are very deep, we cannot understand it all at once. Just like when we move to a new school, it takes at least a week to get to know a classmate. So we have no reason not to read on because we didn't get it at first. We have to believe that the ten and a hundred times a person's name affects you is completely different. What we have to do when reading a novel is not really concerned, temporary obstacles, relax your heart and continue reading,

How do you read epics and plays?

The author believes that in traditional Western literature the greatest reading but the least is epic, such as Homer's "Iliad" and "Odyssey", Virgil, Dante, and the epic Milton. For Chinese people, the distance from these epics is very far, one of which is the language barrier, and the other is that reading the epics is more difficult than reading the classics. Therefore, reading actively and focused is the best or even the only way. The author even strongly suggests that a serious reading plan should not be short of such an epic.

For drama reading, we must first clarify that the drama text is actually a semi-finished product, it can only be completed if it is transferred to the stage, therefore it is difficult for us to fully understand the background of science. , reading plays and novels when we read dramas. Instead, we need to use more imagination and pretend to see the actual show scene.

Take Shakespeare's most famous play "Hamlet" as an example:

First scene: city walls

[Aisinor Fortress, Denmark. On the city wall platform, guards Bernardo and Francis Go)

(it was late at night, in the dark, Francis was guarding the wall, and Bernardo came to take his guard)

Bai: Who was there? (The substitute asks this first)

Buddha: No, you answer me! Stop, please come! (The guard asks warily)

Bai: Long live my king! (This is the password)

Buddha: Bernardo?

Bai: Right.

Buddha: You arrived on time.

Bai: It's midnight now, go to sleep, Buddha brother.

Buddha: Thank you for coming to pick up my class. It's very cold tonight and my chest feels nauseous.

Bai: Is everyone still calm?

Buddha: Even rats don't cause problems.

Bai: That's great. Good night.

When reading the above lines, all we have to do is do our best to imagine the scene on the stage, the setting of the background, the position of the characters, the expressions, the language and even the soundtrack, to maximize the construction of a drama in our minds, an important rule that same Yes, it is best to read the drama at once, like the obsession of staying up all night when you find a good drama.

At the same time, the author also emphasizes that because manuscripts are used for performance, there are only a handful of manuscripts worth reading, including the tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides, Shakespearean plays, and Molière's comedies. And some modern works.

How do I read the lyrics?

When it comes to poetry, most people think they can't read it, just like listening to classical music, when we read poetry, we don't seem to be able to grasp "useful" information. The author believes that for works of art like poetry, such as novels and plays, the first rule of reading is to read them all at once, whether you understand them or not; second rule is to read it again and read it. hard.

The author takes the example of a Shakespearean sonnet. Sonnets are like ancient Chinese poetry. They have strict rhythm and rhyme rules. When you read it aloud, your ears will protest what your eyes have been ignoring. Listening to the poetry's beauty will increase your understanding of the poem. Here, we might as well give it a try and read this poem by Bei Dao out loud - "Answer":

Your Majesty is the headstone of the nobles.

　　Look, the gilded sky is

　　filled with curvy reflections of the dead.

　　The ice age has passed,

　　why is there ice everywhere?

　　The Cape of Good Hope has been found,

　　why are thousands of sails competing in the Dead Sea?

　　I came to this world

　　only with paper, string and pictures.

　　To

　　read the voices that have been sentenced before the trial.

　　Tell you, world,

　 I can't believe it!

We have selected the starting part of this poem. When you actually "read" this poem, you may find that your emotions, expressions, and actions change, from sadness at the beginning to anger at the end, and even wanting if this is the case, it means you may have experienced the beauty of the poetry.

The writer finally emphasized that when reading lyric poetry, we don't need to learn too much about the author and his historical background. The best way to understand a poem is to read it over and over again.