BOOKS ARE MEANT TO BE ENJOYED
There is enjoyment and enjoyment when reading a book. One kind of enjoyment goes with self-indulgence, these books which produce self-indulgence, are stories where everything happens in day-dreams, where it all comes right in the end or else there is a sad, sad ending that makes us cry and to painstakingly enjoy our tears.
Books for Enjoyment
Most of our day-dreams have happy endings, we make them up to comfort ourselves for all the unhappy issues we have to endure.
Daydreams
We turn our dreams into something which we all imagine ourselves to be, we turn them into worlds and situations that challenge us, into situations that are followed by misfortune or situations that are misjudged or burdened by sorrow.
Identifying with a character
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But why do we enjoy them as we do? Because we see ourselves in them as admirable and interesting. We see people looking at us, concerned for us or deeply impressed by us.
In watching a film or reading a book, most people identify themselves consciously or unconsciously with one of the characters, and they will get the same kind of pleasure that they would out of day-dreams with the added advantage that they don't even have to invent their own stories.
Enjoyment as Self-Indulgence
There are thousands of books that cater for self-indulgence. A little self-indulgence now and then is good for the health, but a great deal produces the same sloppiness in the spirit, as sluggishness and greed do to the body. The readers of these books are not required by the authors of these books, to think hard, to feel deeply, or face the cold truth, to distinguish honestly. The reason for this could be because they know the public doesn't like to, or they never do these things themselves. As easy it is to eat chocolate, so easy it is to read their books until you are sick of them.
Enjoyment as Exertion
This kind of enjoyment goes much deeper, it goes with effort. The reader doesn't have to be sweet-talked and soothed all the time. Because of their courage, they want to know the truth, because of their strong brains, they want to use them and because they are having an imagination, they don't need to be told everything - a suggestion, a hint, is enough for them, they can be left to themselves. They read books much more difficult and occasionally more offensive than those provided for self-indulgence.
Good Books
Day-Dream
Nevertheless, all the time you are enjoying the satisfaction of a day-dream, just as the sentimentalist enjoys them. The pessimistic hero of the book, who loathes everybody and is so secluded and so intelligent, who else is he but yourself as you would like to be, and can undoubtedly deceive yourself into dreaming you are?
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Thank you very much.
This was beautiful frieda agree with you nothing like a good book, and our daughter loves reading just as much.
I can't remember when last I have read a book. I keep on buying books but keep procrastinating.