How to Read a Book

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Very detailed account of how to approach a book, how to ask it questions and how to read different types of books. The main idea is to think of a book as a conversation with the author: What are they trying to tell you, and what questions do you have? If on the other hand the book is more creative (fiction, poetry, etc), then the main goal is simply to experience the story.

4 Questions For A Book

  1. What is the book about as a whole? – Understand the theme of the book
  2. What is being said in detail, and how? – Main ideas and arguments put forth
  3. Is the book true, in whole or in part? – Make up your own mind

  4. What of it?

    • Why is the information in the book important

    • Why does the author think so

    • What further actions (if any) are implied

4 Levels Of Reading

1 Elementary Reading

  • The kind of reading you learn in school

  • If you cant do this you can’t read a book

2 Inspectional Reading

  • Systematic Skimming / Pre-reading

    • Should take less than an hour

    • Aim to find out if the book is worth analytical reading

    • Get an idea of the macro structure of the book

  • Superficial Reading

    • Read it through without stopping if you don’t understand something

    • Books are always easier the second time around

3 Analytical Reading

  1. Finding out what a book is about (Answers question 1)

    1. Classify the book according to kind and subject matter
    2. State what the whole of the book is about with utmost brevity
    3. Highlight the major parts in order and relation to one and other. Outline them as you did the whole
    4. Define the problem or problems the author is trying to solve

  2. Finding out what is being said in detail, and how (Answers question 2)

    1. Come to terms with the author by interpreting his keywords
    2. Grasp the author’s leading propositions by dealing with the most important sentences
    3. Know the author’s arguments, by finding them in, or constructing them out of, sequences of sentences
    4. Determine which of his problems the author has solved, and which he has not. As to the latter, decide which the author knew he failed to solve

  3. Stage 3

    1. General Maxims of Intellectual Etiquette (Answers question 3)

      1. Do not begin criticism of the book until you have completed your outline and interpretation of the book
      2. Do not agree disputatiously or contentiously
      3. Demonstrate you recognize the difference between knowledge and mere personal opinion by presenting good reasons for any critical judgement you make

    2. Special Criterial for Points of Criticism (Answers question 4)

      1. Show wherein the author is uninformed
      2. Show wherein the author is misinformed
      3. Show wherein the author is illogical
      4. Show wherein the author’s analysis or account is incomplete

4 Synoptical Reading

  1. Stage 1

    1. Create a tentative bibliography of the subject in question
    2. Inspectionally read all books in the bibliography to figure out which are most important

  2. Stage 2

    • Step 1 – Find the relevant passages (Relevant to the question at hand)

    • Step 2 – Bring the authors to terms

      • Establish terms yourself

      • Put all the authors in the same language (your language)

    • Step 3 – Get the questions clear

      • Existence/character of the idea you are investigating

      • How the idea is known/manifests itself

      • The consequences of the answers to 1 and 2

    • Step 4 – Define the issues

      • Ensure disagreement is not due to different conceptions of the question

    • Step 5 – Analyse the discussion

      • Be objective – “Look at all sides and take no sides”

Approaches to Different Kinds of Reading Matter

Practical Books

  1. Books about clear rules

  2. Books about the principles that generate the rules

    • Specific questions

      1. What are the authors objectives?

        • Everything depends on the goal the book is trying to help you attain

        • Be open to the authors arguments as to why the goal is worth acheiving

      2. What are his means of achieving them?

        • Agreeing/Disagreeing

          • If you agree, you must take action in accordance with the book

          • Consider rule 4. Does the author solve the problem he set out to?

Imaginative Literature

  • Don’ts

    • Don’t resist the effect the book has on you

    • Don’t look for terms, propositions and arguments

    • Don’t criticize the book based on truth

  • Structural

    • Classify the book according to it’s kind

    • Grasp the unity of the book

    • Discover how the whole is constructed of its parts

  • Interprative

    • Elements of fiction are it’s episodes and incidents

    • Terms are connected in propositions

  • Criticism

    • Don’t criticize the book unless you fully appreciate what the author is trying to get across

Stories, Plays and Poems

- No action (of the analytical sense) is required of you when reading this kind of literature - To read it well, all you have to do is experience it - Read it quickly and with total immersion

History

  1. Read Like a Story
  2. Read Multiple Accounts: History is biased, you must read more than one account of a period to understand it
  3. Read to Understand Man: Read history not only to learn about that period, but also to learn the way men act in all times

Science and Maths

  • State as clearly as you can the problem the author is trying to solve (most important question to answer)

  • Your goal is not to become competent in the subject matter but to understand the problem

Philosophy

Two Types of Questions

  1. Those concerned with what is or what happens in the world

    1. First order
    2. Second order – Questions about first order questions
  2. Those concerned with what should or ought to be

Philosophical Styles

  1. Philosphical Dialogue (eg. Plato) – Conversational style between individuals
  2. Philosophical Treatises/Essays (eg. Aristotle, Kant)
  3. Meetings of Objections
  4. Systematisation of Philosophy (eg. Descartes, Spinoza) – Attempt to organise philosophy like mathematics

  5. Aphoristic Style (eg. Nietsche)

    • A lot of thinking is left to the reader

      • What question is the author trying to answer?

      • Find author’s controlling principles (the unstated assumptions of the author)

      • Respect the assumptions

      • Read other philosophers writings on the same subject

Social Science

  • = Books dedicated to the pursuit of systematic knowledge of human society

  • These books are on the topics people are most opinionated about

  • Many terms in social sciences have very vague and broad meanings

  • Hardest question to answer: What kind of book is this?

  • Social science must be read synoptically

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