A History of Reading

Several years ago I asked for a copy of A History of Reading for Christmas. I saw a review for it in my local newspaper and it looked interesting. It was fascinating reading for me. But then you have to remember that I love to read. I remember that Manguel said "a reader must learn to read." Fortunately, most of us learn to read when we are very young and, thus, we can enjoy reading for the rest of our lives. Sadly, statistics show that most people do not take advantage of the gift of reading. Instead they apparently see reading as a school-based chore. While I was reviewing the content of a web site on writing sponsored by Dan Poynter I found some disturbing statistics. He said that surveys showed that fifty percent of high school graduates never read another book during their life. The surveys also showed that fifty percent of college graduates never read another book during their life. In addition, those who did start reading books quit, on average, by the eighteenth page.

A far cry, it seems, from the days when reading first originated and it was reserved for the elite who could find some one to teach them to read. And they had the discretionary time available to devote to reading. Reading was the primary way of learning about things outside your immediate sphere of understanding. And you could learn from great teachers who had already died, but whose teachings had been recorded for future generations. In particular, I enjoyed Alberto Manguel's discussion of reading prior to the development of Gutenberg printing press.

So if you are looking for a good read that will give you some perspective on how your favorite past time helps you fit in with those who have come before you, I recommend A History of Reading.

Four Uses of Language

I love to read.
I think reading is important.
So I decided to start this blog and encourage other people to read.

President Harry S. Truman is reported to have said, "Not every reader is a leader, but every leader must be a reader."

In particular, I want to encourage people who want to be leaders to read. You can learn a lot from reading. It is like having mentors from across the ages available at your finger tips.

Years ago, I read a book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren called How to Read a Book (A Touchstone Book). This book changed my thinking about how to best read a book. Adler is an academic philosopher. He applies his years of learning and study and his philosophical background to answering the questions related to how to best read a book. He identifies three levels of reading:

1. Elementary Reading
2. Inspectional Reading
3. Analytical Reading

A major part of this book is dedicated to developing analytical reading skills. Once this skill is developed, approaches to reading different types of material are considered. Adler suggests that Practical Books are read differently than Imaginative Literature. Which should be read differently than History, and so on. Finally, he suggests a fourth level of reading, which he refers to as the ultimate goal of reading:

4. Synoptical Reading.

In short, analytical reading applies to the reading of a single book. Synoptical reading applies to the reading of several books related to the same subject. It is a necessary skill for conducting research and reaching your own conclusions on a topic.

Later I read another one of Adler's books, How to Speak How to Listen. In this book, Adler, presents in a rather simple form, how human minds make contact with one another. Physical contact can take place in a variety of ways. But for minds to meet, very specific interactions are required. Adler refers to these as the four uses of language. These four uses fall into two parallel pairs. Regarding the written word, they are reading and writing. Regarding the spoken word, they are speaking and listening. Throughout the rest of the book, Adler explores the different types of speaking. He suggests the best ways to listen to these. He then discusses the concept of listening art and skill. Finally, he explores the possibilities of two way communication where both parties are involved in speaking and listening concurrently. I enjoyed this book every much. I think you will too.