## Notes: - TOC - Part 01 The Dimensions of Reading - Part 02 The third level of reading: analytical reading - Part 03 approaches to different kinds of reading matter - Part 04 The ultimate goals of reading ## Summary of key points: - Elementary reading 1. Read the title and the preface 2. Study the table of contents 3. Check the index 4. Read the blurb 5. Look at the main chapters 6. Skim the book, reading it here and there - Analytical Reading 1. What is the book about, as a whole? 2. What is being said in detail, and how? 3. Is the book true, in whole or part? 4. What of it? - Stage 1 What 1. You must know what kind of book you are reading, and you should know as early in the process as possible, preferably before you begin to read. 2. State the unity of the whole book in a single sentence, or at most a few sentences (a short paragraph). 3. Set forth the major parts of the book, and show how these are organised into a whole, by being ordered to one another and to the unity of the whole. 4. Find out what the author’s problems were. - Stage 2 How 1. Come to terms with the author by interpreting his key words. 2. Grasp the author’s leading propositions by dealing with his 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: and as to the latter, decide which the author knew he had failed to solve - Stage 3 Critical Application 1. Do not begin criticism until one has completed the outline (first stage) and interpretation (second stage). Then one can agree, disagree or suspend judgement. 2. Do not disagree disputatiously or contentiously. Or in plain words, unless one can present factual evidence acceptable at least to oneself, disagreement with an author based on emotional prejudice should be avoided (easier said than done!). 3. Demonstrate that one knows the difference between knowledge and mere personal opinion by presenting good reasons for any critical judgement one makes. - Syntopical Reading 1. Do inspectional reading of the selected book to choose the passages which are most relevant to the subject at hand; 2. Establish a neutral terminology which is applicable to all the authors, so that all of them can be brought to the same terms; 3. Establish a set of neutral propositions, by framing a set of questions which all the authors can be seen as answering; 4. Range the answers on both sides of the issue. The issue may not always explicitly exist, and may have to be constructed by interpretation of the authors’ views (for example, in the case of evolutionary theory, “Intelligent Design” is a form of creationism even though the trappings of evolutionary theory are used); 5. Analyse the discussion by ordering the issues to throw maximum light on the subject. ## Context: %%(How this article relates to other work in the field; how it ties in with key issues and findings by others, including yourself)%% - ## Significance: %%(to the field; in relation to your own work)%% - ## Important Figures and/or Tables: %%(brief description; page number)%% - ## Cited References %%to follow up on (cite those obviously related to your topic AND any papers frequently cited by others because those works may well prove to be essential as you develop your own work):%% - ## Other Comments: -