In order to become a good reader Vladamir Nabokov believes that the soon-to-be reader must decide to see the writing through an impersonal imagination as well as seeing the artistic delight in the writing, and develop a combination of artistic and scientific temperaments. Taking in the writing through an impersonal imagination allows the reader to stay neutral to the story and not be biased one way or another in believing how the story will turn out. The reader will also need to see the artistic way the story is written in order to understand where the author of the piece is coming from. If a reader reads too much of his or her own emotion into the story they will not comprehend the actual emotion the author was attempting to portray. However, if a reader stays completely unattached to the story and judges it from a scientific point of view they will not understand the author's portrayal either.
I believe that the traits of a good reader develop through practice. I have always been an avid reader but I am still learning to read textbooks. This is difficult because when reading a text for school, such as biology or history, I become distracted easily and don't comprehend the multitude of the reading. To be a good textbook reader I believe that the reader must go inside the subject itself to understand what is being said. Meaning, if the subject is World War II the reader should place himself, or herself, in the position of being in the war while reading.
Here I have attached a link to the College Board website where I found a helpful article on becoming a better reader:
http://www.collegeboard.com/student/plan/boost-your-skills/189995.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Vladimir_Nabokov.jpg
"
A writer should have the precision of a poet and the imagination of a scientist."
-Vladimir Nabokov
http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/v/vladimir_nabokov.html#ixzz1P8AlJ7jS
Hi Briana,
ReplyDeleteYour answers and comments on this assignment are very well done. I enjoyed reading your interpretation of Nabokov as well as your personal point of view on what makes a good reader. Impersonal imagination and artistic delight are creative ways to describe the characteristics of a good reader. Your analogy describing what can happen if a reader uses anything but a balanced technique was well taken and easy to understand. I too become distracted so hopefully we will learn some better ways to read. Thanks for your post. Marco
Briana,
ReplyDeleteI too agree that good reading skills comes with practice and time. It is not something that you are born with or really learn in school, at least not in the younger grades. I also have the same problem that you do with reading text books. When it comes to the books and stories that I choose to read I have no problem, but when it is something that is not what I would read it takes double the time to read and understand it. I have found myself having to read the chapter then go over it a couple of time just to really get the information to stick. Some subjects are better then others but it is still hard. Developing that perfect balance were you into the book to be able to really enjoy it, but not too into the book to not be able to understand where the author was coming from and where they wanted to go with the book. If the only thing I learn from this class is how to actually read and understand and commit to memory the information in the textbooks I have to read it will be worth it. Great post.
Denise