On the Southern Literary Trail discussion
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Why do You Read? What Does Reading Mean to You?
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Diane, "Miss Scarlett"
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May 30, 2014 07:20AM
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Why I read?Primary: mind expansion.
Secondary: personal enjoyment.
Mod
So many many reasons! For non-fiction I read for understanding, information, insight, inspiration.For fiction, my ideal is to find that wonderful combination of human truth plus beauty. Must admit that beautiful writing, as with poetry, does something special for me. I avoid the dark and violent--my mind is weighted enough at present with these things.
Mod
As a child, I was a severe asthmatic. I read about those who overcame difficulties to accomplish something in life. My heroes were Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin D. Roosevelt. They have remained so.
Growing older, I came to read to understand what it was to be human. Atticus Finch and Anne Frank became a part of my way of looking at the world.
I read history to understand the past and its influence on our lives today. I read it to hope that we don't repeat the mistakes of history. I am generally disappointed. But I remain hopeful, if not for my generation, perhaps for those who follow after us.
No one said it better than James Baldwin:
“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, or who had ever been alive.”
That is why I read.
Mike
Love that Baldwin quote! Never seen it.
Mod
It's wonderful, isn't it? I first saw it at Square Books in Oxford. I'm ashamed to say I don't know the original work in which it appears. However, it has stuck with me for years. You've inspired me to find the actual source in which Baldwin wrote it.
Mike
I read to enrich the experience of living.
Martin wrote: "I read to enrich the experience of living."YES.
Mod
I'm not surprised.While in college, the future poet laureate Donald Hall visited for several days. At one one, he said, "everything written is about the mind."
I had a knee-jerk negative reaction and thought him out of his mind. But, I came around a long time ago to not only realize he's right, but also develop my own understanding of what he said, which I suspect has much room for agreement with his intent although I haven't been able to confirm it.
But understanding that everything written is in some way about the mind (mind in the larger sense of the word) has helped enhance the reading experience.
I think the point of the finding in NPR also supports Umberto Eco's idea that reading begins at the first re-read that he offers in his wunnerful collection of lectures on reading Six Walks Through the Fictional Woods, which has certainly influenced how I read.
Umberto Eco
I read that piece somewhere--think someone put it on Facebook. Makes me wonder about cause-effect: do people possessing emotional intelligence seek out fine literature because it's emotionally/intellectually satisfying to them? Or does reading the best stuff raise the emotional intelligence? Could go either way, I'd think.
Mod
Patricia,Here is an article about a recent stud that partially address your question:
http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/st...
It sounds to me as if the study is the source of the NPR piece, given the link to the NYTimes.
It seems to me that almost all people (austistic excepted?) have some degree of emotional intelligent, especially given that we are social creates. The study in question indicates that the social intelligent quality is sharpened by reading literature.
Diane - it as a delight having him on our small (less than 2,000 students) campus.
Martin wrote: "Patricia,Here is an article about a recent stud that partially address your question:
http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/st...-..."
Thanks for sending that link, Martin. I incidentally found within the article something I love: lists of the best fiction. There are a couple of Greats that I can't read--guess we all have those. I periodically come back to them and try again. Sometimes the additional efforts pay off; sometimes I still just can't quite manage to get into a Great Book.
Mod
Here is an article about a recent stud that partially address your question:
http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/st...-..."
Martin, Thank you for posting this enlightening article. I definitely believe in the hypothesis of the study.
Mike
Mod
I tracked the original source. It's in one of Baldwin's early essays. Baldwin reads the quote in the film: The Price of Admission. That segment appears on The James Baldwin Project at: http://jamesbaldwinproject.org/AboutB... .
Baldwin's thoughts mesh well with the study cited by Martin.
Mike
Diane wrote: "Donald Hall is a favorite of mine, both prose and poetry."This comment caused me to buy Life Work. Am looking forward to it!
Mike wrote: "Patricia wrote: "Love that Baldwin quote! Never seen it."I tracked the original source. It's in one of Baldwin's early essays. Baldwin reads the quote in the film: The Price of Admission. Tha..."
Baldwin's quote also echoes a main tenet of Buddhism! It's an idea that Pema Chodron gives a lot of attention to.
Very true, Patricia; and given that Buddhism translates one with an awakened mind, it informs Hall's insight that everything written is about the mind.
Must confess that I haven't yet read Hall but am very much looking forward to it!
I just would like to weigh in on the original question. I think why we read is a very complex question that may have a different answer depending on what stage we are in life or what is going in our lives at a particular moment. Sometimes reading is simply an escape from the real world and life, other times it is for pure entertainment and enjoyment. You pick up a book and see amazing writing and it is difficult to put down. We may read because we can identify with a particular author, genre, theme or setting. I think I read for many of the reasons listed above, but also just because reading is a way of connecting and seeing things in a different light. Everyone has a way of expressing themselves, and I think an author has a special talent to use writing as a vehicle for looking at the world and for self-expression. Anyhow, this is a great question, one that really makes you think.Mike, I like your reference to Atticus Finch, one of the best characters in all of literature. Certainly Atticus had some influence in why I see literature in a positive way.
I am sixty-six years old, and I read because I HAVE to. I can not sleep in a room that does not have books. It is that short and simple.
Mod
Well said, Franky. Reading is an interactive exercise between author and reader. “A writer only begins a book. A reader finishes it.” ― Samuel Johnson, Works of Samuel Johnson. Readers interpret a writer's works in many ways. And that is why an author's works continue to live and breath through generations, often interpreted in the context of the current world we live in.
Mike
Mod
William, I identify with your statements regarding the necessity of reading. I am approaching 62. I am aware of the ticking clock. My books are as essential to me as food and shelter. They are a constant comfort and a reminder to me that they have been companions throughout my life from which I have become the person I am.
Mike
Mod
Mike wrote: "Franky wrote: "I just would like to weigh in on the original question. I think why we read is a very complex question that may have a different answer depending on what stage we are in life or what..."I think it was W. H. Auden who wrote: "You don't read a book; a book reads you."
Mike wrote: "William wrote: "I am sixty-six years old, and I read because I HAVE to. I can not sleep in a room that does not have books. It is that short and simple."William, I identify with your statements..."
A "hear, hear"!
I read to connect with others, like you lot. Somehow I married a man, who while otherwise lovely, is not a reader. I need readers in my life because it isn't enough to read on my own. I crave discussion, connection, and more to think about. And more to read!P.s. I'm 35 and feel I may never read as much as some of you.
Truly enough, being decades your senior and a reader all my life, I don't think it matters *how many* books you read but *how* you actually read them. If you're reading for connection, to enlarge your understanding--any of those good things--you're reading for the reason that the great authors wrote. It's far from entertainment: it's a matter of becoming more alive to life. Don't waste any time on regrets. Just enjoy what you're doing! It's a whole open world.
J. D. Salinger made some comment about "consuming" books, I think it was in "Raise High the Roof Beams, Carpenters." The jist of it was that books should be savored, not gobbled down as if reading should be a contest of sorts.
Patricia's sentiment works for me, but I'd like to follow it a little further. What's of value is the reader's experience in reading the book, connecting, expanding understanding (living in a bigger space?), and so forth.But the experience doesn't lie in the book. The book is the object that is perceived. If a metaphor is a vehicle to transport the reader, then fiction is a universe of metaphors to transport the reader. But the book does not get the reader over the threshold. That comes from within the reader.
There comes a time to throw the book away, I believe the old Zen saw goes.
I will soon be practicing that as my youngest strikes out on his own at university and I sell the house to defray university expenses, and given that the house is fairly full of books, I am forced with deciding which books get passed along, or tossed.
It's an interesting end-of-life experience deciding which tomes get tossed, which have served their purpose, those that will not be read again, or read for the first time, in life's final segment.
A final observation, a wise monk once said that dharma is always fresh, no matter how many times one experiences it. And so it is with many books. That makes the culling all the more difficult. But, I expect that the experience of sorting through the books will itself be an exercise in contemplation.
Martin, I do not envy your immediate future of disbursing books. About 10 years ago I moved a fairly well established household and winnowed books as a part of the process. I do not believe I am capable of throwing away a book so there was much selling and donating that took place. In more recent years I have found myself replacing some of those same books. Ten years ago we toyed with the concept that we would cut back on dishes as well, that each person would have one bowl to eat out of and that would be it. That didn't work out either!
Mod
love to read because it takes you to other places and out of your own reality for awhile and just because it is relaxing
Diane wrote: "Jenny, I am married to a lovely man who reads, but only non-fiction. He claims if it's not fact, he doesn't want to read imaginary conversations or events. We are constantly argueing (amicably) a..."Diane, I was a journalist for many years, reporter and editor. Now, retired, I write fiction. Have discovered fiction's more truthful.
Diane - It's an interesting divide. (As for myself, I swing both ways, heh, heh.)Buddhist teachings on wisdom acknowledge two kinds (depending on how you're approaching the subject): male and female. Your question is gender specific, but the male and female in understanding Buddhist is not, despite the translation.
Male wisdom is direct. The metaphor is the light of the sun. While it illuminates with it's direct light, it obscures not just the stars, but also darkness, which we know to be an important part of reality.
Female wisdom is indirect. Its metaphor is the light of the moon, which illuminates without dispelling the darkness, or the stars.
The two are not separate, but instead are part and parcel of wisdom as a whole.
All that said, you question about the reading habits of men and women made me think about the difference in the terms of the two types of wisdom.
Nonfiction is direct and its ultimate aim is to disclose (shed a light) all of a given subject matter, or at least give the impression that an entire truth has been revealed to the reader. We especially see this in the expansion of biographies, but other histories as well.
On the other hand, the truth of fiction is that of the proverbial Buddhist finger pointing at the moon. It is the truth that allows for what is called the Middle Way in Mahayana Buddhism. There is no definitive definistion of the middle way, other than to describe it as lying between two extremes, but being neither of the extremes. I think that's the path of fiction.
Mod
Martin wrote: "Diane - It's an interesting divide. (As for myself, I swing both ways, heh, heh.)Buddhist teachings on wisdom acknowledge two kinds (depending on how you're approaching the subject): male and fem..."
I like that analogy: the truth of fiction and the Buddhist finger pointing at the moon. I think there's actually nothing that fiction cannot do, including at times detailing information. It's the artist and the artistry--the vision--that makes fiction work for me.
Diane wrote: "Jenny, I am married to a lovely man who reads, but only non-fiction. He claims if it's not fact, he doesn't want to read imaginary conversations or events. We are constantly argueing (amicably) a..."The male tendency toward non-fiction starts as soon as children start to read. There are entire classes for ed majors where they learn how to use the non-fiction young boys are often drawn to help scaffold them into other reading.
Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "Diane wrote: "Jenny, I am married to a lovely man who reads, but only non-fiction. He claims if it's not fact, he doesn't want to read imaginary conversations or events. We are constantly arguein..."The irony is that all writing is fiction because it comes with the caveat that it is from an author's point of view. You don't think Churchill was biased when he wrote about World War II or Sandburg didn't think Lincoln was a great President, or even Will Durant was selective in his history of the world?
Mod
"
You definitely have a point. Think in terms of all the "revisionist" histories that have appeared in the preceding years.
Yet, non-fiction writers do not have the expansive range that fiction writers do. The fiction writer delves much deeper into the minds of their characters and manipulate them in manners far beyond historians.
Regarding the male preference for non-fiction, I have always enjoyed a healthy mix of fiction and history in particular.
Here's an interesting article on what men read: http://www.nanney-land.com/2013/01/wh... .
Bottom line--men account for twenty percent of the fiction market. IMHO, they don't know what they're missing.
Mike
I read to gain knowledge of the world around me and I read because it gives me pleasure. For several years I read books so I would not have to face people. The doctor called it major depression. obviously I don't remember most of that reading. Also, I am on a tight schedule to read the books on my schedule. A. E Housman in his poem 'TheLoveliest of Trees' said: "Now, of my three score years and ten, twenty will not come again, And take from seventy springs a scope, It only leaves me fifty more. . . . . . About the woodlands I Wii go to see the cherry hung with snow. "# My math looks like this: 70-71= -1, so I need to hurry! #A Shropshire Lad. A. E. Housman \ Wood Engravings Miller Parker St Edmundsbury Press- 1995
Wow, quite an interesting discussion, everyone .
I found some points in your posts that I'd like to comment on :
First , I would say the main reason I read is to learn more about life and how to live it better . I think if I read enough about other people's lives ,and maybe problems or life issues they have dealt with , I'd possibly be able to use those tools to make my life better and treat people better ,maybe work on family issues in a better way ,etc .
I also read for enjoyment and entertainment, but the main reason I read is to learn .
That being said, I found it interesting when you were talking about male reading habits vs female. I'm only guessing here, but I definitely think there aren't very many males who would choose to read "chic-lit" and books that target the female audience more .
I must be a bit of an oddball because I think I read more books that men would like . I really don't have interest in chic-lit type books, romance and such ... I'd rather read about serious family issues , moral values, how to make good decisions in life, or read about real people who made bad decisions and how they overcame them ,so it might help ME to make my life better .
I also like a lot more male than female authors, which may or may not be unusual. I'd be interested in a survey of that : finding out if females tend to read more female authors and men , male authors .
Well, I've yakked long enough about it . One simple question ,and you get an essay answer from me .
You guys will soon learn that I'm quite a talker !
Sorry if I've rambled on so long .
I found some points in your posts that I'd like to comment on :
First , I would say the main reason I read is to learn more about life and how to live it better . I think if I read enough about other people's lives ,and maybe problems or life issues they have dealt with , I'd possibly be able to use those tools to make my life better and treat people better ,maybe work on family issues in a better way ,etc .
I also read for enjoyment and entertainment, but the main reason I read is to learn .
That being said, I found it interesting when you were talking about male reading habits vs female. I'm only guessing here, but I definitely think there aren't very many males who would choose to read "chic-lit" and books that target the female audience more .
I must be a bit of an oddball because I think I read more books that men would like . I really don't have interest in chic-lit type books, romance and such ... I'd rather read about serious family issues , moral values, how to make good decisions in life, or read about real people who made bad decisions and how they overcame them ,so it might help ME to make my life better .
I also like a lot more male than female authors, which may or may not be unusual. I'd be interested in a survey of that : finding out if females tend to read more female authors and men , male authors .
Well, I've yakked long enough about it . One simple question ,and you get an essay answer from me .
You guys will soon learn that I'm quite a talker !
Sorry if I've rambled on so long .
Mod
Hi Diane
Thank you for the welcome ,and I agree, it seems as I get older, I have less patience with books that don't hold my attention. Life is too short to waste it on bad books because there are so many really good ones out there waiting in line !
I also like finding new authors that I've never heard of ,so I hope to find some more in here .I bet I will :)
Do any of you have a set rule about how much time you give a book ? I know some people will start a book and finish it no matter how much they dislike it ,while other have a 20 page rule or 50 page rule, that is they don't like it by then, they toss it .
I can't say I have an exact number of pages, but I definitely won't finish a book I'm not enjoying .
Thank you for the welcome ,and I agree, it seems as I get older, I have less patience with books that don't hold my attention. Life is too short to waste it on bad books because there are so many really good ones out there waiting in line !
I also like finding new authors that I've never heard of ,so I hope to find some more in here .I bet I will :)
Do any of you have a set rule about how much time you give a book ? I know some people will start a book and finish it no matter how much they dislike it ,while other have a 20 page rule or 50 page rule, that is they don't like it by then, they toss it .
I can't say I have an exact number of pages, but I definitely won't finish a book I'm not enjoying .
Mod
Diane wrote: "Ramblers are great and generate lots of discussion. I read a lot of male authors too, probably half and half male and female. I don't care who wrote it if they tell a good story using wonderful c..."V interesting question, as to women who love to read preferring their own or the other gender's work. I too fail to even notice gender. It's all about the book. I am being featured--so proud of it--on a blog post for today through Wed: (http://authorharoldtitus.blogspot.com)
A question he asked is about my favorite authors. I listed 7, 4 women and 3 men. McCullers of course was one of the writers I mentioned, and I think she's simply in a class by herself: if I had read Lonely Hunter without knowing who wrote it, I could have imagined it as either a man or a woman's writing. Just good, sound and exceptionally insightful stuff.
Diane wrote: "If ... I find errands to run or chores to do rather than get back to the book, it's time to quit!"Errands or chores?? No wonder I read so much. I find that Stoopid tv drives me to a book pretty quick.
Sometimes I feel like I owe it to the author to read them out. Now how's that for crazy. Ken Follet taught me just how stupid that is. Don't think Ill be taking any cruises with that Grisham guy anytime soon. I may give Sonny Burke a try though.
One thing for certain is that you guys have led me to new pastures and sweet water.
