And this is actually a huge realisation for me. Because I usually read books (including educational books) with the unspoken intention of "enjoying" what I'm reading, but you just reminded me that that isn't the point when you have chosen a book for UNDERSTANDING. Thank you for this.

Reading for understanding is difficult and most of the time you need someone to guide you, to tell you where you should start from. I know I'd be nowhere without my professors' guidance and it really warms my heart to see you be a teacher to everyone who's interested in literature and philosophy here. I know many people can do it on their own but it's good to have someone give you pointers.

"With literature and poetry the profudnity is in the ambiguity." Wow.

I love how you dissect reading, makes me wanna get better

You reminded me how much I liked the class on Barthes’ «Le plaisir du text » in literary theory. Your content really motivates me to keep going on the path of literature, I’m so happy I found a content creator like you! Keep spreading the good word, we appreciate you!

We appreciate how well you've articulated your own.insights. keep working hard as always.

perfect timing for this video - this is a topic i was just contemplating myself!

Your content is awesome and contains great insights. Good work waldun

You have definitely helped me become a better reader. I appreciate you, brother.

Thanks to youtube for recommending me this beautiful channel ❤

This is great insight! I will be taking a lot from this to bring up with my English students!

Thank you for these videos 🖤

Thanks for the video!

Reading for understanding is not just for scientific, mathematical, logical, or philosophical reasoning. It is also something that can be done for narratives to understand the patterns and tropes, how they connect, and why some things fit while others don't. It's just that those books that rely on linear reasoning tend to only capture that side and not have much aesthetic content. (unless they know how to communicate them in a certain way and tie the ideas together) I would go so far as to argue that the beauty captured in literature carries its own type of understanding that is different from technical knowledge. Understanding what makes something beautiful is seeing how things are connected and interwoven together, whereas understanding philosophy is often an exercise of breaking things down and seeing "beneath" the surface of something. (though some philosophy integrates reasoning with the beauty that was already there)

I've been reading the golden apples by Eudora Welty for the past weeks and oh boy, it's not been a easy reading but I get so engrossed by her writting style.

Wow, how beautiful: literature and poetry gain their profundity from ambiguity_ or here when you said: to show us different shades of the world that were previously inaccessible to us👌 wonderful👏🏼

Mortimer Adler's How to Read a Book is a great introduction to how one reads for understanding. I think the intersection of understanding and pleasure come from syntopical reading, i.e. making connections across a wide number of works on a particular subject. It is a difficult challenge, but it is very rewarding. I enjoy reading literary texts with the caveat that academic approaches and hermenutics is a vortex of superfluity. I feel the same for philosophical works. Scholarship these days is so narrow minded on squeezing from a stone. Philosophy is often difficult to read because most works were not grounded in science. The few that were are generally enjoyable reads. Kant and Hegel have fascinating insights that lack any substance. Ontology is just insufferable on its own. Personally I enjoyed Suppes' Probabilistic Metaphysics because it was grounded in firm scientific argument. Metaphysics and statistical theory are a wonderful match. The intersection of philosophical thinking and scientific thought is beautiful for me. Philosophers, on average, could benefit from more training in science. Conversely, scientists could benefit from studying philosophy. It is when philosophy or literature become subject to the tortures of academia that reading for aesthetic pleasure becomes impossible.

Hello Mr. W! I'm James, an aspiring writer, literature critic as well the countless other forms of possible existence in a "Literature Universe", that I dwell within. I don't truly exist in the quote-unquote "real world", far too unfair, uncaring..... Etc...etc. I stumbled across your channel and have been fortunate enough to come upon a kindred spirit. I'm putting all of my "eggs" in to the Literature basket. Mainly because my love for writing & Literature is so great, that to be able to describe, quantify and or illuminate is an endeavor that not only borders on the pointless, but for one to even try & choose a description proves as futile as futile can get"big dog"! Oh yeah, I'm a bit "street" as well and if you've not already noticed I love unnecessary quotation marks, if there is such a thing. Tips on becoming a professor of literature would be beyond awesome. Also a basic friendship(with no active communication is look as well. Keep up the great work! Your inspiration is needed! Ta! Ta!

I would guess reading a book for pleasure, the mind would be adrift in the flow of words. I read a lot of science books where I need to write words down I'm not so sure what they mean, whereas when I'm reading for pleasure, I can usually figure out what the word means by the context of the paragraph, if not I'll look it up if it doesn't agree as I continue reading. I'm kind of a beginner at these literary things. That's why I am subscribed to your channel to learn a bit more about what I've missed during my time in college. Thanks

THANK YOU MAGICAL MAN!!!! i'm 30 after reading a few books of esoteric/occult literatur this month an i couldnt remember 99% of what i even read, i legitimately thought i was mentally declining an such a rate i would forget the color blue by the the end of the week. i'm this years old.....when a MAGICAL MAN told me i be reading wrong XD. i wish,and hope that you achieve every thing you desire in this life magic man. p.s Homers better

It flows sir

Awesomeness 👍👍😊

Your explanation is interesting. I'll have to think about what you said for awhile. For me when I read for aesthetic pleasure, I find meaning in it. I don't think it's possible for the human to not seek meaning. Its why language and writing exists in the first place. To understand. I think the difference between the two types is really whether your'e seeking the author intended or are you seeking meaning for yourself.

do you know the bit where adorno writes: the form is the sediment of past content? e.g. the ritual function of art? would love to hear your opinion on this!

Before Albert Camus, I thought that you can read physiology as easy as any other books. Good to know that their is a difference between 1984 and The Myth of Sisyphus.

Missing you ❤

So, in your opinion, where does Dostoyevsky fall: esthetic with a message, or esthetically written discourse?

You thinking of being a Teacher at the UTRGV Brownsville, (the Texas Campus)?! December 2023 USA

I hope I'll love my books

Barzun's excellent Dawn To Decadence is superb introduction to Western Civilization, followed by Leys' Hall of Uselessness; and for all hormonally charged campus lothario types, Hugo's Hunchback of Notre Dame offers wise counsel for chaste love.

Where do you color grade your videos?

I really love kundera I think he usually mix both but because sometimes he talks about stuff that he himself doesn't have an answers it feels less an understanding book.

I can tell when I'm reading for understanding and reading for pleasure. I just read for pleasure more and can just dive into any book and read it, but put a book about philosopy or history, I'll read for understanding and understand what is going on in the book without thinking about it

What are you studying in university? Literature? Philosophy? Both?

Can I study bachelors in English in UK or Ireland on a student visa

Riddley Walker

The title to this video can be confusing. Should I close the book or look closer at the text? 🤣

I understand what you mean to say by making the distinction between understanding and pleasure, but I can't really agree with this idea. If poetry was meant only to be a source of aesthetic pleasure, then a shopping list in a beautiful foreign language would be perfect poetry: you get only aesthetic pleasure without the need to understand it getting in the way! Literature is meant to be understood. So even though I get the idea that philosophical and literary texts have different purpose, in my opinion, the way you present this difference isn't accurate. Edit: grammar

Are you rehashing "How to read to read a book?

Please upgrade the microphone.

I get disappointed with myself when it comes to reading. I so many books I want to read but sadly, I fall asleep after 1 page. Would love tips from anyone who has or had this experience and how they got through it.

There is no data

1st comment 🎉

In my opinion, this is sort of building on a false idea of the separation of the ''rational'' from the ''emotional'', which seems to actually be an aesthetic judgement. You are presupposing for instance that the so called pleasure reading, that is, the aesthetic reading, is disconnected from Knowledge and vice versa, but this is not true from experience and epistemological breakthroughs coming from extatic experience is well documented. That's why many philosophers (particularly Nietzsche) have made a deep effort to write great prose. Conversely there is also an aesthetic judgement on the dry texts, they can be quite pleasurable to read despite, or sometimes because of, being dry, if you only develop a sensitivity to that style. Have a great day!

Yup more confused now😂

Gotta be real, love the content, but completely disagree with this video. For me, the pleasure of reading is in your ability to under, and yes, I do know you talk briefly about some writing combining both, but I see this video's thesis as a way of making reading appear way more daunting to the novice. I would love to see a video where you talk about how they work together, rather than in a binary. Just my opinion tho!

Add some music in background Man. I enjoyed your video. But boring to my ears

One the things that makes it diffulct to distinguish is how we were approached to reading books. As a Brazilian guy, I can tell you that it impact all our sight to books, therefore it tends to become a awful and boring action. Besides, we were not taught the understanding and pleaure mods. On the one hand, you will have to read a tough, boring and logical book in order to do a exam, keep great score in school and such things. In the other one, you will be forced to read a poetry book also to make a exam. The thing is, we will never be able to analyze and see those two methods for reading as we trated that action as a obligatory action in order to only completty a task. Before everythings, you should read due to YOUR reason, and something else will turns out to be fun, but not easy. Sorry for my english mistakes btw