tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post115566727149616860..comments2023-08-10T16:06:35.452+01:00Comments on Scholar's Blog: Why do we read ?Michelehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15888298679182871669noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1156134545525092342006-08-21T05:29:00.000+01:002006-08-21T05:29:00.000+01:00Hooray for naive readers, then ! Perhaps we should...Hooray for naive readers, then ! Perhaps we should "take back reading" from the literary theorists and reclaim it for our own pleasure ? <BR/><BR/>I know just what you mean about being so immersed in a book that I forget where I am - I've missed (or nearly missed) a bus stop before now because I was so engrossed...Michelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15888298679182871669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1156121782122405812006-08-21T01:56:00.000+01:002006-08-21T01:56:00.000+01:00You can number me among the naive readers, too, Mi...You can number me among the naive readers, too, Michele. I read because I love stories. I love immersing myself in them, to such a point that I lose track of where I am physically, a little bit. And yes, sometimes I read to get a new perspective on something, too. There's nothing like a good novel to lend the reader empathy for people different from herself. I write book reviews so that I can bring the books that I love to other people's attention, not out of any need to be a formal literary critic.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155966005280278092006-08-19T06:40:00.000+01:002006-08-19T06:40:00.000+01:00Thanks for your thoughts Ervin. I almost never wat...Thanks for your thoughts Ervin. I almost never watch TV (just the occasional movie or pre-recorded show) as it doesn't do a lot for my intellectual stimulation, whereas reading a book and listening to music (something I do in combination) really stimulates me. I've been known to go on thinking about a story I've read for days afterwards, whereas in my days of regularly watching TV, it was mostly a case of once seen, totally forgotten !Michelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15888298679182871669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155787900135183862006-08-17T05:11:00.000+01:002006-08-17T05:11:00.000+01:00That's what I suspected, Kelly ! And I'm with you ...That's what I suspected, Kelly ! And I'm with you - I also read for intellectual stimulation and for the chance to walk in someone else's shoes for a while...Michelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15888298679182871669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155769895660518912006-08-17T00:11:00.000+01:002006-08-17T00:11:00.000+01:00In my experience, literary theorists DO NOT read m...In my experience, literary theorists DO NOT read much for pleasure, which is a pity.<BR/><BR/>I read for entertainment, to learn something new, to lose myself in another world, and to walk a mile in someone else's shoes. And, for intellectual engagement.Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15169707337312707247noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155702665734264782006-08-16T05:31:00.000+01:002006-08-16T05:31:00.000+01:00Jessica thanks for the reassurance. But maybe lite...Jessica thanks for the reassurance. But maybe literary theorists don't read for pleasure ? I confess I've sometimes wondered if a particular literary theorist even likes the book they're criticising, given the tone of what they're writing. (I can't think of any specific examples right now, but it's very early still and I'm uncaffeinated !)<BR/><BR/>I know I certainly read on two levels at once, at the level of what I've termed my "inner critic" and at the level of my "inner 6 year old", and I joke that sometimes the 6 year old runs off with the book and won't let the critic get a look in until she's found out how it all ends... But often the inner critic reads the book to the inner 6 year old, and the 6 year old enjoys the story and the critic is analysing as she reads...<BR/><BR/>I'll join you, Krista, in being naive, since even though on one level I'm analysing as I read, on the other, I just want to know "what happened next" !Michelehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15888298679182871669noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155694940111917642006-08-16T03:22:00.000+01:002006-08-16T03:22:00.000+01:00If reading fiction for entertainment is naive, I p...If reading fiction for entertainment is naive, I proudly raise my hand to join the ranks of all naive people who actually enjoy books without feeling as if they have to analyze them. ;-)Kristahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07055678421339871259noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14162585.post-1155686929850013642006-08-16T01:08:00.000+01:002006-08-16T01:08:00.000+01:00Really I don't think you are naive, Michele. Comme...Really I don't think you are naive, Michele. Comments like the one you quoted make me see red - once again they create the impression that those followers of literary theory are detached from the reasons that people read in the real world. It seems to me a kind of elitism to distinguish between the "naive reader" who merely enjoys a book (perish the thought) and those who apparently engage with it on an intellectual level (as if the two ideas were mutually exclusive...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com