Essay on A Summary of David Abram’s Animism and the Alphabet

In Sven Birkerts writing, “The Owl Has Flown,” Birkerts puts forth something to think about for any modern day reader. Birkerts believes that over the years the methodology of reading has changed as the technology has advanced. In the older days, people had small amounts of texts to choose from, but read them more thoroughly, and gained in depth knowledge about each book. In this day and age, the scope of reading has broadened but at the same time become shallower. He believes that we now read large amounts of materials, divulging ourselves into all sorts of different subject matter, but that we merely skim across its surface gaining no knowledge. In his opinion we have gone from vertical to horizontal depth. He deems an increase in the

The essay written by Michael Bunn, entitled “How to Read Like a Writer” conferred the main outlook that someone as a writer needs to examine, and keep in mind while reading any kind of written manuscripts far beyond the typical reading set of mind.

In How to Read Literature Like a Professor, author Thomas C. Foster extensively teaches literary conventions that teach a reader how to read between the lines. The main goal of this guide is to help a reader read to a level such as a professor, which entails being able to read analytically. Throughout Foster's literary guide, he sets out essential elements of literature that aid in the ability to read analytically. How to Read Literature Like a Professor focuses on not only external influences, but also in text elements such as structure, themes, and setting. Throughout Foster's guide there are many valuable keys to reading, some of the most prominent in literature being biblical reference, character quests, and character baptism. Chapters

As I was reading How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I was thinking about how much I have missed in the books I have read due to not knowing how to look for certain literary devices. Something as simple as not knowing how to read between the lines caused me to miss out on points the author was trying to make. Over the course of reading How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I have learned many ways to analyze literature that I did not know before.

Hi. Most of us have been reading since we were young, but not many of us think about the reason in doing so. What makes a novel so compelling, a memoir so riveting and what do we really gain from reading? Peter Skrzynecki, here in Australia, received an Order of Australia Medal for his prestige excellence in his calligraphy skills. Through this honourable medal, readers can distinguish the different cultural experiences that Peter had endured.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines by Thomas C. Foster is a book that explains there is more to literature than just a few words on a paper or a few pages in a book. Thomas Foster’s book portrays a relatable message to a wide based audience. This book is relatable for two reasons, the way it is written and the examples it uses. The book is written in a conversational manner, as if the reader was in a group discussion about books and writing. As for the examples, they are informative, descriptive, relative, and entertaining.

The most essential parts of active reading are always focusing on an article and thinking more than just passively read, striving to enter into a dialogue with the editors. First, briefly look over the article and read the main points of it, at the same time the readers can also write down their ideas about the topic. These two steps are significant because the readers will be more spirited than usual, so that they can catch the editors’ central idea better and have a deeper understanding of it. Next, make marginal notes or comments. The example of a student’s notes on a poem well shows that take notes can help the readers recall where important points are discussed. Not only can they summarize the article and give assent, but also they can ask questions about it. Finally, the readers are encouraged to keep a reading journal of an essay or chapter in a reader’s own words because this can stimulate one’s own thinking. The given examples are two students’ journals, which show their critical thinking on a poem and their ideas combined with their specific

Ruszkiewicz, John, Daniel Anderson, and Christy Friend. Beyond Words: Cultural Texts for Reading and Writing. New York: Pear

“Reading gives us someplace to go when we have to stay where we are,” (Cooley). Throughout our lives, reading has impacted us in many ways. Often times books give people different perspectives on their lives. People with high stress levels often find comfort in reading books to take their mind off of their concerns. Sometimes, people just need to take a step back from their lives and relax for a while; therefore, reading is a great tool. In fact, all kinds of books have also helped me become a better writer. There are many different books that have impacted me over the years.

In the New York Times bestseller Reading Like A Writer, Acclaimed American Author Francine Prose returns with potent insight and the works of the most superlative writers of our time, in this guide to mastering the art of writing through reading. Prose graduated from Radcliffe College in 1868 but had received most of her training through avidly reading throughout her whole life. Her debut novel, Judah the Pious (1973) won the 1973 Jewish Book Council Award. Her preceding works in the following years had made stands in the literacy world, her most notable ones being Blue Angel (2000); a finalist a for the National Book Award, and A Changed Man (2005) that had won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. She has also recently written an acclaimed nonfiction Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife.

How do professors read? Do they read like average people, like students, like an adult? The daunting question, only answered by Thomas C. Foster through his book, How to Read Literature like a Professor. This novel is an informational text and each one of the chapters discusses a method in writing that will help readers to better comprehend literature. Readers learn from the novel about all sorts of different methods and devices that they can use to locate and interpret connections and ideas that are normally surpassed when reading. This novel teaches readers to look between the lines and open up a whole new world of understanding.

this book was to show the reader how to look at literature through a wide eye. To see

“To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark” (Victor Hugo). As Sherman Alexie discovers reading, the passion for it grows, and saves his life from the misery around him. Frederick Douglass, who frees himself by pursuing the flame that starts with the first word he reads. And William Stafford sets flame to books in his poem, unwritten books of ignorance. Reading makes a person realize one’s position in society, defy it and the ignorance of the world, it complements with writing, as the one does not exist without the other, making one ignorant until both have been learned.

I viewed reading as a chore, was often unenthused, and would mostly annotate on the overarching themes without gathering any meaning from them. Books were merely a series of words printed on paper. This school year, however, I began to understand the allure reading has to offer. I have grown to appreciate reading and the insights a book can offer. When reading our numerous texts, I was able to live vicariously through the characters of the books and relate aspects of their lives to my own. Because all of the books from English I pertain to coming of age, I was able to not only learn about maturation as a process, but understand how it pertains to my own life. Through protagonists such as Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye or Esperanza from The House on Mango Street, I learned about my “misguided desire to preserve childhood innocence” and to empower feminism similar to Holden and Esperanza respectively (Heart of Gold, Raghuram). Gradually, I have finally developed the ability to relate to novels and its characters amidst writing my own story.Whether it be thematic elements or the details of a case I am working on, I have become more observant to even the most trivial details. Now when I read, I not only look at the themes, motifs, and symbols, but also repeated phrases or situations that parallel each others as well as the symbolic meaning behind some ambiguous phrases or scenes. Reading now, in contrast to last summer, is a

“A & P.” Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 10th ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2007. 16-20.