All of these are great. I'm thoroughly enjoying your videos. One added mistake: books can (and should) be read multiple times. I tend to overlook this fact and I see it in others, too. It took me multiple readings of the Illiad, Frankenstein, and The Name of the Rose to gain a meta-understanding of those great works.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

Yes! A great point. And thank you

Yeah, the 7th problem is the biggest struggle for me. I realized that I was just reading for the sake of completing my goodreads or whatever app, instead of trying to read the book for the greater cause. At least, we are aware of it :D

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

It's nice to slow down and enjoy the book in the moment- just takes a little perspective shift.

One tactic I have to make sure I’m reading actively (besides taking notes and leaving stickies) is rephrasing the author’s arguments or info presented out loud. Further, if it’s a work presenting an argument (like philosophy) I will analyze the argument out loud to see if it’s sound/voice what objections or arguments I may have in response. I’ll also try to relate it to things I see in real life. These things really help me solidify knowledge/wisdom from more complex/classic works

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

A great approach- it combines the strength of using your own words with the ability to catch more discrepancies by speaking out loud.

As always, loved this, perfectionism is what I always seek when I am reading, and struggling with this for a long time but I think we have very limited time we should have a degree of perfection.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

Thank you. It's true we should always strive to get close to that perfect point, but it's best to do so while we are already in action

Mistake 5 has been pestering me ever since I started taking reading seriously. I'm always afraid I'll end up feeling unsatisfied by my engagement with the text by the time I'm done with it. I've found that doing the reading mindfully, with proper note-taking and asking questions constantly is the greatest tool against this. I think of it this way: rather than having a limited skillset that is put to test when I read the text, I'm sarting a journey of engagement with the text that fully starts once I turn the last page. If my reading is mindful, my notes are good and my questions are astute, my engagement with the text can keep going for as long as I allow it, and my skills will keep improving. I also have the full picture at least somewhat present by that point, so the process is all the smoother. End of the day, the only thing that will teach me how to read The Odyssey, is reading The Odyssey.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

That's a great way to phrase it. Action beats preparation because we learn 100x faster by just getting in there and doing the best we can, whether we are doubtful of our abilities or not

A brilliant video, it really made me think about how and why I read. I think I will be coming back to this one quite often. Thanks.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

Glad to hear that, thank you

love this channel i always learn so much from you!

@odysseas__

21 күн бұрын

Thanks! Grateful to hear it

Would love to get regular book recommendations from you

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

I was on the fence about this but I will definitely provide some from now

@seeling_liebe

8 ай бұрын

great, looking forward to it @@odysseas__

I see 7 a lot with the BookTube (or BookTok) girlies; overconsumption of books, whether that's buying a lot of books for the sake of buying books, or reading a whole lot of books for the sake of being able to say they've read them. Nothing against them, but the overconsumption just seems so unhealthy.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

I question their purpose in doing all that. What do they even gain from those types of books? It is just endless cheap entertainment? Obviously not all of them, but it seems to be the focus.

Also I have found myself drifting toward mistake 7 sometimes lol. A “consumerist” mindset can cause one to buy tons of “fluffy” books and tear through them just to say they read X books in a month lol

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

Me too, it's something we all fall trap to. Buying books faster than you can read them is not even bad if they are great books that we will indeed read one day, but when they are fluff like you say... that's when quality suffers

You definitely brought up some great points, and I definitely fall victim to a few of the mistakes mentioned. Perhaps I misgauged, but you do come off as a bit of an erudite elitist that believes that if you are not reading academic tomes or classics that you are wasting your time - "those who read contemporary literary fiction and romance novels are less intelligent and cultured than me" is a literary arrogance that I sense. However, I do recognize though that this video is primarily for people who read in order to learn. Generally, I think that someone does not need a grand purpose to read - if it is simply because you enjoy the author and you get absorbed in their stories that often do not require critical thinking, then that's perfectly acceptable. There is so much digital media that someone who takes even a small part of their day to read any book, even passively, is doing better unto themselves. However, I also view that there is a wave of anti-intellectualism that make its rounds thoughout readers of popular fiction as not requiring critical thinking because "it's not that deep." On that front, I agree with you fully that undermining intellectualism limits personal growth so it is important to strike a balance between enjoying lighter entertainment and engaging with more profound intellectual pursuits.

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

You are right in that I prefer the classics, but I have nothing against even the most causal and light-hearted literature. There's nothing wrong with reading for pure entertainment, but it's true that I am not focused on that at all- there is nothing to say if the goal is as simple as pleasure. And like you say, even the most casual books have room for some more serious reflection, especially if they are used as a valuable stepping stone into a more fleshed-out reading career. They are a great entry point and I see that. Will always be better than tiktok scrolling too..

Interesting video. But how come you consistently use male pronouns when discussing authors or your audience, as if women don’t read and write books?

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

It is for brevity's sake. Not implying that at all.

@eleanor5068

8 ай бұрын

@@odysseas__ Nevertheless, it isn’t grammatically incorrect to use “they”

@odysseas__

8 ай бұрын

@@eleanor5068 I'm aware- just didn't in this instance

@eleanor5068

8 ай бұрын

@@odysseas__ Them perhaps you could attempt to be a bit less gendered in your language in the future. It’s not a problem that has anything much to do with you, but the barring of women from academic spaces, and intellectual discussions, is still extremely prevalent (which is ironic in the case of fictional literature, because for centuries it was looked down upon as a woman’s pastime). Little things like word choice can be quite impactful. I’m not criticising you, I just wanted you to be aware of your bias.