Ray Bradbury once remarked that, to destroy a culture, burning books is not necessary; all that is needed is to convince people to stop reading them. And, of course, the easiest way to sway people from reading is to keep them illiterate. Indeed, this is also the best way to rob them of their liberty. Frederick Doublas once remarked that “once you learn to read you will forever be free.”
Now, it may be true that more people are literate today than ever before. Some statistics indicate that around eighty-six percent of adults in the world can read and write at a basic level. Compare this statistic to data from the early nineteenth century, when only twelve percent of people in the world could read, and there is indeed much to celebrate.
But, what about other forms of literacy? Are people more culturally literate now? Can they read deeply, for understanding and not merely for a surface-level comprehension? What does it even mean to be literate? As educators--and particularly educators drawing from and adding to the liberal arts tradition--it is paramount that we consider such questions.
Here to talk about reading and its many forms is Dr. Lionel Yaceczko, lover of languages and teacher of Classics at The Heights School. In this episode, Dr. Yaceczko sits down for a discussion of Mortimer Adler’s How to Read a Book. Using Adler’s book as a springboard, we first run through the three kinds of reading, specified by the end to which they aim:
Second, Dr. Yaceczko helps us tackle what he calls the perennial problems that can make reading difficult, namely vocabulary and syntax, as well as some of the stumbling blocks that are particular to contemporary readers. Third, we consider Adler’s four levels of reading:
In particular, Dr. Yaceczko delves into the third level of reading--analytical--the preparation for which Adler argues ought to be the goal of a liberal arts education at the secondary school level.
To be sure, the development of the capacity for analytical reading is no small task, but it is well worth the effort; for the difficulty of the endeavor comes from the loftiness of the goal. Despite the ardor of the task, rest assured: with patience our sons--and ourselves--may little-by-little grow into better readers. After all, the attainment of any goal, no matter how lofty, begins with small steps; it is from the valley that one ascends to the heights.
Show Highlights
Suggested Reading
How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren
Aristotle for Everybody by Mortimer J. Adler
Also on the Forum
Forming Deep Workers with Cal Newport
Eulexia: The Goal of Deep Reading by Lional Yaceczko
Summer Reading with a Purpose with Tom Longano
How to Master the Art of Reading Outside by Tom Longano
Dr. Mehan on Children’s Literature and Human Flourishing: Introducing the Handsome Little Cygnet
Mentioned in the Episode
A Crack in Creation by Jennifer Doudna and Samuel H. Sternberg
Timaeus by Plato
Great Expectations by Jane Austin
Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation by Joseph J. Ellis
Dr. Matt Mehan introduces us to The Handsome Little Cygnet, a delightful book about a Cygnet growing up in the heart of the big apple. Our fluffy hero introduces his human counterparts to concepts of nature, mercy, and regaining the way after it's been lost. Parents, too, can see here an example of patience and optimism while guiding our cygnets towards flourishing, naturally.
The Handsome Little Cygnet (https://www.amazon.com/Handsome-Little-Cygnet-Matthew-Mehan/dp/1505120608/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=handsome+little+cygnet&qid=1627673893&sr=8-1)