It’s now Sunday, the third day since my first class. Wow, what a rush. I’m reading essays in a book titled “Point Taken, A Brief Thematic Reader” which has so far, been an interesting read. Each week, our class is to read certain essays an comment on them in our on-line discussion board. The board is only open to the class, so I am unable to link to it from here. I’ve been pretty busy making mental notes and writing a bit about everything I’ve been reading.
Something this is causing me to do, is to think more critically of what I’m reading. I tend to be a slow reader; my wife can finish two or three books in the time it takes me to read one. I tend to believe I have a higher comprehension level, but I can’t be sure. What I do know, is that with these essays I’m currently reading, I begin to absorb more of the topic -after- I’ve finished. In one case, I started making judgments early about the piece, but later, after finishing the essay, I began to see things differently.
In that case, I learned that sometimes, if not all times, I need to finish what I’m reading in order to absorb the entire intent or to find a connection. In other reading, it’s been easy to finish and then sit back and think about what I read. With any of the reading I’ve done so far, the need to comment on the writing for class, has caused me to think much deeper into the essays; to analyze them for greater meaning, or to contrast my own life, beliefs or assumptions.
Overall, I think it’s been good for me. And I’m barely one week into it.
Asa Jay
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