I do indeed consider myself as a rereader of texts. For many texts, I find it highly beneficial to start from the beginning and reread in order to develop a better understanding of the information. From simple articles to extensive books I have discovered new information that I skimmed over the first time after I took time to reread the entire text or a simple paragraph. Initially, I began reading to understand a key point of a text, an exact detail or character. For AP English, I read to find rhetorical devices and connections between events. However, my scope of information was hindered by the shuttered window by which I read from. It was greatly beneficial to read an article a second or even a third time with a different eye in order to identify new information and new connections.
For larger texts, I believe it is even more beneficial to reread. Often times, in the process of reading a larger text, a person's conscious awareness may be diverted for a meager page, allowing for a complete distortion or loss of information. Not only does rereading draw attention to these details, but it allows for a deeper understanding of previous information that one may have believed they completely understood. In my initial reading of “The Great Gatsby,” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, I paid attention to the plot and how it developed throughout the text. However, when I read it once more for pleasure, I paid attention to details that I had previously read over and developed a greater fondness for the book and author. I noticed that Gatsby’s parties had no meaning to them if his dream girl was not present. A simple detail aided me in understanding who Jay Gatsby was and his motives behind many of his actions. Therefore, rereading is not simply for those who did not understand the text on the initial reading, it is for everyone who is looking to walk a known path in order to find unknown information.
RJ-
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for breaking the ice! I was starting to think no one was reading the blog at all! Hopefully, everyone will begin to write now that you have begun.
I like your observation of "walk[ing] a known path in order to find unknown information." In good, particularly great literature, there is always the meaning below the meaning. Often, rereading and close reading is how we discover the hidden gems.
SBL
I agree with you completely on the importance of rereading, especially when it comes to articles and other documents. I personally find myself sometimes at the end of a writing and not have actually read the text thoroughly. I also agree with you about AP English. Rereading in that class was really important especially in finding key points that the author was trying to get across to his audience. Without rereading the texts given to us, we wouldn’t be able to allow ourselves to understand what the point of the writing was. When it comes to novels, I hate to reread. I’m glad that you find it important to do so when it comes to larger pieces of writing. With rereading any type of writing, you find more information that you might have skipped over the first time you read. I agree with you on this post, RJ.
ReplyDeleteI completely understand what you meant when you wrote about your reading of The Great Gatsby, only our positions were reversed. The first time I read Fitzgerald’s novel was for pleasure because one of my friends recommended it to me. I was reading on a surface level without truly looking into the plot and the characters, all I cared about was Jay finally being with Daisy. This does not happen of course and I was immediately repulsed and declared my hatred for the book. I looked at the story through the typical eyes of a teenage girl in love with the idea of true love and romance and a happy ending. You can imagine my disappointment when I realized we would have to read it for Mrs. Evans. However, upon my second reading, I looked into the plot and the characters because I already knew the story and I fell in love with it. This experience really showed me why reading a text a second time is important, just as it did for you.
ReplyDeleteI love how you stated that, "[rereading] is for everyone who is looking to walk down a known path in order to find unknown information." That is exactly what rereading is about, for as you said, it is difficult to fully grasp the true meaning of a work of literature in one read.
ReplyDeleteIn my personal experience, I get more from rereading when I am not forcing myself. The desire to seek out new information is essential for me. This is just as how you said when you read The Great Gatsby for fun, you were able to notice more you missed the previous time.
When I am rereading without a passion to learn, I often get bored. While rereading is a skill that is helpful in aiding one's journey through a book, I personally believe that there also has to be a willingness to learn. A hungry soul is more eager to devour down a meal, as an a reader hungry for new information is more eager to search for missed details.
That was wonderfully written. I must say that being in AP Language and Composition really helped me comprehend how beneficial and crucial it is to reread the texts even if one did dislike it the first time. Rereading shows that you are striving to understand the text fully and not just simply wanting to get the "general gist" of it. Rereading is especially important when reading a text with depth and different meanings because it allows you multiple opportunities to understand what the author is trying to say along with becoming more familiar with the themes, symbols and motifs that the author is using.
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