LEARN TO READ CRITICAL

What is Critical Reading? When looking for the definition of "critical" I stumbled over this title which made me curious because when I read a book, I just find it good or bad. There is nothing in between.

The article started with an explanation : Critical reading means engaging in what you read by asking yourself questions such as, ‘what is the author trying to say?’ or ‘what is the main argument being presented?’ Honestly when I read, I read and I don't care what the author is trying to say, because if nobody understands what he tries to say, then I have my doubts about the book.

To read critically is to exercise your judgement about what you are reading – that is, not taking anything you read at face value. Of course not ! I love to read crime stories, but I would never give an advice, how the killer should proceed, or exercise judgements if he was right or wrong or if he should have used another method to make the crime perfect.

As a critical reader you should reflect on:

What the text says: after critically reading a book you should be able paraphrasing - in your own words - the key points. Of course I can,  if the book was good I can summarise  the whole story without any problem, and on demand I wouldn't say who was the killer.

Critical reading means being able to reflect on what a text says, what it describes and what it means by scrutinising the style and structure of the writing, the language used as well as the content.
Taking all this into consideration, I think I would rather go to see the film (if there is one)

In this description how you should read a book, I also learned that critical thinking is an extension of critical reading ! Who would have thought that ?

Thinking critically, involves being open-minded ??? If I think that my neighbor is too fat, and would tell it to her, I don't think she would appreciate very much my open minded critic.

Critical reading and critical thinking are therefore the very foundations of true learning and personal development. What a conclusion !!

This whole theory makes me think of a "Vernissage" where people stand in front of a painting and try to analyze the painting and what the painter has thought when he was painting his master piece. The painting consists of a white canvas on which is written "Landscape in snow" ! Nobody wants to be judged as stupid or not enough intellectual and tries to develop a philosophy about the white painting. The critics would find out what the painter had thought, while the painter stays in a corner and laughs his head off. He hadn't thought nothing. 








Linking to : SOCS - Critical