Psychologists told what happens to those who read a lot

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Suddenly reading became fashionable. Nobody favors nerds and nerds, but the “reading man” has received a special status for several years now and is not going to give it away. Moreover, here we are talking not only about those who study exclusively the classics and meters, like Dostoevsky, Pushkin, Gogol and further down the list from school.

No, now you can be considered a bookophile even if you adore fantasy, romance novels, treatises on psychology, and even occasional bestsellers from celebrities. Therefore, no one places particular restrictions on the quality of books.

But they are chasing the quantity. If among your acquaintances there is no person who periodically brags on his page in the social network that he bought or read the anniversary book 999, then … this is strange. A separate type of reader is those who literally swallow one book a day. And he actively brags about it. But just think about it - read one book a day! Sounds cool and honorable, but … is it true?

Usually we are not talking about short stories or stories, but full-fledged novels. And this is 200/300/500 pages for a minute. Even inveterate philologists who are used to immersing themselves in complex texts in a short time can hardly master 100-200 pages per day. So they study, are students and devote most of their time to study. Is that the same mythical acquaintance who clicks books like seeds, is also preparing for the session?

Let's think sensibly: this is most likely an adult who has a job (at least a part-time job), household chores, and the like. All this takes time and effort. Therefore, the tales that someone reads avidly in 24/7 mode is a priori a lie. You can live for several days on such enthusiasm, but even with a downed regime and an incredibly interesting book, it is unrealistic to constantly communicate with the book like that.

So the scheme "book-food-book-toilet-book-food-book-sleep" disappears immediately. If we are not talking about a teenager who sits on the ready from his parents.

It makes no sense even to count by the clock. Think about your routine and your free time. How much do you spend on work, cleaning, commuting to and from the office, shopping, cooking, and the like? How much strength and desire remain after this, but at least just free minutes for yourself? For hobbies, leisure. Imagine that you will spend 100% of the remaining time reading. Even if you are not a fan of literature. Do you think that in such conditions it is realistic to master a book a day? No, of course.

Then what do those who always brag about how many books they manage to read count on? Are they lying? Oddly enough, but no. They do read, and they manage to reach the last page by evening. But there is a nuance: such "speed reading" leaves nothing behind …

Even if you overcome the phenomenal 200-500 pages of the book in a day at this pace, it is unlikely that it will work. Just running your eyes along the lines, you do not have time to appreciate the beauty of the language, the author's style, understand the meaning, notice the references. Sometimes speed eats up about 50% of the meaning, so there is a great risk of forgetting half of the plot altogether, even key events. If you cannot remember what the book is about, what the names or central events were, the denouement, then … you have become a victim of "fashion reading".

Therefore, do not believe that I have read 30 books in a month. They have read it, but it is of little use. Do not repeat other people's mistakes and take the next book not as a quest "read me faster than anyone else !! 1", but enjoy it as an original story. Then it will be possible to appreciate the literary work at its true worth, and not just indulge the next trend.