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Hey there, my fellow kekistanis. It’s time to get redpilled on Paul Edwards' and Mortimer J. Adler's reading approaches. Now, you're probably slouched in your gamer chair scoffing "Pfft, I already know how to read, Bookchad. Stop feeding me bluepills." Well, betabuxx hold onto your tendies because this isn't about recognizing words on a page; it's about waging war against the normie way of shallow reading and ascending into big brain territory 🤡

Paul Edwards' approach on reading non-fiction

This ain't your average librarian's hushed whisper wisdom but a based approach stemming from Paul N. Edwards' expert insights. The goal here ain't just pointless page-flipping - this is how you absorb a book, wrestle with it, and finally squeeze out every last drop of knowledge.

Rule numero uno - only fiction gets treated like a Netflix binge session. Non-fiction books aren't about suspense; they're your personal info dump stations. Drop the soyboy habit of reading them cover to cover without pause. Instead, practice calculated skipping around like you would on the anonymous forums - only engage when it's worth your time.

To pull out intel efficiently, give each book trio of thorough scans:

  1. Recon round: skim through quick 'n dirty to get an overview
  2. Deep dive: spend the lion share of your time here to understand key points
  3. Mop-up operation: Take notes in your own words as mental ammo for future reference

Time? Edwards writes these numbers:

Second, make a realistic plan that includes how much time you will devote to each of the three stages. For a 250-page book, I might spend 15 minutes on overview, 4 hours on detailed reading, and 20-30 minutes making notes — but I'd adjust these periods up or down depending on how difficult the text is, how important it is to me, and how much time I have.

This ain't some SJW-approved participation trophy nonsense; you gotta use multiple strategies and be active in engaging with the text if you want rewards rather than just appreciating pretty black squiggles on paper!

And don’t believe that mumbo-jumbo about digital screens being better than printed materials because of "resolution". MSM might try to convince us that print is dead but any Chad knows paper holds critical advantages like easy markup during reading sessions reducing distraction unlike constantly dicking around with highlighting tools on PDFs.

In short, step beyond being passive consumers – be active readers instead.

Mortimer Adler's approach

Maybe you heard about Mortimer Adler, maybe not. But anyways, my dear bibliophile, it's the man that learned our miserable world to read since 1940. This book was discussed multiple times, I relied here not only on a book itself, but on a great explanations here and here

Adler

Adler spits out four levels of reading:

  1. Elementary Reading
  2. Inspectional Reading
  3. Analytical Reading
  4. Syntopical Reading

Each one is a level unlocking higher understanding akin to leveling up from a soyboy NPC to an enlightened gigachad.

Elementary reading

Elementary reading? Well... Just you should know which book are you holding in your hands. That's all. Really. Just smell pages, read the title, read the annotation, you know. Play with a book as you wish, read couple of the soy comments at goodreads.

Is this book good for you?

Yes? Noice. Continue.

Inspectional reading

Inspectional Reading is where we start grinding XP. It's split into two sub-levels: systematic skimming and superficial reading — think speedrunning through Doom but you’re tearing through chapters instead of demonic hordes.

So apparently there are two types of inspectional reading: power-browsing like a turbocharged Chad skimming through Thots' Insta posts, and surface-level perusing that resembles Normie-SJWs' understanding of memes.

First of all, we have systematic skimming, which is not as hard as they want you to believe. It's like being the detective in your own personal conspiracy theory:

  1. Start with peeking at the cover and preface, just like lurking on an unfamiliar website. This primes your meme-machine for what's coming next.
  2. Dive into the table of contents - it's practically Discord server's rooms but in book form. If these 'boomers' put so much effort into creating those ToCs, why not give them a quick glance?
  3. Now absorb the language from the index; it gives you hints about topics covered and breaks down any potential Illuminati code words.
  4. Identify the key points of arguments made by author(s).
  5. Reach "The End": You might find all summarized neatly there itself like concluding remarks after a long thread debate.
  6. Hear out their interviews if available; consider this your daily dose of YouTube drama digest but more intellectual.

This whole process is how you crack open a book without actually dedicating yourself to it fully…yet.

Is this book good for you?

Yes? Noice. Continue.

Next comes our favourite – superficial reading. Imagine opening up /pol/ for memes but ending up in geopolitics discussion? That’s this type of reading. Don’t get bogged down each time something doesn't make sense, just keep scrolling… err… I mean keep reading.

Why? Because even if you understand only around 25% (kinda makes me feel when I read Lacan), when you re-read or re-visit that part later on, things will start falling into places (like finally getting that rare Evangelion reference).

These steps should lead you answering: What sorta book IS this really (Just another bluepill narrative or deep lore)? Is it worth delving deeper?

Is this book good for you?

Yes? Noice. Continue.

Analytical reading

The third stage — Analytical Reading — is where you flex those pulsating intellectual muscles and chew on the material like it owes you money. You've leveled up from being fed information pablum style; now, you're hunting down knowledge armed with nothing but your wit.

Try and define whether it sits in the realm of fact or fiction - but remember to go beyond just those two simplistic categories. There are all sorts of expository books which exist purely to enlighten us about some aspect of existence.

In understanding this distinction between labels like ‘history’ and ‘philosophy’, we can gain insight into the writer's sphere of problems they aim to address within their work. You wouldn't use a hammer to screw in a lightbulb would ya?

You see, books aren’t just chunked under theoretical or practical tags mindlessly - there’s logic behind it all. Theoretical works feed our brains facts; while practical ones teach us how best not to make complete fools of ourselves in whatever endeavor we’re attempting.

On that note let’s delve into the anatomy of these knowledge arsenals known as books – treat them as if they were blueprints: architectural wonders formed from words instead bricks!

Firstly (or secondly if we continue following my little roadmap), spell out the gist of the entire book in one sentence or less if possible- chisel down its essence without losing sight of what makes it unique.

Subsequently round up all key components that comprise this literary edifice – showcase their interconnections leading back towards encompassing unity they’ve constructed for themselves.

Now, thinking about all these parts will give you something better than just calling them chapters - an organized set-up where every section plays its role perfectly akin to rooms in mansion; different sizes & utilities but connected harmoniously creating well-functioning whole!

Our rule here is simple: identify what problem(s) author faced while writing his masterpiece! For initiates among us, authors don’t suddenly decide write 500 pages for fun- there’s usually burning question/problems driving their endeavors forward!

Don’t be too hard on yourself though- no one expects you Sherlock Holmes author's deepest psyche based solely on text front you!

To wrap things up quick recap:

  1. Classify book-novel/play/how-to?, etc
  2. Condense whole narrative/idea one super compact nutshell,
  3. Breakdown major sections how individually contribute grand scheme unity,
  4. Unearth underlying problems author sought tackle through work.

Is this book ENOUGH good for you?

Yes? Noice. Continue.

Syntopical reading

Finally -- Syntopical Reading -- the endgame content for avid readers looking for 100% completion achievement — the true chads lvl99 boss version of literature comprehension meet-up right here.

Syntopical reading is like a heavy-duty mental workout that makes you juggle multiple texts at once. Its goal? To make sense of various viewpoints without having to cook up your own.

Here are the steps in bite-sized chunks:

  1. Draw up a big ol' bibliography by gathering works related to your subject.
  2. Give these books a once-over to sift out which ones specifically touch on your topic, and get a sharper idea of what you're dealing with.
  3. Dive into the most relevant parts of these books.
  4. Light-read the book - remember, we're not here for bedtime stories but for plundering insights!
  5. Get those authors on the same page language-wise just as if they're joining in on an international conference call.
  6. Draw out questions that most authors seem to be answering in their works.
  7. Floor it with defining issues by pitting contrasting answers against each other like some sort of scholarly gladiator match.
  8. Arrange those questions and issues for max illumination!

In this method, even silent texts can morph into profound arguments about life's conundrums - how society should function or what progress means.

Remember lads — we all start as nooby NPCs when opening our first book but gear up correctly and you’ll be dumpstering bad takes faster than a /pol/ thread gets pruned.