The Reading Process

“Of all the diversions of life, there is none so proper to fill up its empty spaces as the reading of useful and entertaining authors.”  --- Joseph Addison

Stage 1: Get an Overview of the Selection

• Read for the background information and its author;

• Consider the title;

• Write down any response after the first reading as a journal entry: describe the piece and your reaction to it.

Stage 2: Deepen your Sense of the Selection

• Mark off, or write down the thesis of the selection;

• Locate the main textual evidence, or the supporting evidence used to develop the thesis;

• Return to any unclear passages, try to make sense of the initially confusing spots;

• Has your initial impression changed?

Stage 3: Evaluate the Selection (ask questions!)

• Do you agree or disagree with the writer?

• How does the writer make the selection move smoothly from beginning to the end?

• Which stylistic devices are used to good effect in the selection?

• How does the selection encourage further thought?