Why do you read?

Do you really read for no more than entertainment? Why not just watch TV and films? They are less demanding. It always surprises me that so many people say "I just read for fun and enjoyment". Surely literature offers you more than that? Isn't about connecting? I read because I feel less alone. It humanises me and lessens my misanthropy. My books also provide me with a storehouse of guidance and wisdom. Three thousand years of the finest minds of each generation struggling to make sense of existence and pouring out their profoundest thoughts on death, grief, fear, pain, loneliness etc. No more than entertaining?!

Reading is not just an entertainment for me. Books (maybe not all) are, in my view, a bearer of knowledge, wisdom, ... and can thus "connect" people with the same interests, or, (in the opposite way) help people to find more information about topics they do not know much about.

Because there's nothing on TV. No, seriously, I have always read a lot since I was very young. I suffer from ADHD & I am bipolar, this affliction gave me poor psycho-motor skills but also gave me an incredibly high reading age as a child. I could read before I went to school. By the time I had left school I had probably read more books than most people do in a lifetime. I remember lending books to my schoolteachers when I was about 11 or 12. This happened with my lecturers as well when I went to university. Plus I have no friends so reading is all I've got. (just kidding) :banana::banana::banana:

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Originally Posted by WICKES

Do you really read for no more than entertainment? Why not just watch TV and films? They are less demanding. It always surprises me that so many people say "I just read for fun and enjoyment". Surely literature offers you more than that? Isn't about connecting? I read because I feel less alone. It humanises me and lessens my misanthropy. My books also provide me with a storehouse of guidance and wisdom. Three thousand years of the finest minds of each generation struggling to make sense of existence and pouring out their profoundest thoughts on death, grief, fear, pain, loneliness etc. No more than entertaining?!

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For me reading is most of all a form of escapism. Entertainment, yes. A chance to forget this miserable world for a while.

Why I'll rather choose books than TV and films - well, first of all there's more to choose from when you read books instead of watching tv. Then books can be carried everywhere, but TV cannot.

Surely reading gives one new ideas and broadens one outlook on the world, but to me that's mostly just an added bonus.

I agree with Annamariah, it's exactly the same for me.

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Originally Posted by WICKES

Do you really read for no more than entertainment? Why not just watch TV and films? They are less demanding. It always surprises me that so many people say "I just read for fun and enjoyment". Surely literature offers you more than that? Isn't about connecting? I read because I feel less alone. It humanises me and lessens my misanthropy. My books also provide me with a storehouse of guidance and wisdom. Three thousand years of the finest minds of each generation struggling to make sense of existence and pouring out their profoundest thoughts on death, grief, fear, pain, loneliness etc. No more than entertaining?!

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I read to be both entertained and informed, I think that without books and music my life would have been vastly diminished. I can never understand how anybody can go through life without reading a book, although I know some people do. To some extent reading is a habit that is entirely beneficial in that it helps a person to think logically and improves one's vocabulary. Television has the opposite effect if one considers the number of semi-literate celebrities that are currently to be seen on TV; which is why I have stopped watching it. I stopped going to the cinema years ago on account of the formulaic storylines and poor acting/direction etc. So,yes,it's reading for me.

My main motive for reading is entertainment - and I usually find much more enjoyment in reading than watching TV, mainly because it also provides knowledge/insight. I don't agree with Brian Bear that TV has a negative impact on logical thinking and vocabulary - only certain shows (well, the majority of shows) - but still, many TV shows encourage logic, imagination, etc.

I enjoy the addition of personal imagination which reading allows for - scenes are described, but it falls to the reader to 'picture' characters/landscapes, whereas TV and films "show" exactly what the characters/etc look like (eliminating the ability to 'bring it to life' yourself)...

I'm trying to find something that I seem to have forgotten.

Some TV is excellent, for instance the South Bank Show overview of the life and work of Carol Ann Duffy that was shown yesterday. The batman film wasn't too bad either. Given that I hadn't indulged action fantasies for a while it was quite invigorating.

I read/watch in search of refined sensual pleasure, that is, I seek "truly" pleasurable things. Much of what appears on TV and pretends to be entertaining isn't entertaining to me. If TV had nothing but Shakespeare, Aescyhlus, Ibsen,... Carol Ann Duffy then I'd watch it all the time...

I read to be informed when I need to eat... investment planning, how to cook an omelette, and such like...

I read cos reading makes me feel. My everyday life is relatively uneventful and I'm content with it most of the time, but it doesn't provoke any profound emotions in me, so I borrow some from writers. I empathise with characters, go through what they go through (if a book is well-written) and in the end usually experience a sort of catharsis which feels different with every book. I also read to learn about writing, about the different ways of expressing ideas, so I can maybe some day write something myself.

I prefer reading to television, because if I am reading, I can use my imagination as to appearance of characters, settings, accents and so forth, and I far prefer that to some Producer telling me what to think. Furthermore, I can't watch telly on the train, and a book lasts just a bit longer. It doesn't use any power (good old carbon footprints), I don't need a plug-hole, I don't have to worry if my battery will give out, it doesn't make noise that can bother others, I can put it down when I want to. I can switch between books - and if that ain't entertainment, would somebody please tell me what is? Oh, and I don't get interrupted by commercials.

I read so that I have something something to do in the bathroom besides, um, going to the bathroom.

What about 'the healing power' of the great mythic themes running through literature? Stories connect us to each other, to nature. They make sense of the world. There is something in us that craves a story. It seems to be innate. For many thousands of years the storyteller occupied an important place in the tribe/ community. I would love to see literature liberated from the page once again. There should be more public readings by authors. If I was a professor teaching Beowulf, for example, I'd have it recited outside around a log fire on a cold winter night.

nice idea WICKES I'd be one of those sittin' around this fire and listening :)
about the main question: to read is to think with an other humans head, so whenever I'm sick of my own head (and world) I grab a book and try another one (somehow theatres do the same and some films too but you can't carry a theatrestage with actors or a screen with you so books are the best way to carry worlds around, besids somehow films and plays on stage are different .. because we see all the same so its the same for everyone whereas a book creats a new world for each reader but I don't want to go into detail about this...no time now.. ) thx for this tread really !!:D

I am not much of a reader, since I try not to read books I do not like I often give up after beginning a book, because it gets boring, but well I am an odd one I liked Ulysses and read it up to the end , but can't finish 1984 (all my friends did it vice versa), talking about TV - it spoils my mood a lot - hate News, hate soap-operas, hate American-happy-end -action-god-please-turn-the-TV-off-films ( no offence), hate shows with nothing accept show off, hate people talk about magic and all that paranormal stuff, hate the amount of ads ( I wonder , is there any good one - most is written by freaking dope fiends), I watch only two things -and they are only once a week, well sometimes I watch news ( culture channel has some good) and if they have good films that day or just watch TV after a brain work out and want to do something brainless
Well most of the time I listen to music

The older I get the more I read and the less I watch tv.

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Originally Posted by Jermac

The older I get the more I read and the less I watch tv.

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Yeah...definitely. :thumbs_up

95% of the reason I read is to become a smarter and more informed person. It's an educative experience, getting new perspectives about everything. 5% (or maybe even less) is for entertainment purposes

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Originally Posted by lokariototal

95% of the reason I read is to become a smarter and more informed person. It's an educative experience, getting new perspectives about everything. 5% (or maybe even less) is for entertainment purposes

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You must still be an undergraduate. A hell of a lot of the reading I do is for pleasure. If I learn something, that is an added bonus.

I read sometimes because I feel an obligation to and sometimes because it makes me feel like I'm not just going through the motions of my life. I prefer, however, to write essays in order to get more in touch with my thinking process and my own opinions. Like redhead, I think I'm transitioning into the pleasure phase of reading.

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Originally Posted by Red-Headed

You must still be an undergraduate. A hell of a lot of the reading I do is for pleasure. If I learn something, that is an added bonus.

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I don't think that age or level of education has anything to do with it.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

I don't think that age or level of education has anything to do with it.

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I suppose it depends if you want to graduate or not I reckon. ;)

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Originally Posted by Red-Headed

I suppose it depends if you want to graduate or not I reckon. ;)

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I know a lot of college dropouts who could debate even JBI or SLG into a sweat (well, more "two" then "a lot" but that's besides the point).

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

I know a lot of college dropouts who could debate even JBI or SLG into a sweat (well, more "two" then "a lot" but that's besides the point).

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I don't think that it is a good thing to proselytise about being an educational drop-out. I worked hard for my degrees, & although I still study many things, I do enjoy reading a lot of the time for the sheer enjoyment of it. This may sound rather perverse to many, but sometimes I just like to sit down with a good novel.

I didn't drop out, but if I did, that would be fine. College graduates aren't automatically smarter or harder workers then people who didn't feel the need to go. Bill Gates dropped out. So did Woody Allen.
Ray Bradbury:
“I never went to college. I went to the library.”
The classroom scene isn't for everyone.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

So does pretty much everyone else here.
I didn't drop out, but if I did, that would be fine. College graduates aren't automatically smarter or harder workers then people who didn't feel the need to go. Bill Gates dropped out. So did Woody Allen.
Ray Bradbury:
“I never went to college. I went to the library.”
The classroom scene isn't for everyone.

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You're probably correct. I think that if you feel the need to sit around on bean bags all day long & dribble or stare at your own navel or something then you should have that right.

Why attempt anything vaguely productive? I personally am not particularly interested in apathetic pointlessness as a pastime. I don't think that there is anything necessarily wrong with getting a decent education.

Still, the world needs ditch diggers & fast food workers. I just think that if you have some academic ability you should try to utilise it.

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Originally Posted by Red-Headed

You're probably correct. I think that if you feel the need to sit around on bean bags all day long & dribble or stare at your own navel or something then you should have that right.

Why attempt anything vaguely productive? I personally am not particularly interested in apathetic pointlessness as a pastime. I don't think that there is anything necessarily wrong with getting a decent education.

Still, the world needs ditch diggers & fast food workers. I just think that if you have some academic ability you should try to utilise it.

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I already told you, I'm a student at the University of Alberta. Not that it matters, but that's a pretty friggin' good school, especially for scientific research. If you believe that college students are better then people who didn't care to go, then you're not as smart as you think you are (as if that weren't already obvious from all of your spelling mistakes). Yeah, you're right, Bill Gates is a poor lowly ditch digger. Psh.

My boyfriend hated college because he couldn't stand the other students (you know, the way college kids are so desperate for academic approval and all that... he thought it was pathetic). He dropped out because he believed that he was wasting his time. Making studies a chore rather then a hobby tends to convert learning from being an intrinsic joy to one depending wholly on material success and praise. David and I attend lectures and read books for fun. I go to school to study science because, well, you can't really get lab experience at home and I do eventually want a career that will let me work outside (something like research would be nice) but I could live without a degree, and I would be no worse for it.

Also, don't downgrade labor workers like they're not fit to lick your shoes. The men that I grew up with make more money then you do (trust me. A rig worker's salary is nothing to scoff at), and they contribute more to society. They have better personalities, too... a lot more fun, I'd say.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

I already told you, I'm a student at the University of Alberta. Not that it matters, but that's a pretty friggin' good school, especially for scientific research. If you believe that college students are better then people who didn't care to go, then you're not as smart as you think you are (as if that weren't already obvious from all of your spelling mistakes). Yeah, you're right, Bill Gates is a poor lowly ditch digger. Psh.

My boyfriend hated college because he couldn't stand the other students (you know, the way college kids are so desperate for academic approval and all that... he thought it was pathetic). He dropped out because he believed that he was wasting his time. Making studies a chore rather then a hobby tends to convert learning from being an intrinsic joy to one depending wholly on material success and praise. David and I attend lectures and read books for fun. I go to school to study science because, well, you can't really get lab experience at home and I do eventually want a career that will let me work outside (something like research would be nice) but I could live without a degree, and I would be no worse for it.

Also, don't downgrade labor workers like they're not fit to lick your shoes. The men that I grew up with make more money then you do (trust me. A rig worker's salary is nothing to scoff at), and they contribute more to society. They have better personalities, too... a lot more fun, I'd say.

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A/ Grow up.


B/ I worked in timber mills & on building sites for several years before I went to university. I have dredged canals & been a labourer. I know what poverty is. I have also never dropped out of anything in my life.


C/ See 'A' & 'B'.

:eek:


*As regards to my spelling mistakes, you don't seem that bright for an undergraduate, I'm English...we all spell this way in my country.

:lol:
Your just mad because I called you on being an elitist, lit-snob jerk.

Also, labor doesn't equal poverty. My little industrial town is a gold mine (well, actually a coal mine, but whatever).

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

:lol:
Your just mad because I called you on being an elitist, lit-snob jerk.

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Are you about 12 years old or something? Does your mommy know you are using the computer? Oh, & genius 'your' is a genitive. You should have used the contractive 'you're'. The pronoun 'you' & the present indicative of the auxiliary verb 'to be'. College student my arse!

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Originally Posted by Red-Headed

Are you about 12 years old or something? Does your mommy know you are using the computer? Oh, & genius 'your' is a genitive. You should have used the contractive 'you're'. The pronoun 'you' & the present indicative of the auxiliary verb 'to be'. College student my arse!

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Well, it's late and I'm sleepy. Give me a break, man. We could play the grammar game if you want to, and I could point out all of your spelling mistakes and incorrectly used words which you used to try to make yourself look smarter then you are, but I'm not a douchebag like that.

*edit* also, if I'm debating with someone who makes a good point for which I don't have a response, I don't abandon the subject at hand to make immature personal attacks.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

Well, it's late and I'm sleepy. Give me a break, man. We could play the grammar game if you want to, and I could point out all of your spelling mistakes and incorrectly used words which you used to try to make yourself look smarter then you are, but I'm not a douchebag like that.

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I am not aware of any incorrectly used words, please enlighten me. As for spelling, if you really were an undergraduate you would know that British English has more variant spellings than US English as our language register wasn't finalised until the early 20th century. You had Noah Webster. We had to wait for the OED. We were slackers in that respect.

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Originally Posted by Red-Headed

I am not aware of any incorrectly used words, please enlighten me. As for spelling, if you really were an undergraduate you would know that British English has more variant spellings than US English as our language register wasn't finalised until the early 20th century. You had Noah Webster. We had to wait for the OED. We were slackers in that respect.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

*edit* also, if I'm debating with someone who makes a good point for which I don't have a response, I don't abandon the subject at hand to make immature personal attacks.

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And that's that. I don't play the grammar game anymore, I gave up on that technique when I started debating above an eighth grade level. I'm really sleepy now, I've carried on this stupid conversation with you way longer then I should have (it's four in the morning here). Goodnight, no hard feelings. I do think that you should try to be less of a snob, though.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

And that's that. I don't play the grammar game anymore,

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You aren't very good at it anyway. I am. I make sure many of the pupils who have had difficulties with basic English that I have taught have a thorough grounding in grammar. They appreciate it after a while.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

I gave up on that technique when I started debating above an eighth grade level.

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It would help if I knew what 'eighth grade level' was.

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Originally Posted by JuniperWoolf

I'm really sleepy now, I've carried on this stupid conversation with you way longer then I should have (it's four in the morning here). Goodnight, no hard feelings. I do think that you should try to be less of a snob, though.

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You perceive me as a snob for some idiosyncratic reason better known to yourself. I was born with learning difficulties, I have severe ADHD & I am bipolar. I fought tooth & nail for my education. Every exam I took I had to work hard for. It didn't come easy to me. I worked in low paid jobs for several years before I decided to get an education. I am now qualified to teach people with learning difficulties inter alia & I believe everyone should have a chance at an education. In my opinion, 'dropping out' is the slackers way out. If you have the ability (& most people have if they try) it just takes hard work & diligence. Unfortunately, this is too much for many who just expect things to drop into their laps. Life is rarely like that. I learned the hard way. I'm proud of every letter after my name. If that makes me a snob then I'm happy with that.

If using correct grammar is 'playing the grammar game' I really fear for the future of literature.

I haven't taken any offence anyway, it's been fun (notice how I used the UK English spelling of 'offence').

Nos da (Welsh for Good Night, I used to live in *Wales.)

*Wales: A small country to the west of England.

:wave:

Red-Headed, JuniperWoolf, I felt just like saying to you both, do not know why though, if any anybody could explain that I'd be so happy. You people are arguing about who is smart and who is stupid, but from my perspective of view the more you argue the more stupid it seems. I think neither of you is right and wrong, it is just it is what different people think.
Red-Headed!
Talks about tough life, that makes me annoyed, when people say: Hey I had it rough too. Well, as if anybody had it smooth, as if your life is the hardest, sure, nobody had ever experienced problems, that are more complicated. And yeah, I am not that book-wise like you, I had to look up what ADHD & bipolar is ( mental disorder - I laughed at it,( sorry, but most people in my country do not even consider it an illness all that much, people just love to say they are ill - meaning come on I am ill, don't be that bad to me, if so I am ill too you know, and according to how many people take antidepressant medication - most people are ill, so being healthy seems abnormal, the world is a huge mental-house)). Well I'll go on, my mind is just a bit confused and mixes up words a lot, so sorry for it.
I might be getting you wrong, but it seemed to me like that you think that anybody, who drops out or doesn't necessary choose an academic way - was weak and gave up on getting knowledge, if you do, I just cannot see the way you see the world. People have different interests, so knowledge might vary. I've saw so many people around, who study and are good at it, they might have great future, but they are pitiful, they do not even like it, I think they should drop out, I always knew my friend never wanted to go to University, but she did, and what did she get? Well, absolutely nothing, just a bunch of information she doesn't attach importance too, but the hair-cut she maid me, that was important, that was so important to her, she looked so scared, happy, excited, a lot of emotions, I've never seen her like that before. Maybe it is a smarter way to go the way according to I wish , but not I have to thing, well I cannot say for sure, never thought of it too much, it seems complicated and I despise overcomplicated stuff when you do not need it.
12 year joke is really low and stupid I think - it doesn't really matter, you know people tend to say that when you get elder you get wisdom, but sometimes you just get elder. Never underestimate kids, they are clever and not polluted by vast amount of information, they have pure mind, not blank one.
JuniperWoolf!

I think I kind of get what you say in some points, but I get your boyfriend even more. I wonder why I am not annoyed like I am with Red-Headed, though I do not agree, and feel that saying snob was wrong.

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I don't think that age or level of education has anything to do with it.

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Well, I think environment does a lot; the environment can make a person read more or less and change their mind on why they read. I was never into reading, but in here (University I mean) it is absorbing you, and you suddenly find yourself in the midst of it.
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My, my... lots of letters, I should stop being that boring. People, hope you didn’t fall asleep reading it.

R e m i n d e r

Please do not personalise your arguments.

Post containing personal remarks will be removed without any further notice.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

And yeah, I am not that book-wise like you, I had to look up what ADHD & bipolar is ( mental disorder - I laughed at it

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That is the typically ignorant reaction of many people. Many adults have had learning problems due to ADHD & bipolarism & assumed that they were not intelligent & couldn't achieve anything. There were similar prejudices with dyslexia nearly a hundred years ago. You may laugh at people afflicted with learning difficulties but I have helped teach people with learning difficulties to achieve their potential. I don't think that it is a laughing matter. I think that if you derive humour from laughing at people with any kind of mental problem or learning difficulty then you must be quite sad. I can't help you.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

sorry, but most people in my country do not even consider it an illness all that much,

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Why doesn't this surprise me?

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

people just love to say they are ill - meaning come on I am ill, don't be that bad to me, if so I am ill too you know, and according to how many people take antidepressant medication - most people are ill, so being healthy seems abnormal, the world is a huge mental-house)). Well I'll go on, my mind is just a bit confused and mixes up words a lot, so sorry for it.

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So what exactly is your point? Are you saying that people with clinical depression (often caused by problems with the serotonin levels in their brains) are just faking problems? If you can't see how ignorant that appears to be I can't help you.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

I might be getting you wrong, but it seemed to me like that you think that anybody, who drops out or doesn't necessary choose an academic way - was weak and gave up on getting knowledge, if you do, I just cannot see the way you see the world.

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I had to work hard for my education & got into serious debt for it. If you want to drop out that's fine with me. I am also a black-belt in karate. I got that through hard work & much pain, I could have dropped out of that but I didn't. I think people should do what they want. I also believe that if you have the ability then you should try to utilise it. I also think that you should give your place at university to someone who could appreciate it by all means if you want to drop out.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

People have different interests, so knowledge might vary. I've saw so many people around, who study and are good at it, they might have great future, but they are pitiful, they do not even like it, I think they should drop out, I always knew my friend never wanted to go to University, but she did, and what did she get? Well, absolutely nothing, just a bunch of information she doesn't attach importance too, but the hair-cut she maid me, that was important, that was so important to her, she looked so scared, happy, excited, a lot of emotions, I've never seen her like that before. Maybe it is a smarter way to go the way according to I wish , but not I have to thing, well I cannot say for sure, never thought of it too much, it seems complicated and I despise overcomplicated stuff when you do not need it.

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What's your point exactly?

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

12 year joke is really low and stupid

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It was a bona fide question.

Also, don't downgrade labor workers like they're not fit to lick your shoes. The men that I grew up with make more money then you do (trust me. A rig worker's salary is nothing to scoff at), and they contribute more to society. They have better personalities, too... a lot more fun, I'd say.

This was uncalled for as well. I never 'downgraded' labour workers, & the rest of this is just an immature speculation. Plus, for an alleged undergraduate of the sciences, I find it strange that she didn't recognise my spelling as being idiomatically British English. I think that you both should read some David Hume on the problems of inferring from too little information.

and I could point out all of your spelling mistakes and incorrectly used words which you used to try to make yourself look smarter then you are, but I'm not a douchebag like that.


This is bordering on the ad hominem. It appears to me that I am being attacked for something that was imagined by my opponent. I've got nothing against drop-outs. I have also got nothing against graduates. I know who I respect more.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

I think - it doesn't really matter, you know people tend to say that when you get elder you get wisdom, but sometimes you just get elder.

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I believe you mean 'older', elder is restricted in use to people, and is generally only used as an adjective in the context of family relationships, as in an elder brother or sister.

The arrogance of youth is fine until you learn better. I did.

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Originally Posted by Anna_MAlkovych

Never underestimate kids, they are clever and not polluted by vast amount of information, they have pure mind, not blank one.

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Never underestimate the educated either.

For the ladies.

Reading makes me happy. A great book is euphoric.

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Originally Posted by Dirtbag

For the ladies.

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:lol:

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Originally Posted by Dirtbag

For the ladies.

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Well, let's hear your argument, don't be coy.