Reading a Philosophical Text

• That doesn't mean we can't derive pleasure or information from a particular text - it just means that these are second in priority compared to understanding

• The style that most philosophers tend to write in is one that demands a slow and careful reading.
• Take the time to mull over every sentence that you read, and reflect carefully on what the author really means by what he says. It might be that you have to read a section several times before you actually understand what the author means.

A human being is spirit. But what is spirit? Spirit is the self. But what is the self? The self is a relation that relates itself to itself or is the relation's relating itself to itself in the relation; the self is not the relation but is the relation's relating itself to itself. A human being is a synthesis of the infinite and the finite, or the temporal and the eternal, of freedom and necessity, in short, a synthesis. A synthesis is a relation between two. Considered in this way, a human being is still not a self. In the relation between the two, the relation is the third as a negative unity, and the two relate to the relation and in the relation to the relation; thus under the qualification of the psychical the relation between the psychical and the physical is a relation. If, however, the relation relates itself to itself, this relation is the positive third, and this is the self. [[Soren Kierkegaard]]

• Confusion is natural when reading any kind of challenging literature.
• Concentrate on the relations between the various terms that the author is using in each sentence and paragraph by slowing down.

• A good way to get through a difficult text is to read with a dictionary beside you and note down any words that you don't understand or that are new to you.
• This problem of unusual/unfamiliar words is compounded in philosophy - none of the words in the Kierkegaard passage are complicated in themselves, rather they are ordinary words that have assigned specific meanings to them.

• Scholars for centuries have used different devices for marking important terms, ideas and concepts in the work - it forces them to read deliberately.
  • Underline crucial words, phrases and sentences.
  • Use checks and stars in the margins to emphasize important sections of text.
  • Make brief notes in the margins of the text to help sum up the author's main points.
  • Put a question mark next to passages that are problematic, ambiguous or unintelligible to you.
• Text marking can help you concentrate more intensely on a philosopher's line of argumentation, and will make it easier to go back to the passage in the future.
  • Use a pencil rather than a pen to mark text.
  • Mark text lightly so it can later be erased or changed if necessary.
  • Mark a text sparingly –– only in the most crucial sections.
  • Never mark a book that doesn't belong to you.

• Usually a philosophical text will get clearer as the author elaborates on his ideas and his arguments begin to unfold. So it's okay if you don't understand or make sense of a paragraph or text on the first few tries.

• Don't forget to read the introduction provided by the editor or translator.
• Read a brief intellectual biography of the author that will help put his ideas into context.
• Find an online source that can help guide you through a text.

• Explication: What does the author say?
  • State the author's thesis
  • Outline the author's arguments
  • Sum up the author's position
• Elucidation: What does the author mean?
  • Identify the implications of the author's position
  • Unveil the relevance of the author's position for your own times
• Evaluation: Is the author right or wrong?
  • Assess the strength of the author's arguments
  • Judge the author's position as tenable/untenable