The Art of Active Reading
How to Engage With Books For Personal Growth and Sub-Creation
These are my notes from a workshop I gave at the Western Consortium of Classical Educators in Sacramento, CA this month.
Introduction
In his essay, “Of Studies,” Francis Bacon wrote:
Read not to contradict and confute; nor to believe and take for granted; nor to find talk and discourse; but to weigh and consider. Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention. Some books also may be read by deputy, and extracts made of them by others; but that would be only in the less important arguments, and the meaner sort of books, else distilled books are like common distilled waters, flashy things. Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man. And therefore, if a man write little, he had need have a great memory; if he confer little, he had need have a present wit: and if he read little, he had need have much cunning, to seem to know that he doth not. Histories make men wise; poets witty; the mathematics subtile; natural philosophy deep; moral grave; logic and rhetoric able to contend. Abeunt studia in mores [Studies pass into and influence manners].1
This passage not only underscores the importance of recognizing which books deserve the most and best of our attention, but also how to read such books for our greatest benefit.
In the first place, Bacon hints at the fact some books are like samples at Costco. Attend these as a passerby. Occasionally, you might discover something worth heading to the cold case for, but usually you’ve finished and forgotten this kind of morsel in the time it takes you to drop the wrapper in the garbage can. Don’t spend much time on these kinds of books. In our modern age of trend publishing, these books are (often quite literally) a dollar a dozen.
In the second place are those books you might consume in their entirety, but they’re usually informational in nature. These are not read curiously (i.e., contemplatively). They are valuable so far as they go, but once consumed, there’s not usually any meat left on the bone.
Finally, there are those books we need to spend time with. These books are few in number, relatively speaking. They are the best of what has been thought and written, Great Books as it were. And to read them wholly, we must read actively, with diligence and attention.
In some sense, reading actively can be understood as reading like a baseball catcher. This is how Mortimer Adler describes this kind of reading, in any case. In his book, How to Read a Book, Adler explains that just as the catcher in baseball actively engages with every pitch, so too must the thoughtful reader actively engage with each page.
Reading isn't merely an act of passive reception but a lively dialogue between the reader and the author. I would agree with Adler, but would also posit that Bacon’s line—Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man—provides some additional important insights into the art of active reading.
In our time together, we'll discuss Adler’s levels of reading, a process for conference and writing that can help us engage more deeply with the text, and finally, some ideas about choosing the right or best books to read.
Reading Like a Baseball Catcher: How to Read
In How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren emphasize, "The reader or listener is much more like the catcher in a game of baseball" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 5). This analogy underscores active engagement—reading demands effort, agility, and responsiveness. Adler and Van Doren introduce four levels of reading to illustrate varying degrees of active engagement:
Elementary Reading: Basic comprehension and decoding of words.
Inspectional Reading: Quick yet structured examination of the text to grasp its overall content and structure. Adler describes this as "the art of skimming systematically" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 18).
Analytical Reading: A thorough and detailed interaction with the text, asking questions, outlining arguments, and critically assessing the author’s claims. Adler notes, "Analytical reading is preeminently for the sake of understanding" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 19).
Syntopical Reading: Comparative reading across multiple texts to develop a deeper and more nuanced understanding of a particular subject or theme. Adler calls this "the most active and effortful kind of reading" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 20).
An active reader, especially at the analytical and syntopical levels, engages deeply:
Paying close attention to the author's arguments and supporting evidence.
Continuously questioning: What is the author saying? Why is this important? Is the argument coherent and convincing?
Interacting dynamically, transforming the passive experience into a rigorous mental exercise.
Reflect on your own reading practices, do they resemble the active catcher or a passive spectator?
Annotations, Zibaldone, and Zettelkasten: How to Read for Personal Growth and Sub-Creation
Cultivating a rich intellectual life requires systematic methods of reading and reflection. My own approach has developed organically and over a period of years, but resonates with C.S. Lewis’s delightful image of reading "with a pipe in my teeth and a pencil in my hand."
Keep in mind that what I am sharing with you here is just what I do, ideally. It doesn’t always manifest as neatly in real life as it does in my outline here, but I share it, not to convince you to adopt my approach, but to inspire you to develop your own annotation and note-keeping techniques.
Annotations
Some people prefer to use colored highlighters. That’s a good system and fine if you don’t mind your pages looking like a rainbow. I prefer to employ simple margin annotations to maintain clarity and engagement without overwhelming the text. In addition to writing notes to myself (and the author) in the margins, I also use the following symbols to engage with my reading:
P: People and places of interest; also relevant dates.
B: (for biblio) Books/articles cited or referenced by the author that might be worth exploring.
Numbers (1, 2, 3, etc): Outline enumerated arguments.
⭐️: Main thesis or highest point of a section (This will usually be cited in a paper.)
❗️: Important insights (These might be cited in my writing also.)
✔️: Noteworthy summaries, or waypoints to guide my rereading (These might be cited.)
❓: Unclear or questionable passages. I need to find an answer or think more about this.
❌: Disagreement (not flippant). There is a higher authority that conflicts with this idea.
C: Commonplace quotes or turns of phrase worth collecting that may not be directly relevant to the main arguments or point of the chapter, etc.
V: Vocabulary or notable expressions I need to look up or investigate..
K: Christological or “Kingdom” references.
Notebooks
Journal: For personal reflection on life, ideas, and Scripture reading.
Zibaldone: (Italian for “messy heap” or “hodgepodge.”) This is an intellectual scrapbook for capturing spontaneous thoughts, insights, and notable quotations without needing immediate organization. It's a catch-all of sorts.
Florilegia: (meaning "gathered flowers") This notebook is for selections that are beautiful, resonate deeply, worthy of ongoing reflection or memorization. This is a curated anthology for nurturing the soul.
Commonplace Book: This is like a personal encyclopedia, categorically organized to retrieve insights easily. Entries here are pulled from the Zibaldone and entered under category headings.
Zettelkasten: A more sophisticated network of interconnected notes, a "second brain," allowing deep synthesis and original thought. I use an app called Obsidian for this as it enables me to write and research more effectively.
Together the annotations and note-taking transform reading from a passive pastime into a rich, ongoing dialogue with great thinkers across history.
Reading at Whim: What to Read
Alan Jacobs, in The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction, compellingly argues for the value of reading "at Whim" (Jacobs, p. 15). Jacobs reminds us, (borrowing from poet Randall Jarrell), that reading for its own sake profoundly enriches our lives:
"He read Kim, it was plain, at whim: not to teach, not to criticize, just for love—he read it, as Kipling wrote it, just because he liked to, wanted to, couldn’t help himself” (Jacobs, p. 15).
Adler similarly notes that while analytical reading requires rigorous engagement, we must also honor reading’s inherent pleasure: "The art of reading... includes all of the same skills that are involved in the art of unaided discovery: keenness of observation, readily available memory, range of imagination, and, of course, an intellect trained in analysis and reflection" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 14).
Reading at Whim (not whim‚—minuscule w) does not mean choosing books carelessly or capriciously; rather, it involves following natural curiosity, personal interest, and compelling rabbit trails from a book’s bibliography.
C.S. Lewis warned readers to avoid the compulsion to read purely for obligation or status, something he criticized as "social and ethical hygiene." Instead, we do best to read books that genuinely inspire curiosity and delight, enhancing both pleasure and intellectual growth.
My Daily Reading Plan
Again, I share my personal reading plan, not to convince you to adopt my plan, but to inspire you to develop your own reading plan and habits.
I was first challenged to read the way I’m about to describe after reading the book Preaching with Freshness by Bruce Mawhinney. Instead of tackling just one book at a time, I read a few pages (sometimes only one or two) from a number of books in various genres, simultaneously. My list sometimes grows larger than this (seldom smaller), but the following is my targeted daily reading plan:
Bible
Theology
History/Bio
Fiction
Philosophy
Poetry
Education
Writing
Mechanics
Miscellaneous / Floating Genre (i.e., current interest, current event, economics, science, math, language, etc.)
Someone at the conference noted this approach seemed Olympic in nature. While it may seem so on paper, it’s really not much more “Olympic” than reading a chapter or so of a single book each day (about 20-50 pages per day depending on time factors and whether the chapters in the books have smaller sections that make for natural breaks).
Cultivating Wisdom from Old Western Culture: Reading Great Books
The tradition of reading Great Books is deeply embedded in "Old Western Culture," a term I am borrowing from C. S. Lewis to highlight the foundational texts and ideas that shaped Western civilization before the Post-Christian era.
Adler also champions this tradition, emphasizing the transformative potential of engaging with classic texts:
"Reading the Great Books, if it is done at all intelligently, involves not merely acquiring information but also gaining understanding and even wisdom" (Adler & Van Doren, p. 338).
These foundational texts—from Homer to Plato to Shakespeare—constitute an enduring conversation. As readers, we join this great conversation, not passively absorbing, but actively engaging the ideas that have shaped the Western world.
Thus, we read to:
Identify the perennial human questions that have engaged thinkers throughout history.
Recognize our contemporary context in light of enduring wisdom.
Allow these profound texts to challenge our assumptions and shape our worldview.
This approach nurtures a robust intellectual and cultural foundation, contributing significantly to our personal and societal flourishing.
Conclusion:
To read actively is to gain insights that help us live wisely. Whether you're reading to gain knowledge, cultivate wisdom, or simply delight in a good story, I hope something in this lesson will help bolster your own intellectual journey.
In short, choose your readings joyfully yet deliberately; pursue great books when you can; read interactively and reflectively; and create systems that help you capture and cultivate your insights so you can both meditate on them and use them in your own creative endeavors.
Francis Bacon, “Essays or Counsels: Civil and Moral,” in The Harvard Classics 3: Essays by Bacon, Milton, and Browne, ed. Charles W. Eliot (New York: P. F. Collier & Son, 1909), 128–129.
One more question, Scott! How do you define "Mechanics" in your reading list? Inquiring minds....
This was super helpful. Hope to implement some of this.