89Draft of "How Should One Read a Book"For let us see n stop a moment & consider what thesethree girls - Mary & Elizabeth & Helen - have learnt aboutreading novels. booksThey have learnt that a novelist may be trying to dothere may be many different kinds of novel. A novelmay be a plain story like Robinson Crusoe; it may beof adventurea comedy of character like Pride & Prejudice; it may befather &daughterin adrawingrooma novel ofor it may be about a shepherd &his thoughts when he is alone at night.it may be a book in which fate or natureplays as large a part as human character,like Far The Return of the Native.Besides this,They will have learnt that that no to be onthe watch for of a novelist is writing the kind ofbook perpetually on the watch to see what kindof book is being shaped by the novelist;they will have noticed what kind of language he isusing, whether it is plain & easy, direct, or full ofimages & allusions.They will and have understoodwhat he is why he is putting an emphasis,making a great deal of one incident & passingcompletely over another.In short they will bedoing what I think a reader ought to do - theywill be taking the writer's sentences, one after another,& building them up in the shape he intended.
Resize Images  

Select Pane

Berg Materials
 

View Pane