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How & Why We Read

Added Jun 27, 2016 •

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Famous author and youtube Vlogger, John Green, shares his insights into why it is so important for students to read.

Show Transcript

hi I'm John Green and this is Crash Course can we get these books to roll in the future before we begin our mini-series on reading and writing an English word discuss how to read and watch her so-called markers of civilization o matic idea I mean for one thing great stories can have great lives in the oral tradition like one of my favorite books mules and Men by Zora Neale Hurston was a collection of folklore that we've the oral tradition until Zora Neale Hurston wrote it down and the same can be said for another of my favorite books The Odyssey apparently with people who live very far away from us and they also allow us to kind of hear the voices of the Dead I mean I don't want to get all liberal arts you on you but I do want to make this clear for me stories are about communication grammer's wife would be miserable in grade school as you attempted to learn what the Mark has a preposition is by the way on this program I will be certain names of my favorite writers when I would otherwise insert curse words jump over a puddle or Faulkner beneath the stars like right now if I'm doing my job and you're doing your job you aren't thinking about the fact that I'm contorting my mouth how long in bocal chords to create sounds that then exist is ideas in your brain it's just happened but if my language gets confusing if I par on Francais or incorrect word border news or eakspay India ink patent they deny erect a barrier between you and me you and Aunt you and me whose language to communicate complex ideas and experiences between people and that's true whether you're reading Shakespeare or bad vampire fiction reading is always an act of empathy it's can we Zen imagining of what it's like to be someone else sing to torture you with their doing it if they're doing it on purpose so the story can have a bigger and better life in your mind but for the record the question of whether they're doing it on purpose not a very interesting question still doing open letters  an open letter to authorial intent the first let's see what secret compartment today it's a boat beating against the current borne back ceaselessly into the past let me speak to you directly you don't matter look and say that the author is dead because that would make me very nervous however the author is not that important reasons to exist in her book is irrelevant all that matters is whether it's there because the book does not exist for the benefit of the author the book exists for the benefit of you if we as readers add a bigger and richer experience with the world as a result of reading a symbol in that symbol wasn't intended by the author we still win yes in between ofter enter reader but give yourself some power in that conversation reader go out there and make a world best wishes John Green is the thing it is extremely hard to get other people to feel what we are feeling like you broke up with me and she did explain what I'm going to my best friend in the entire world so I say I am completely obliterated my heart is broken in fact my heart is shattered into a million pieces fights with you things are going on here first in excellent news my heart has not been shattered into a million pieces it is pumping blood in precisely the same way that it did before the break up good news I am not totally obliterated total obliteration of me would look like this I'm using the techniques of hyperbole in the case of obliteration and metaphor case of my broken heart to try to describe the things that are happening inside of me and this is my best friend in the entire world now imagine that you're trying to communicate far more complicated and nuanced experiences and emotions and instead of just trying to communicate play them to your best friend you're trying to talk to strangers some of whom they live very far away and in fact we've centuries after your death not only that but instead of this happening during Pleasant conversation they are reading your dry dead text on a page so they can't hear your intonation or see the tears dripping from your cheeks even though it turns out that this break-up is going to be one of the best things that ever happened to you YouTube comment about the accuracy of our Gallifreyan hush this is fantastic Gallifreyan so I'm going to ask you to look closely at a text and pay attention to the real ways the author is trying to communicate the full complexity of human experience but I'm not asking you to go hunting because reading is supposed to be some treasure map in which you symbols write them down and then get an A in class true will help you to be more empathetic and thereby help you to avoid getting dumped by that young woman in the first place although more importantly and attentively can give you the how to share your own story with more precision and that will help people to understand your joy and your heartbreak yes but it will also be helpful in many other ways like when you are trying to convince the company move forward with your fourth-quarter strategy or whatever it is the people with real jobs do reading thoughtfully gives us better tools to explain corporate profits and broken hearts and it also to each other the green light in The Great Gatsby is such a wonderful symbol is because we all know what it's like to be outside in the evening staring off into the distance at a true that may never be ours all felt that stomach-churning mix of Yearning and ambition than Gatsby feels as he stares out at that green light across the harbor and by knowing what Wikipedia Gordon more about those around us those who came before us and we learn more about ourselves me but also who in Juliet some poetry by Emily Dickinson and The Catcher in the Rye there are links to get all of these books in the video info below will begin with Romeo and Juliet next week I'll see crash course is produced and directed by Stan Miller our script supervisor is Meredith Danko the associate producer is Danica Johnson the show is written by me and our Graphics team is about today's video you can read them in comments where they will be answered by our team of experts and if you haven't already read play all the way  light story watching crash course Mitsubishi in my own town don't forget to be awesome