Reading views in “of Studies” and their differences from the Chinese thoughts

【Abstract】： The essay “ of studies” argued the views of Bacon about three aspects of reading： purposes， functions and methods. And these ideas which influenced the western world had some differences with the thoughts of Chinese scholars.

I Introduction

There are plenty of essays arguing about the importance and the methods of reading. Francis Bacon， the father of the modern science， showed his own ideas and advice about the reading in his famous essay— “of studies”.

In the essay， he pointed out three purposes of reading： “Studies serve for delight， for ornament， and for ability.”[1]while the Chinese famous scholar Lin Yutang held the view that reading served purely for delight. About the function of the reading， Bacon emphasized the different effects of different subjects.While the Chinese old saying about this aspect was more practical. As for the methods， the author advised applying different ways in different books and selecting different books according to different personalities； Chinese scholar LuXun stuck to extensive reading. Here， I will analyze the reading views in “of studies” and compare them with the Chinese thoughts.

II Reading views

Purposes of Reading

Bacon pointed out the purpose at the beginning： “Studies serve for delight， for ornament， and for delight.”[1] Ornament served for speech and talking； thus mastering the knowledge could make a normal person out of an orator. Appropriate words and sentences could show intellectual cultivation. These were his three purposes， while Chinese scholar， Lin Yutang thought that reading should follow the interest.[2] He advised that reading must serve purely for interest. People should get rid of those practical and functional effects which would decrease their desires and ruin the whole activity.

Functions of the reading

Bacon wrote that every subject had its own importance. Histories could teach people from other persons’ mistakes； and moral study helped them to distinguish the good and evil and stick to their moral principles. In addition to stimulate the potential creativity， they could also remedy the limitations of the wisdom.[3] Thanks to mathematics， a person could concentrate on the work and think efficiently. Philosophy researched the detailed things and assisted learners to distinguish the small differences. Besides the differences， people also need to find the similarities and “call up one thing to prove and illustrate another”.[1] In this case， it was better for the person to learn from the lawyer’s cases， for they were full of strict logic and reasoning abilities. In short， reading could make a person become more intelligent. While the old saying of China focused more on the rewards. The old saying went like this： “Person would capture foods， houses and beauties by reading the books.” In ancient times， many poor people endeavored to enter into the court to get rid of the poverty. And now， this thought still influenced plenty of Chinese. Children were indoctrinated when they first stepped into the school with the ideas that they must get high grades and be admitted to famous schools. The ultimate function of the reading for the majority was just a good job and a rich life.

Methods of the reading

Bacon graded the books into four levels and put forward different ways of reading. “ some books are to be tasted， others to be swallowed， and some few to be chewed and digested； some books also may be read by deputy and extracts made of them by others.”[1] Different books need different attention according to their value. For the first grade， we need dig into the text and have intensive reading. That meant you must focus on the language rather than the text and read slowly and carefully little by little.[4] For the second grade， it was better to read in parts； the third groups， skim and skip. Only to some less important arguments and the meaner sort of books， the author advised reading the extracts. Chinese author LuXun stressed that reading must have an extensive range and involve many subjects， not only literature， but also philosophy， psychology and social sciences.[5] And Lu pointed out that one should select his own books， and it was useless to consult others because everyone had different interest and personality. Besides the extensive reading， Lu also emphasized the importance of the reading of the foreign books. Talking about how to read these foreign books， Lu also had his own ways—never give up and skip the paragraphs you do not understand.

III Conclusion

The whole essay introduced us three purposes， functions of reading and four degrees of the books and the ways by which we read them. And the most important thing is that the author presented us new perspectives of reading. In stead of sticking to our old ideas， it is better to balance the differences and combine the advantages of both， thus enjoying a different reading experience.

Reference

1.Wu Weiren.（2010）. “History and anthology of English Literature”， Beijing， Foreign language teaching and research Press； Thirty fourth editions.

2. “林語堂隨緣讀書”.（2005）. http：//edu.sina.com.cn/l/2005-08-11/1019124805.html.（accessed2017/1/8）

3. Chang Yaoxin.（2013）. “A history of English Literature（vol 1）”，Tianjin， Nankai University Press； First Printing editions.

4. “Extensive reading”. https：//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extensive_reading.（accessed 2017/1/8）

5. Wu Zuoqiao.（2005）.“Reread LuXun”，Changchun， Era of literature and art publishing house； Fist Printing editions.

作者簡介：白曉露（1996—），女，漢族，河北省石家莊市，本科學歷，英語語言文學方向，河北大學，河北省保定市。