/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.19516425]

How much of a book do you guys actually remember a few weeks after completing it ?

[Anonymous No.19516454]

What if I forget things, what then?

[Anonymous No.19516456]

very little, if learning theory is anything to go by. you would have to take notes and review them at increasing intervals if you want to remember it for anything longer than a day

[Anonymous No.19516461]

>>19516454
that's what ---> >>19516456

the solution

[Anonymous No.19516515]

If you want to remember what you read you need to take the time at the start to understand structure. Authors (at least the good ones) generally layout everything right from the start, they define the structures and outline how they will tell the story, what sorts of things you should read for, etc. Identify this logic behind the book and you will greatly increase retention and comprehension.

When you see one of those used books that have notes/highlighting in the first few dozen pages and abruptly stops, pay attention to those notes, 9 times out of 10 it is not that they quit taking notes or dropped the book, the notes are just their way to figure out structure and once they have figured it out they do not need the notes anymore.

[Anonymous No.19516683]

>>19516425
I remember the gist and a few details. The rest fades away. Upon a second read, many things kinda-sorta "come back" to me, but that also passes.q

[Anonymous No.19516706]

>>19516515
this anon is correct. structure is an imagination product guided by concepts. if you read without constructing a schema for the material then the only connections you will make will be those of sequence or random associations. it helps of course to have a 'vivid' imagination, but concepts will be needed to recall and connect whatever images are fabricated. furthermore, there is a difference between memorization and active construction. the latter is an intuitive representation, whereas memorization is often superficial, or is performed by certain memorization techniques which do not necessarily have anything to do with the actual structure of the material and the harmony between its parts.

[Anonymous No.19516729]

You remember all of it, actually, just not consciously. I sometimes randomly recall quotes, ideas, even whole passages from books I read and forgotten decades ago, when they're relevant to what I'm thinking about at the moment. Trust your mind to absorb wisdom and keep it at ready, you don't need every single book at the forefront of your awareness at all times. This is why university exams are fucking retarded and fail to produce capable professionals, because they prioritize rote knowledge over understanding. So your typical uni is pumping out professional learners and very few people who could apply that knowledge.

[Anonymous No.19516774]

>>19516515
>Authors (at least the good ones) generally layout everything right from the start, they define the structures and outline how they will tell the story, what sorts of things you should read for, etc
untrue

[Anonymous No.19516800]

>>19516425
The main ideas completely. The details, if I found it intresting. I will recognize it if I see something I read again or if I think hard enough. So if I see something about some specific history thing and I've read about it in a broader book, I'll remember it when I see it but won't be able to recall it on my own.