Rex Murphy's 'To Read Or Not To Read'
Rex Murphy’s “To Read or Not to Read” is a literary criticism on the works “How to Read and Why” written by Harold Bloom. Murphy explains his views on the importance of reading and asks the question “Why do we read?” His response to this question, he states “Plainly, we read because while it is not necessary to life that we do, life is much easier, more accessible, wider in its potential for those who can and do read, than for those who cannot and do not”. This essentially means that although reading is not a necessity to what we do in life, it makes what we do easier. Further on in this piece, Murphy states that literature teaches and delights and that we read to learn or to find pleasure. This point is extremely correct. Two major reasons
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I believe that the reason to why we read is to educate ourselves and also, sometimes, to enter a fantasy world. What I live by is that you need an education to be successful. The reason I read is to educate myself so that I can broaden my way of thinking and expand my knowledge. With a greater knowledge of what is out there in the world, that will make it easier to be successful, not only for myself, but for everyone. There is no way that an individual without the ability to read can be accepted into university, let alone, finish elementary school. Reading is essential for learning not only the school curriculum, but for life as well. Keeping up with the economy, reading news papers, reading instructions, reading street signs, are all a must. Murphy states that reading is not a must, but it makes life easier. I agree with some aspects of this statement, but I also disagree. Yes, reading does make life easier, however I do not know how it would be possible to be a part of a community without the ability to read, with the exceptions of infants because they have their parents there to guide them. To walk in a community, not being able to read what is around them – not knowing where streets are, or what stores are what. This is not only an inconvenience to the person themselves, but to people around them
I believe that the reason to why we read is to educate ourselves and also, sometimes, to enter a fantasy world. What I live by is that you need an education to be successful. The reason I read is to educate myself so that I can broaden my way of thinking and expand my knowledge. With a greater knowledge of what is out there in the world, that will make it easier to be successful, not only for myself, but for everyone. There is no way that an individual without the ability to read can be accepted into university, let alone, finish elementary school. Reading is essential for learning not only the school curriculum, but for life as well. Keeping up with the economy, reading news papers, reading instructions, reading street signs, are all a must. Murphy states that reading is not a must, but it makes life easier. I agree with some aspects of this statement, but I also disagree. Yes, reading does make life easier, however I do not know how it would be possible to be a part of a community without the ability to read, with the exceptions of infants because they have their parents there to guide them. To walk in a community, not being able to read what is around them – not knowing where streets are, or what stores are what. This is not only an inconvenience to the person themselves, but to people around them