Question

Discuss in pairs
Ruskin's insistence on looking intensely at words, and assuring oneself of meaning, syllable by syllable – nay, letter by letter.

Answer 1

Ruskin advises that one should look intensely at words and assure oneself of meaning, syllable by syllable – nay, letter by letter. He means to say that one should go between the lines to get into the core of the text of any good book. This may be time taking and painstaking but very rewarding. This gives accuracy which is the mark of an educated person. A well educated person may read few books but if he or she reads them word by word, syllable by syllable only then can he/she reap the fruit, gather wisdom and transform life.

Another perspective

Reading between the lines is time taking. So,there is every possibility that in this process one may not develop a wider perspective on various issues of life .This would be so because one will be able to read few books only. One may develop narrow aristocratic attitude by reading few books. To develop a comprehensive view point one should be aware of the perspectives of as many authors as possible. Extensive reading is very valuable. The essayist talks only of intensive reading. Moreover, it is very difficult to categorise book as good or bad. This type of categorisation totally depends on subjective assessment. This is relative in nature; what is good book for some may not be so for the other.