Four Levels Of Reading We Do

I am an avid follower of Farnam Street, which provides amazing insights on ideas ranging from decision-making to philosophy. I came across this article, The Best Summary Of How To Read A Book by Mortimer Adler. I am sharing an excerpt from the article that captures the four levels of reading we all do.

If you have a habit of reading, this is a helpful framework for understanding what kind of reading you tend to do.

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In How to Read a Book, Mortimer Adler identifies four levels of reading:

1. Elementary Reading
2. Inspectional Reading
3. Analytical Reading
4. Syntopical Reading

Think of these levels as reading to entertain, reading to inform, reading to understand, and reading to master.

When you learned to read in elementary school, you were taught to read for entertainment. If you made it to high school and college, you learned to read to inform. This is where most people stop. But most of the value comes at the last two levels.

In fact, if you don’t learn the last two levels, you’ll go through life like a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest.

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