Reading Old Together

The value of reading the works that have survived the test of time.

Old Works

It will not come as a surprise to anybody who knows me that I think people should read more. While I don’t know exactly how much people read, I suspect that the amount of reading has probably decreased especially since the advent of the internet and particularly smartphones. I could probably find some sort of research that determines whether reading has increased or decreased in that time frame, but it’s not really the point of this newsletter. The reality is that there are more people that read now than the vast majority of human history simply because there are more people that have the ability to read.

However, a more recent development is a certain elite desire to degrade the classic works of the past. A sign that someone was part of the elite in the 1700s was whether they had read the works of Plato, Homer, Dante, etc or not. They wanted to read more contemporary intellectual works as well, but one was not deemed a worthy intellectual until they had read the classics. In today’s world, there is an elite assumption that the great works of the Western Canon should be discarded because they were written by “a bunch of dead white guys.”

Most of the time, this is part of a broader movement to view society through a racial lens so as to expose oppression. White is not the only aspect of the Western Canon being attacked in that statement though, as the age of the authors is as well. Because the authors of the great works in Western history are “dead” there is no reason that they should be studied anymore. I not only disagree with this notion, but I believe that the exact opposite is true: a work’s longevity should be a reason to read it.

A teacher of mine once encouraged my class to “read outside of your generation.” I thought it was sound advice at the same time, but as I have heeded his advice and read works that are sometimes centuries old, I have come to more deeply understand the great wisdom in it. The benefit of reading old works is really immeasurable, but it particularly manifests itself in how they filter, build language, and portray common ideas.

Filter

It is a common refrain to hear people of all ages say that the music was so much better in the [insert decade]. Whether is the psychedelic rock of the 60s, the funk of the 70s, or rap of the 90s, most people have a music decade of the past that they hold in higher regard than their current decade. This can be because they genuinely like certain music of a particular decade or because they have such a low view of the popular music in their own time. Either way, one of the main reasons this is so common is because of the filtering process that happens through the years.

All decades have popular songs that are great songs. At the same time, all decades have popular songs that are terrible. And yet, the only songs that people play/listen to/remember from a particular decade are the ones that they like. The better the song, the more likely it is to endure through the years, while the terrible songs are soon forgotten. This filtering process makes the overall quality of music from a particular decade seem better than it likely was because only the best songs are remembered and played.

This same filtering process occurs with written works as well. The quality of a written work is determined by the amount of value that a reader receives from reading it. Over time, the value of a written text is constantly evaluated for whether it’s valuable enough to continue reading. The more value that a reader receives from reading a book, the more likely that individual is to encourage others (like their children) to read it as well. The less valuable a text is, the less likely a reader will finish it and/or encourage others to read it. Thus, the more valuable texts will be passed on through the years as the less valuable texts will largely be forgotten.

With such limited time to read and the sheer amount of written works published every year, the process of filtering is of utmost importance. Focusing one’s attention on reading works that have survived throughout the decades- or even better centuries- can be helpful in ensuring that the reading is valuable. Time serves as the ultimate filter.

Building Language

Furthermore, reading old works builds language both individually and collectively. Individually, a reader can vastly grow their vocabulary through reading works from previous generations. This is because previous generations both use words that have gone out of fashion and use words that are still common but with altered meanings. Even without looking up words every time that a reader does not know it, a reader will grow their individual vocabulary simply by immersing themselves in texts that introduce new vocabulary words.

This may seem like a relatively insignificant point that is only to promote sounding intelligent by knowing infrequently used words; however, vocabulary knowledge is valuable well beyond sounding intelligent. Words are the way that humans express themselves to others and to themselves. People don’t just communicate to other people using words, but people also think to themselves using words. In other words (no pun intended), we make sense of ourselves, others, and the world around us using language. The more words that we know, the better we can understand all of that.

Think about those times when you were talking to somebody else and you just couldn’t think of the word that you wanted to use. It’s immensely frustrating to both you and the person that you are talking to because everyone is left confused. That is until you remember the word and instantly the confusion is resolved.

I see this regularly with my students. As a teacher, a large aspect of my job is merely putting words to ideas that my students already believe to be true. Frequently, students will become frustrated or annoyed when they “don’t know how to say” whatever they are thinking. That’s not a lack of knowledge but a lack of the right words to use.

Expanding one’s vocabulary is like adding tools to a toolbox. You may never need to use it, but it doesn’t hurt to have it because there may come a day when you do need it. Also, the tools can be used not only for repair purposes but to create as well. You can’t build an extension onto your house unless you have tools in the first place, and having the tools can encourage you to build an extension. Likewise, an expansive vocabulary can lead to the creation of sentences and paragraphs that you may never have been able to write before.

Reading old works does not merely build an individual’s language but a society’s collective language. This can include the very words themselves (like Shakespeare’s over 1,700 invented words still used in English), but more often includes the sayings, allusions, or examples that people talk about. For example, I read Dante’s Inferno without having much background in ancient Greek and Roman mythology. As such, I was hopelessly lost throughout the book as those myths were constantly brought up and used. I could get a general idea about what was going on, but my ability to appreciate the book was dampened by my ignorance.

Phrases like “down the rabbit hole” (Alice in Wonderland) or “a pot calling the kettle black” (Don Quixote) are commonly used phrases today that come from works of the past. Most people can understand what these phrases mean without reading these works (after it is explained), but a deeper understanding of why those phrases can only come from reading those works. Idioms like these are common problems for people who are not native speakers of a certain language because there is often no cultural understanding that provides the meaning.

Which is another added benefit of building a common collective language: it helps build a common culture. As much as diversity is praised in our world today, it is incredibly hard for people with completely different cultures to feel any sense of togetherness. This is why countries with large amounts of ethnic and cultural diversity are often rife with conflict. A common culture can limit conflict as people are able to view the people around them as like them and thus not as enemies. As more people read works that have survived through the ages, a common language will develop that makes people feel more united.

Common Ideas

Finally, reading the works of previous generations will quickly make one realize that humans have not changed a whole lot at their core. Many of the problems that plagued the Ancient Greeks still plague humans today. Yes, we are technologically more advanced so some problems aren’t as much of a concern for us today (like famines). However, the Ancient Greeks (and everybody before and after them) still had to deal with suffering, figure out how to live together without killing each other, discover what it means to live a fulfilling life, etc.

While it can be tempting to think that our modern world has solved all human problems, it is clear that this simply isn’t the case. People still fight, die, and argue all while trying to figure out what a meaningful life is and how best to pursue it. It is the epitome of foolishness to willingly ignore thousands of years of humans attempting to figure out these same problems we face by not reading old works.

A perfect example is the continual advocation of socialism as an alternative to the capitalist system because of the current system’s flaws. Believers of both systems frequently talk past each other because neither take the time to understand where exactly they disagree. Without reading great thinkers through the ages, concepts such as property rights, competition, specialization, and the market’s impact on culture are left completely unaddressed because neither side is willing to read old works. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jean-Jacques Rousseau may have lived 200+ years apart, but they ultimately don’t sound too dissimilar.

If we don’t read the works of old then we will be tempted to think that the problems we face are unique to “our generation” and the solutions we come up with are new ideas. This hubris will inevitably lead to failure as it ignorantly ignores thousands of years of human experience. Our modern world was not created in a vacuum the moment we were born. Rather, it has been built over the course of time with the ideas contained in the great works of the past. If we don’t read old works, then these ideas will be left dormant and we will continue to reinvent the wheel.

God Bless,

Hunter Burnett