Mortimer Adler-Read Between the Lines

Students are often told to read between the lines to get the meaning of a novel, but it’s writing between the lines which truly allows the student to fully understand what they’re reading. This is why students must be given personal copies of assigned novels. Usually the child is given a copy that must be returned in pristine condition, and if the book is a little bit worn or written in; the student must pay for the book. A philosopher and educator once gave a speech in 1940 supporting this same idea, his name is Dr. Mortimer Adler.
Dr. Adler was a proponent of marking books. He agreed that buying the book was the first step toward ownership of the novel, and did not advocate writing in borrowed copies of the book, for that is vandalism. Once the book is paid for it becomes the property of the reader and writing in it is acceptable. This is one of the ways one can spot a true book owner. Dr. Adler described three types of people, the first owns a lot of books all in perfect condition, but this person doesn’t truly own any of them. The second owns a good number of the classical books and some have been read. This person owns as if they were almost a status symbol, but again, he doesn’t truly own them. The third person owns a few books, all old and worn, with writing throughout it, this person does own them. He has read them over and over and has many notes in them and has made the book a close friend.
Writing and making notes in a book isn’t just an act of vandalism, it’s active engagement in the novel. The reader can write down questions that a passage brought up, and this keeps the reader thinking and wide awake, not just letting the words go right through him. Students can have a conversation with the author by marking a book. They can argue and right down any thoughts that come to their mind while reading. When the student begins reading where they left off it’s like picking up the conversation because your ideas have been recorded.
In order for a student to comprehend an assigned novel he can’t merely read it. The student must participate in the novel. The student must write between the lines and along the margin, make notes about what’s going on because the act of writing engraves the meaning of the book in the student’s mind. This is why students must be given personal copies of novels, so that they can make the novel there own. As the noted philosopher Dr. Adler once said, a few close friends are better than a thousand acquaintances.