2.2.2: Explore the Ways the Text Affects You

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When you work with a text, you enter into a conversation with it, responding with your thoughts, ideas, and feelings. The way each of us responds to any text has a lot to do with who we are: our age, education, cultural background, religion, ethnicity, and so forth.

As you explore a text, be aware of how you’re responding to it. Consider the following questions when exploring a text:

Are you reading or exploring easily and fluidly, or are you finding it difficult to navigate the text? Why do you believe this is so?
Do you find yourself responding with some sort of strong emotion? If so, why do you think that may be happening?
Do formatting or structural issues (examples: unusual use of punctuation, use of dialect or jargon) affect your navigation of the text?
Can you identify with the text’s central idea or the information it’s sharing?
Have you had any experiences like those being described? Can you identify with the story?
Are you able to identify the surface meaning?
Have you explored the text’s deeper, hidden messages?
Do you need to look up any words to do any quick research? If so, does this help you better understand the text?
What questions do you have about the work?

License and Attributions:

CC licensed content, Previously shared:

The Word on College Reading and Writing. Authored by: Carol Burnell, Jaime Wood, Monique Babin, Susan Pesznecker, and Nicole Rosevear. Located at: https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Composition/Book%3A_The_Word_on_College_Reading_and_Writing_(Babin_et_al.)/Part_1/2%3A_Building_Strong_Reading_Skills/2.08%3A_Explore_the_Ways_the_Text_Affects_You
License: CC BY: Attribution.

Adaptions: Reformatted, some content removed to fit a broader audience.