/lit/ - Literature

>>18357340
Just write a sentence you think is interesting. You take notes for you not for the book. I'm sure you had a question or two going in and might have found something that stroke up a thought process related to a question from a different book you read. If you can't do anything with the info you'll forget it and waste brainpower when you could be reading so just focus on what you're going to use it for.

>>18357340
I keep a notebook next to me when I read, and pause after each sentence to reflect whether I've understood it, then pause again after each paragraph. I'll reread frequently, when I don't find on reflection I've understood it. I usually take a note on the notepad, briefly summarizing what I've understood, for each paragraph. Sometimes a note will cover multiple paragraphs, sometimes multiple notes per paragraph, it depends on how dense the text is; basically I take a note for each crucial point covered in the text. If the text's editors give no other guidelines for references, I'll number each note with a [page].[paragraph] notation. When I'm done a section of text, I'll go back over my notes, and I'll review the text for any note I read that doesn't make sense to me, appending the note if needed. Then I'll try to organize the (roughly) paragraph summaries on my notepad into groups, describing the major divisions of the argument in the text, and make marginal notes on my notepad grouping together multiple lines of my notes as a division of this sort, and making a brief marginal note summarizing what goes on in this division. If the text is sufficiently long or complex, or I'm working with it a lot, I'll start a second version of my notes, where instead of (roughly) paragraph summaries on each line, I write a summary of these divisions of the argument, and then in the margins of this set of notes I'll organize these divisions into groups (super-divisions, if you like) in the same way. Ideally, I'd like to be able to give a statement of the text in (roughly) one sentence, to be able to expand that out to a statement of the major divisions of the text in (roughly) a quarter page (for an article) or half page (for a book) or full page (for a long book), to be able to expand that out to the (roughly) paragraph summaries I take while reading, and expand that out to the actual text. If I find that the overall argumentative structure of the text does not match its written structure, I'll make an additional version of notes which depicts its argumentative structure. Often this will involve diagrams rather than just written notes, and I'll label the diagrams with page/paragraph references based on the notes I take while I'm reading. And if I'm working closely with a particular section of the text, I'll make another version of notes, which tries to model the argumentative structure of the section I'm working with in a more formal premise/conclusion way. Here there may be several notes per paragraph if the text is particularly dense.

>>18357340
I generally wouldn't recommend taking notes, but rather actively reflecting on what you've read. If you want, summarise what you got out of the book when you're done in note form.

That's a shame you didn't retain much. I've been note taking and I have a specific method, I'll go through it with you now.

I have two note books, one for rough work and quick scribbles to sort things out in my head while contemplating a theory and another where I actually write the idea down when I've fully understood it and wrote it down coherently as I wanted it to be in my "rough" notebook - I transcribe then. This way my "actual" notebook is pristine, neat and full of concise ideas I can refer to at any time. Diagrams help as well. Another note, use different coloured pens in your notes to separate terms and conflicting concepts.

Another thing I do which helps is, I underline as I read in different coloured pen - Blue for the philosopher's thoughts and red for any counter point he brings up to then refute. I use black pen for extra notes.

Regarding underlining, many people will be upset with this - that's understandable. I'm currently going through some late Plato and I'm using individual copies of dialogues to underline and keeping my "complete works" in mint condition for strictly reading, not to write on.

Basically, have two of everything. One side to work shit out in your head, the other to neatly display the ideas when they are fully realised and are easily digestible when you return to look.

excellent thread, wanna see more

Read Hoz to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler. He explains very well how to take notes and properly read a book. You should do a few really quick pass first to get the structure of the text, the key words, arguments and their definitions, then go on to analyze the text and what it all means for you. That's very abbreviated.