What is a Good Book? by John Ruskin

 What is a Good Book? by John Ruskin

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT

1. What, according to Ruskin, are the limitations of the good book of the hour?

Answer: According to Ruskin, the limitations of the good book of the hour are that these are not true books but merely letters or newspapers in good print. The good books of the hour are simply some useful or pleasant talk of some person whom one cannot otherwise converse with. These good books are written merely for the purpose of communication to a wider audience. According to the essayist, these good books are rather books of talk which are printed only because their authors cannot speak to thousands of people at once. These are mere conveyance of voice through printed words.

2. What are the criteria that Ruskin feels that readers should fulfil to make themselves fit for the company of the Dead.

Answer: Readers who are hardworking and have merit are the ones who are fit for the company of the Dead. Unlike the society, wealth or name or ambition cannot gain one the companionship but rather love and rising up to their thoughts can give one entry.

3. Why does Ruskin feel that reading the work of a good author is a painstaking task?

Answer: Ruskin feels that a good author hides his deepest thoughts and gives it as a reward to only the hard-working reader. The reader has to be like a miner of gold, digging deeply and thoroughly through the words of the author. It is only through this patience, perseverance, and use of the best tools that one can get the meaning of a good author.

4. What is the emphasis placed by Ruskin on accuracy?

Answer: Ruskin believes that the educated person is different from the uneducated in his accuracy. Only a literate person can have the precise knowledge of a language, the pronunciation of words and knowledge about the origin and evolution of the words. A person without accuracy will be at an inferior standing compared to a person having the real accuracy.

TALKING ABOUT THE TEXT

Discuss in pairs

1. Ruskin’s insistence on looking intensely at words, and assuring oneself of meaning, syllable by syllable—nay, letter by letter.

Answer: Ruskin speaks most strongly about learning and understanding the language down to its roots by its words and even letters. Merely memorizing the language is the act of an uneducated person. A scholar would be the person who has in-depth knowledge of the language and its words, pronunciation as well as history and origin of the words. Without these, anyone who knows a language is inferior to one who knows no matter how many languages they know or books they read.

2. Choice of diction is very crucial to the communication of meaning.

Answer: Communication relies on the mutual understanding of two or more people. The medium of communication, language thereby becomes a very important part of the communication. Without proper diction or choice of words, the meaning of what a person wants to convey may change. Diction contributes a lot to the subtle meaning of the words and adds expression to it.