What's the point of reading all these books when I'm going to forget what they were about in a month or less?

What's the point of reading all these books when I'm going to forget what they were about in a month or less?

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Make an outline/notes as you read and you can look back at them later

Is your memory that bad?

No I was just conditioned by school to quickly acquire and then discard information.

Color me surprised.

This thread was just an excuse to post animu shit wasn't it?

Wrong anime?

Listen to me::: read a chapter, while making a lil list of words u don't know, maaybe making a line in the margins to point out something interesting. Reread the chapter some time later while making an outline, extremely simply. Do it really simply, writing down some of the major helpful phrases but mostly marking items with page numbers for reference. Soon you'll have a library with a whole easy reference guide

Because your unconscious remembers them.
And you will remember them when it matters

People waste too much time trying to train the shittiest part of their minds.

Learn to rely on the unconscious mind.

How detailed an outline/notes should be?

iktf

Reading theory (outside of the classics like Marx, Engels, Lenin, etc) is pointless unless you are engaged in IRL politics honestly.

Serious revolutionary study isn't just reading a text once. It is regularly studying it to commit it to memory, so as to unify your theory and practice.

"No."

Do you actually need to memorize the tomes of Capital?

If you want to be able to critique political economy with writ, you should be familiar with the basic premises of the volumes at least.

Okay but do you have to commit the text to memory as says?

yes

if you aren't propagating what you've read, then of course that's going to happen

A more apt question would be, why should I read theory when it wouldn't give me any joy or satisfaction, when I'm so devoid of hope for both myself, those around me and the world in general, when… there's just no real benefit to do so. The only thing you get from reading theory is the muh privilege of ideological masturbation.

There really isn't any point. You'll never apply any of these concepts to anything you do, as you'll just continue life as a capitalist drone regardless. And if revolution does happen, knowing all this doesn't really matter - the Russian peasantry sure didn't know any of it. The only reason to really study this stuff is if you envision yourself to be the next Lenin or whatever.

That I have no hope convincing anyone*

My teacher taught me you must forget something seven times before actually knowing it.

I don't have that time

I kept notes and try to talk about them

-Take notes
-Read notes
-Mark important passages for later
-Periodically reread books you've already read

marxists.org/archive/lafargue/1890/xx/marx.htm
Git gud

...

I often ask this myself.

Do you think reading a thing once about something you're interested in is enough? It's not, and that's why you continuously read on the subject and anything tangentially related, as well as talking about the ideas in these works with other people and building your own opinions. In short, don't stop reading. If you genuinely gave a shit about a particular subject, you wouldn't need to be prodded to keep reading on it.

I'm joking, comrade. A pure hearted simpleton is infinitely more virtuous than a conniving evil genius.

what i do is read smaller articles and then argue with people on leftypol as if my interpretation is completely correct

then people tell me why im wrong and i reread and adjust my argument, again presenting it as if im completely correct.

then i take it to Holla Forums and check their arguments against the text to see if its materially valid or spooks and continue to present as if im completely correct.

finally when i feel i really understand a topic i start shitposting directly to normiebook on ancap boards and back up my claims with links

Generally I do this with topics that are related to current events, so that gaining a Marxist interpretation is actually relevant and interesting.

So for example I might read some articles about Juche and pretend that North Korea did nothing wrong, just as an exercise to further understand the foundation Juche is built on how it differs from, in what ways is it valid to others etc and this will require referring back to marx and reading articles on libcom or jacobin and so on

Hail The Dialectic!

Regardless is this is true or not, this is actually a good description of how we learn, and how often times the dialectic goes unnoticed. I think it was A.W. who was talking about how the dialectic is the world. I agree and that most of the time, if we're truly trying to learn, and in a good groove, we don't need to follow that step-by-step because it just flows naturally.

As detailed as you need them to be. Some prefer to write a lot of detailed explanations, others prefer to write "remember x". It really depends on your personal preference and how good you are at remembering things once you're reminded that you're supposed to remember them. Notes are really more of a memory aid than anything else, you should be able to remember the important bits without relying on your notes. Memory comes from repetition: the more you apply what you've learnt and the more you bring it to the front of your brain, the better it sticks.
I find that explaining basic Marxist concepts to the brainlets here helps a lot

So if I'm interested in capitalism I should read Marx, Keynes, Rothbard etc. and hope something stick from each?

I'm not here to tell you what to read, that's your own judgement. If you're interested in a subject, then with a little discipline, it should come naturally to seek out literature on the subject. If you don't integrate the things you've learned in some way, then yes, you will forget them. But as long as you stay up to date on a given subject and discuss these things with people, even at least online, you will be fine. You will forget certain factoids or where you've read something, but as long as you know how to research you should be okay. I think the point is not to worry about forgetting things but to just make sure you're reading everyday.

If you find yourself in a discussion and blanking on something you once knew, it's a-ok to have to look something up. You've re-learned that certain thing which was weakly retained in the first place and have strengthened it. Point is, the things that you easily forget will be strengthened the more you read and discuss and put on the spot to form arguments.

How do I integrate things?

Integrate things as in you both use the things you've learned as a tool of analyzing the world around you, and to have a dialogue on the subject with other people.

I have nobody to talk with.

Write notes to refer to, also this will help the book stick in your head. But also little factoids will stick anyway and that is worth it.

The only thing that sticks in my head is a vague feeling that I've read about the topic. When it is actually mentioned somewhere the only thing I can remember is that I've read about it, but I can't tell what.

same

You have us, user

You have us, user

Indeed, Holla Forums is an ideal place to practice dialectics with comrades!

Break it down into manageable chunks. Chances are if its not possible its not worth reading Make sure to pay closest attention at the start of chapters and such, as often the ideas in the chapter will be summed up, and the start of the chapter will contain a solid base for the rest of it. Just make sure you understand exactly what is being said before you move on. Take notes and refer back to them.

You always say this but even when we had book clubs there was rarely any discussion. Unless it's a classic (which means everyone likes to talk about it but nobody has actually read it) there's very little chance that randomly posting about it will get any useful replies.

As others have pointed out, you are doing exactly that right now.

That's because you're stepping back during the learning process and examining an incompleteness. The current learnz you're perusing is always an incomplete knowledge in your head. Like I said, keep reading. Repetition is the key to retaining learnz. It's why I brought up the fact that you have to also read tangential material, because you need a way to apply what you've previously read to new works. Don't be ashamed to re-read passages, slow down, or do research. Understand what you're learning as you're doing it. But also come to terms with your strengths and weakness as a student.

We should pick some small essays to read and analyze together.

Read the Ignorant Schoolmaster and frankly just fucking read. You WON'T forget much if you actually bother to consider and think about what the fuck you're reading.

I did but I can't remember much

you don't just read books, you study them
take notes, make markers, think and talk about them
all of that is repetition that will eventually make you able to recite it if you go full vanguard on them

too many tabs open

You should just read "Feminism is for everybody" by bell hooks. That's the only book you need, OP.

if you remembered it the first time it mostly comes back if you just like skim an outline, another take, or preferably your own notes on it. it usually takes a few tries to commit trickier shit. it often gets quicker and easier each time because you can zip through what you already get and focus on the parts you don't really recall or have trouble with (these usually tend to be the same).

I tried (in French), and maybe if it was just me who drank too much at the time, but I abandoned after the first chapter as the prose was too hard and confusing.
The part about the Dutch students learning French with a bilingual newspaper was cool, and I guess it goes to show that learning by practice and direct contact with the material can be more effective than with a boring formal approach, but I think that is what we already do with the internet, by getting bits of informations there and there until it starts to make more sense over time.

...

I don't care if you remember it or not, what the fuck did you learn from it? Stop trying to memorize and instead just learn you nigger. Go read Mind for Numbers too.

That what one person can learn so can everyone else.

I did the Learning to Learn course, I have no problem with academic learning. Should I treat every reading that way, with self-testing, flashcards, etc.?

No. Frankly it seems to me like you are obsessing yourself too much with the act of remembering this or that detail. I don't know how symptomatic this is, but try not to worry about it. I've read tons of books in the last months but I could hardly tell you about them unless a discussion specifically arised about it and I was reminded or this or that part of this or that book. You can practice simple remembering too, like simply remembering the meaning of inexistence, thinking about a situation. I often think about things that I previously didn't understand but still remember, and with what I now know, it simply appears easy. In short, simply read. And don't forget to think about what you read.

Honestly OP, if you want to be a proper leftist you should probably drop some acid or take some shrooms.

Start with entry level books like capitalist realism.

The problem is that when something I've read about is mentioned I can remember that I've read about it, but I can't remember what I've read about it.

That sounds really strange. I don't really know what to say in this case, other than reading and practicing remembering, outlining, notes. This book has some nice tips which I think you could make use of. будь здоров, анон.

Memory is strange. We don't really have conscious control over our memories. Memories and relevant information seem to just come to us when needed. I think you are not giving yourself enough credit/trying to come up with excuses for not reading. Keep reading related works that compliment each other, and I guarantee you will learn a lot. You will be surprised when you will be thinking about/discussing something and then find yourself remembering some useful passage you read a while ago.

...

If you don't write about and discuss what you are reading, then of course you are going to forget what it was about. Start a blog or a book club or a YouTube channel.

Would you read my blog, leftcom-kun?

Of course user.

Since starting this thread I've actually started writing the next day short summaries of what I've read based on my notes and what I could remember. I'm not sure how sustainable it will be. They are not in English though, so no blog for now, sorry.

Just read for fun

okay

Might as well ask here too.

Is anyone aware of a method or guide to more efficiently annotate, highlight important parts, summarize key topics etc etc a book?

wtf is book

t. unitedstatian

How to Read a Book has some tips:
gen.lib.rus.ec/book/index.php?md5=09D7400D8007591E7462B12514FC24D4
It's a good book, read it! They have some nice suggestions, if you want I can find my notes on them for you.

u kno dose silly ornaments people put on dah shelves? dat be books.

Like Fumiko's uncle.

things of the past

Summarise each paragraph/section in a sentence or two as you read.

I guess one of the perks of being an American is that no one here looks down on you if you say reading is too hard.