Letters to young readers. The Problem of Engaged Reading

Letter Eleven

About careerism

"Letters about the good and the beautiful"

A person develops from the first day of his birth. He is focused on the future. He learns, learns to set new tasks for himself, without even realizing it. And how quickly he masters his position in life. He already knows how to hold a spoon and pronounce the first words.

Then, as a boy and a young man, he also studies.

And the time has come to apply your knowledge and achieve what you strived for. Maturity. We need to live in the present...

But the acceleration continues, and now, instead of studying, the time comes for many to master their situation in life. The movement proceeds by inertia. A person is always directed towards the future, and the future is no longer in real knowledge, not in mastering skills, but in placing oneself in an advantageous position. The content, the real content, is lost. The present time does not come, there is still an empty aspiration to the future. This is careerism. Internal anxiety that makes a person personally unhappy and unbearable for others.

Letter Twelve

A person must be intelligent

A person must be intelligent! What if his profession does not require intelligence? And if he could not get an education: did the circumstances develop that way? What if the environment doesn’t allow it? What if his intelligence makes him a “black sheep” among his colleagues, friends, relatives, and simply prevents him from getting closer to other people?

No, no and no! Intelligence is needed under all circumstances. It is necessary both for others and for the person himself.

This is very, very important, and above all in order to live happily and long - yes, long! For intelligence is equal to moral health, and health is needed to live long - not only physically, but also mentally. One old book says: “Honor your father and your mother, and you will live long on earth.” This applies to both an entire nation and an individual. That's wise.

But first of all, let’s define what intelligence is, and then why it is connected with the commandment of longevity.

Many people think: an intelligent person is one who has read a lot, received a good education (and even mainly a humanitarian one), traveled a lot, and knows several languages.

Meanwhile, you can have all this and be unintelligent, and you can not possess any of this to a large extent, but still be an internally intelligent person.

Education cannot be confused with intelligence. Education lives by old content, intelligence - by creating new things and recognizing the old as new.

Moreover... Deprive a truly intelligent person of all his knowledge, education, deprive him of his memory. Let him forget everything in the world, he will not know the classics of literature, he will not remember the greatest works of art, he will forget the most important historical events, but if at the same time he remains receptive to intellectual values, a love of acquiring knowledge, an interest in history, an aesthetic sense, he will be able to to distinguish a real work of art from a crude “thing” made only to surprise, if he can admire the beauty of nature, understand the character and individuality of another person, enter into his position, and having understood the other person, help him, he will not show rudeness, indifference, or gloating , envy, but will appreciate another if he shows respect for the culture of the past, the skills of an educated person, responsibility in resolving moral issues, the richness and accuracy of his language - spoken and written - this will be an intelligent person.

Intelligence is not only about knowledge, but about the ability to understand others. It manifests itself in a thousand and a thousand little things: in the ability to argue respectfully, to behave modestly at the table, in the ability to quietly (precisely imperceptibly) help another, to take care of nature, not to litter around you - do not litter with cigarette butts or swearing, bad ideas (this is also garbage, and what else!).

The Likhachev family, Dmitry - in the center, 1929. © D. Baltermants

I knew peasants in the Russian North who were truly intelligent. They maintained amazing cleanliness in their homes, knew how to appreciate good songs, knew how to tell “happenings” (that is, what happened to them or others), lived an orderly life, were hospitable and friendly, treated with understanding both the grief of others and someone else's joy.

Intelligence is the ability to understand, to perceive, it is a tolerant attitude towards the world and towards people.

You need to develop intelligence in yourself, train it - train your mental strength, just as you train your physical strength. And training is possible and necessary in any conditions.

That training physical strength contributes to longevity is understandable. Much less understands that longevity requires training of spiritual and mental strength.

The fact is that an angry and angry reaction to the environment, rudeness and lack of understanding of others is a sign of mental and spiritual weakness, human inability to live... Pushing around in a crowded bus is a weak and nervous person, exhausted, reacting incorrectly to everything. Quarreling with neighbors is also a person who does not know how to live, who is mentally deaf. An aesthetically unresponsive person is also an unhappy person. Someone who cannot understand another person, attributes only evil intentions to him, and is always offended by others - this is also a person who impoverishes his own life and interferes with the lives of others. Mental weakness leads to physical weakness. I'm not a doctor, but I'm convinced of this. Long-term experience has convinced me of this.

Friendliness and kindness make a person not only physically healthy, but also beautiful. Yes, exactly beautiful.

A person’s face, distorted by malice, becomes ugly, and the movements of an evil person are devoid of grace - not deliberate grace, but natural grace, which is much more expensive.

A person's social duty is to be intelligent. This is a duty to yourself. This is the key to his personal happiness and the “aura of goodwill” around him and towards him (that is, addressed to him).

Everything I talk about with young readers in this book is a call to intelligence, to physical and moral health, to the beauty of health. Let us live long as people and as a people! And veneration of father and mother should be understood broadly - as veneration of all our best in the past, in the past, which is the father and mother of our modernity, great modernity, to which it is great happiness to belong.

Dmitry Likhachev, 1989, © D. Baltermants

Letter twenty two

Love to read!

Every person is obliged (I emphasize - obliged) to take care of his intellectual development. This is his responsibility to the society in which he lives and to himself.

The main (but, of course, not the only) way of one’s intellectual development is reading.

Reading should not be random. This is a huge waste of time, and time is the greatest value that cannot be wasted on trifles. You should read according to the program, of course, without strictly following it, moving away from it where additional interests for the reader appear. However, with all deviations from the original program, it is necessary to draw up a new one for yourself, taking into account the new interests that have arisen.

Reading, in order to be effective, must interest the reader. It is necessary to develop an interest in reading in general or in certain branches of culture. Interest can be largely the result of self-education.
Creating reading programs for yourself is not so easy, and this should be done in consultation with knowledgeable people, with existing reference guides of various types.

The danger of reading is the development (conscious or unconscious) of a tendency towards “diagonal” viewing of texts or various types of speed reading methods.

Speed reading creates the appearance of knowledge. It can be allowed only in certain types of professions, being careful not to create the habit of speed reading; it leads to attention disorders.

Have you noticed how great an impression is made by those works of literature that are read in a calm, leisurely and unhurried environment, for example on vacation or during some not very complex and non-distracting illness?

“Teaching is difficult when we do not know how to find joy in it. It is necessary to choose forms of recreation and entertainment that are smart and capable of teaching something.”

“Disinterested” but interesting reading is what makes you love literature and what broadens a person’s horizons.

Why is TV now partially replacing books? Yes, because TV forces you to slowly watch some program, sit comfortably so that nothing disturbs you, it distracts you from your worries, it dictates to you how to watch and what to watch. But try to choose a book to your liking, take a break from everything in the world for a while, sit comfortably with a book, and you will understand that there are many books that you cannot live without, which are more important and more interesting than many programs. I'm not saying stop watching TV. But I say: look with choice. Spend your time on things that are worth spending. Read more and read with greater choice. Determine your choice yourself, depending on the role your chosen book has acquired in the history of human culture in order to become a classic. This means that there is something significant in it. Or maybe this essential for the culture of mankind will be essential for you too?

A classic is one that has stood the test of time. With him you won't waste your time. But the classics cannot answer all the questions of today. Therefore, it is necessary to read modern literature. Don't just jump at every trendy book. Don't be fussy. Vanity makes a person recklessly spend the largest and most precious capital he has - his time.

Letter twenty-six

Learn to learn!

We are entering a century in which education, knowledge, and professional skills will play a decisive role in a person’s destiny. Without knowledge, by the way, which is becoming more and more complex, it will simply be impossible to work and be useful. Because physical labor will be taken over by machines and robots. Even calculations will be done by computers, as well as drawings, calculations, reports, planning, etc. Man will bring in new ideas, think about things that a machine cannot think about. And for this, a person’s general intelligence will be increasingly needed, his ability to create new things and, of course, moral responsibility, which a machine cannot bear. Ethics, simple in previous centuries, will become infinitely more complex in the age of science. This is clear. This means that a person will have the most difficult and complex task of being not just a person, but a person of science, a person morally responsible for everything that happens in the age of machines and robots. General education can create a person of the future, a creative person, a creator of everything new and morally responsible for everything that will be created.

Teaching is what a young man now needs from a very young age. You always need to learn. Until the end of their lives, all the major scientists not only taught, but also studied. If you stop learning, you won’t be able to teach. For knowledge is growing and becoming more complex. It must be remembered that the most favorable time for learning is youth. It is in youth, in childhood, in adolescence, in adolescence, that the human mind is most receptive. Receptive to the study of languages (which is extremely important), to mathematics, to the assimilation of simple knowledge and aesthetic development, which stands next to moral development and partly stimulates it.

Know not to waste time on trifles, on “rest”, which sometimes tires more than the hardest work, do not fill your bright mind with muddy streams of stupid and aimless “information”. Take care of yourself for learning, for acquiring knowledge and skills that only in your youth you will master easily and quickly.

And here I hear the young man’s heavy sigh: what a boring life you offer our youth! Just study. Where is the rest and entertainment? Why should we not rejoice?

No, no. Acquiring skills and knowledge is the same sport. Teaching is difficult when we do not know how to find joy in it. We must love to study and choose smart forms of recreation and entertainment that can also teach us something, develop in us some abilities that we will need in life.

What if you don’t like studying? This cannot be true. This means that you simply have not discovered the joy that the acquisition of knowledge and skills brings to a child, boy or girl.

Look at a small child - with what pleasure he begins to learn to walk, talk, delve into various mechanisms (for boys), and nurse dolls (for girls). Try to continue this joy of mastering new things. This largely depends on you. Make no mistake: I don’t like studying! Try to love all the subjects you take at school. If other people liked them, why shouldn't you like them! Read worthwhile books, not just reading matter. Study history and literature. An intelligent person should know both well. It is they who give a person a moral and aesthetic outlook, make the world around him large, interesting, radiating experience and joy. If you don’t like something about an item, strain yourself and try to find a source of joy in it - the joy of acquiring something new.

Learn to love learning!

Composition

From time immemorial, reading literature has been one of the main indicators of an educated person in all respects.

In this text D.S. Likhachev raises the current problem of the role of books in human life.

Addressing the topic, the author emphasizes that simple, “violent”, interested reading is much less important and productive than “disinterested” reading for one’s own pleasure - slow and measured, delving into all the little details. It is this kind of consumption of literature, mainly classical, that helps to love and respect the work of writers and poets, to truly enjoy the works and, no less important, to expand one’s own horizons. Dmitry Sergeevich draws a parallel between a book and television and emphasizes that, unlike television programs, a person can choose works according to his own soul, calculate the time he needs for this kind of leisure, and thereby dive into the book much deeper, absorbing the most important and interesting moments for yourself. Such calm, thoughtful and measured reading will help preserve “the largest and most precious capital” that a person has - his own time.

The author believes that it is books that shape personality. Literature can instill intelligence in a person, develop in him a sense of beauty, as well as an understanding of life in all its planes. With the help of books, it is possible to travel “to other eras to other peoples,” as well as a journey to the souls of a huge number of worthy and interesting personalities. In other words, it is books that make us wise.

I completely agree with the opinion of D.S. Likhachev and also believe that without books the full formation of a person as an individual is impossible. There are many books, without which it is difficult to imagine the life of any person - they contain the necessary basis that a person needs for a comfortable existence in society. Such books not only serve as a guide for a person - they are also teachers, psychologists and interlocutors at the same time.

In Ray Bradbury's dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451, the problem of the role of reading is shown through the prism of a degraded society in which books are prohibited by law. The people in it are unspiritual, immoral, they do not have their own opinions, do not have critical thinking and, in general, any desire to think independently; all their development is concentrated around walls that resemble television screens. But at first the main character, like the people around him, does not notice anything wrong in his way of life until he decides to read the book. And only after that he realized how empty, stupid and unhappy those around him were, he realized that reading could replace his wife, his friends, and even the whole world, soulless and empty.

A.S. Pushkin raised the problem of the role of books in human life in the novel “Eugene Onegin”. Tatyana, one of the main characters of the work, grew up in a family where reading was not a constant activity, and there was no cultural education as such. However, the heroine’s soul required cultural development, communication with interesting people, she wanted to open up to someone, because at that time she could only have intimate conversations with her nanny. And then Tatyana discovered novels and at that moment found herself not only a permanent, intelligent, romantic, cultural interlocutor, she found a new life in these novels, which soon mixed with the real one. Perhaps reading exclusively novels did not play the best role in shaping the ideal of the heroine, but the girl herself grew up to be a mature, interesting, spiritual and self-sufficient person.

Thus, we can conclude that reading is a unique activity that can replace both communication with a person and watching TV, and it is important to understand the role a book plays in personal development. By reading good literature, we develop both the ability to speak and the ability to think, and this is an essential criterion for a mature personality.

LOVE READING!

Every person is obliged (I emphasize – obliged) to take care of his intellectual development. This is his responsibility to the society in which he lives and to himself.

The main (but, of course, not the only) way of one’s intellectual development is reading.

Reading should not be random. This is a huge waste of time, and time is the greatest value that cannot be wasted on trifles. You should read according to the program, of course, without strictly following it, deviating from it where additional interests for the reader appear. However, with all deviations from the original program, it is necessary to draw up a new one for yourself, taking into account the new interests that have arisen.

Reading, in order to be effective, must interest the reader. An interest in reading in general or in certain areas of culture must be developed in oneself. Interest can be largely the result of self-education.

Creating reading programs for yourself is not so easy, and this should be done in consultation with knowledgeable people, with existing reference guides of various types.

The danger of reading is the development (conscious or unconscious) of a tendency towards “diagonal” viewing of texts or various types of speed reading methods.

“Speed reading” creates the appearance of knowledge. It can be allowed only in certain types of professions, being careful not to create the habit of speed reading - it leads to attention disorder.

Have you noticed how great an impression is made by those works of literature that are read in a calm, leisurely and unhurried environment, for example, on vacation or during some not very complex and non-distracting illness?

“Disinterested” but interesting reading is what makes you love literature and what broadens a person’s horizons.

Remember what Pushkin wrote from Chisinau to his brother and sister Olga on July 31, 1822: “Reading is the best teaching.” Look in the “Dictionary of the Pushkin Language” (Moscow, 1957) for the words “book” and “reading”. How much Pushkin writes about reading, about the communication of his favorite characters with books.

LETTER TWENTY-THREE

ABOUT PERSONAL LIBRARIES

They may say that books are not given to those who need them. Sometimes they serve as decoration; purchased because of beautiful bindings, etc. But this is not so scary. A book will always find someone who needs it. For example, a person buys a book and decorates his dining room with them. But he may have a son and nephews. We remember how people began to become interested in literature - through the libraries that they found with their father or with their relatives. So the book will find its reader someday. It can be sold, and this is also not bad, there will be some kind of stock of books, then it will again find its reader.

As for the personal library, I think this issue must be approached very responsibly. Not only because a personal library is considered the owner’s calling card, but because it sometimes becomes a prestigious moment. If a person buys books only for prestige, then he is doing it in vain. In the first conversation he will give himself away. It will become clear that he himself did not read the books, and if he did, he did not understand.

You don’t need to make your library too big; you don’t need to fill it with “one-time reading” books. Such books should be taken from the library. At home there should be books of repeated reading, classics (and favorite ones at that), and most of all reference books, dictionaries, bibliographies. They can sometimes replace an entire library. Be sure to keep a bibliography in your specialty and on the cards of this bibliography, note what in this book seems important and necessary to you.

I repeat. If you need a book for one-time reading, you should not purchase it. And the art of compiling personal libraries is to refrain from acquiring such books.

LETTER TWENTY-FOUR

LET'S BE HAPPY

(Response to a student’s letter)

Dear Seryozha! You are absolutely right in loving old buildings, old things - everything that accompanied a person in the past and accompanies him in his present life. All this not only entered into the consciousness of man, but itself, as it were, received something from people. It would seem that things are material, but they have become part of our spiritual culture, merged with our inner world, which could conventionally be called our “soul”. After all, we say “with all my heart,” or “I need this for my soul,” or “made with soul.” That's how! Everything that is done with the soul comes from the soul, we need it for the soul - this is “spiritual culture”. The more a person is surrounded by this spiritual culture, immersed in it, the happier he is, the more interesting it is for him to live, the more meaningful life becomes for him. But in a purely formal attitude to work, to teaching, to comrades and acquaintances, to music, to art, there is no such “spiritual culture.” This is “lack of spirituality” - the life of a mechanism that does not feel anything, is unable to love, sacrifice itself, or have moral and aesthetic ideals.

Let's be happy people, that is, those who have attachments, who deeply and seriously love something significant, who know how to sacrifice themselves for the sake of their favorite business and loved ones. People who do not have all this are unhappy, living a boring life, dissolving themselves in empty acquisitions or petty, base, “perishable” pleasures.

Quoted from:

D.S. Likhachev. Letters about good. St. Petersburg: “Russian-Baltic Information Center BLITs”, 1999.

Hello, Lyubov Mikhailovna. Please check my essay against the criteria.

My essay.
Why is it necessary to read thoughtfully, with interest, delving into all the little details? - the main problem that is in the center of attention of Dmitry Sergeevich Likhachev.
Reflecting on this problem, the author draws our attention, firstly, to the fact that a person is obliged to take care of his intellectual development and the main way of such development is reading. Secondly, “only those works of literature make a strong impression on a person that are read in a calm, leisurely and unhurried atmosphere.” Thirdly, “you need to read more and read with great choice, in accordance with the role the chosen book has acquired in the history of human culture, in order to become a classic.”
The author's position is that literature gives a vast experience and makes a person wise only when the works are read with an understanding of all the details, because the main thing lies in the details.
I agree with the author’s position: literature contributes to the development of personality, develops in it understanding and love for life.
Often, thanks to books, a person develops life attitudes, principles, and strives to be like his favorite heroes. So, in the novel by A.S. Pushkin's "Eugene Onegin", the main character Tatyana Larina was fond of French novels about love, which she read at night before going to bed. She wanted to be like her favorite heroes, she wanted to meet true love.
Every person has a favorite book that he reads with interest again and again. So, in the novel by I.S. Turgenev's "Fathers and Sons", the main character Nikolai Petrovich Kirsanov's favorite book was "Eugene Onegin". He re-read it constantly.
Thus, we can conclude that literature plays a huge role in human life. Thanks to it, people develop life priorities. And you want to re-read your favorite books again and again.

The famous Russian academician D.S. Likhachev, in one of his “Letters about the Good and the Beautiful,” discusses the importance of instilling a love of reading. The author convinces the younger generation of the benefits of literature, which makes people wise, “gives... the most extensive and profound experience of life.”

The scientist believes that one should not look for selfish motives in reading. It should not be done for the sake of high grades or fashion trends.

Communication with a good work gives the opportunity to “listen”

How does interest in reading arise, how does a love for books arise? In Likhachev's letter you can find answers to these questions. From personal experience, the author recalls that a true love for books was instilled in him by a literature teacher who knew how to “read and explain what he read.” He and the schoolchildren “laughed, admired, and were amazed at the writer’s art.”

Your position on the issue

There is no doubt that the teacher has an important role in cultivating interest in literature. I was also lucky with a teacher who unobtrusively and captivatingly introduces

class with creativity of writers. I want to read works from the school curriculum not only for the sake of academic performance, because a talented teacher knows how to intrigue, leave a little unfinished, so that the students have a desire to deeply familiarize themselves with the content and form their own opinion about the plot.

The academician notes the importance of favorite works for a person. This is correct, because exciting reading begins with interesting books that you want to re-read, delving into every detail.

Arguments from literature

In the 6th grade, Ekaterina Ivanovna told us about N.V. Gogol’s collection “Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka.” At first, the plots of some of the stories seemed creepy, but still interested me. Now the creator of “mystical” stories has become my favorite author. I often return to his “The Inspector General”, “Petersburg Tales”, “Taras Bulba”, “Dead Souls”. You can re-read them endlessly, enjoying the subtlety of humor and the sharpness of Gogol’s language.

The scientist Likhachev also mentions the role of the family in developing the habit of reading. Parents' respect for books is passed on to their children. Recommendations from elders help you choose useful and worthy literature. The final choice, of course, will remain with the reader himself, but at first he should still be guided.

Classical literature has been tested by time, therefore “... there is something significant in it.” Indeed, the works of the classics provide answers to any moral questions and enrich spiritual and vocabulary. It seems to me that it is books like these that make the reader wise.