VI. Read what you like

There was a time when easy and happy learning was suspected of shallowness. We think that true scholarship is compatible with freedom and delight in the books that you like.

VII. Read what you do not like

Again a converse proposition is as true as its opposite. By following one’s likings limitlessly there is danger of developing mental one-sidedness, like the bodily deformity of one who carries some weight always in the right or always in the left hand.

No good thing in this world is ever accomplished by doing only what one likes to do. The mind should have room for freedom end delight, bat it must learn also to act by mere resolve and determination. A well-disciplined mind can do some work, at times some of its best work, under compulsion. When that is done, the freedom will be all the more free, and the delight more delightful. No man is good for anything who cannot say on occasion, “This must be done; it can be and it shall be, and I am the one to do it, liking or not liking – right now”.

VOCABULARY

absorb, v 1. take in or suck in, eg liquid, heat, light

2. (fig) gain knowledge, etc.

e.g. The clever boy absorbed all the knowledge his teachers could give him.

3. use up a great deal of the attention, interest or time of

e.g. He'd completely absorbed in his work.

absorption, n absorbing or being absorbed

eg Complete absorption in sport.

absorbent, adj able to absorb

e.g. absorbent cotton-wool

absorbent, n absorbent material

adequate, adj satisfactory; sufficient

e.g. adequate payment for the work

adequacy, n (fml) state of being adequate

e.g. He often doubts his adequacy as a husband and father.

adequately adv

close/near at/to hand, adv near; within reach

command, n possession and skill

e.g. He has a good command of the English language (= is able to use it well)

commonplace, adj ordinary or usual

e.g. a commonplace opinion

commonplace, n a well-known remark with little meaning or interest

compel, v force (a person or thing to do sth); get, bring about by force

e.g. His conscience compelled him to confess.

compulsion, n compelling or being compelled

e.g. to do sth under compulsion; She felt a sudden compulsion to hit him.

compelling, adj 1. that holds one's attention, esp. by being exciting

e.g. a compelling adventure story

2. that compels one to do sth

e.g. I have no compelling reasons to refuse.

compulsive, adj having a tendency or a power to compel; caused by an obsession

e.g. a compulsive liar/eater.

compulsively, adv

compulsory, adj that must be done; required

e.g. compulsory education/subject.

Syn.: obligatory

Opp.: voluntary adj

compulsorily, adj

compatible, adj (of ideas, arguments, principles, etc.) suited to, in accord with, able to exist together with: drive a car at a speed compatible with safety

compatibly, adj

Opp.: incompatible adj

confine, v 1. keep or hold, restrict, within limits

e.g. Please confine your remarks to the subject we are debating.

2. keep shut up

e.g. Is it cruel to confine a bird in a cage?

confinement, n. 1. being confined, imprisonment

e.g. He was placed in confinement.

2.giving birth to a child; instance of this

confines, n (pl) limits; borders; boundaries

e.g. beyond the confines of human knowledge/this valley

confined, adj (of space) limited; narrow; restricted.

content, n 1. (pl) that which is contained

e.g. the contents of a room/a book/ a pocket

2. (pl) the amount which a vessel will hold

e.g. the contents of this bottle

3. substance (of a book, speech, etc. as opposed to its style)

diverse, adj of different kinds

e.g. The wild life in Africa is extremely diverse.

diversify, v make diverse; give variety to

diversification, n

diversity, n the state of being diverse; variety

diversely, adv

extensive, adj large in amount, area, or range, having an effect on or including many parts

e.g. The storm caused extensive damage. The story received extensive coverage.

extensively, adv

e.g. She had read extensively.

fit in (with sth), v (cause to) be in a suitable or harmonious relation (with); find, be in the right or suitable time or place for

e.g. I must fit my holidays in with yours.

Cf. fit sth to sth join; connect naturally

insensible, adj 1. unconscious as the result of injury, illness, etc.

2. unaware (of)

e.g. insensible of danger

3. unsympathetic; showing no emotion.

insensibility, n (fml) state of not having feeling or emotion; inability to know, recognize, or understand or appreciate

e.g. insensibility to pain/beauty

insensibly, adv

instinct, n 1. natural tendency to behave in a certain way without reasoning or training

e.g. Birds learn to fly by instinct.

2. instance of this

e.g. an instinct for saying the right thing.

instinctive, adj based on instinct, not from training or teaching.

instinctively, adv

intellect, n 1. power of the mind or reason (contrasted with feeling and instinct)

e.g. Intellect distinguished man from other animals.

2. (coll. sing., or in pl) person of good understanding, reasoning power, etc.

e.g. the intellect(s) of the age.

intellectual, adj 1. of the intellect

e.g. intellectual pursuits

2. having or showing good reasoning power

e.g. intellectual people/interests.

intellectual, n intellectual person

intellectually, adv

USAGE: 1. Compare intelligent, adj, intellectual, n, adj and intellect, n. An intelligent person is someone with a quick and clever mind, but an intellectual (person) is someone who is well-educated and interested in subjects which need long periods of study. A small child, or even a dog, can be intelligent but cannot be called an intellectual.

2. When used to mean a person, intellect suggests someone who has a very good brain, but perhaps not much practical ability

e.g. He is a real intellect, but he’d be nowhere without his wife.

judge, n 1. public officer with authority to hear and decide cases in a law court

2. person who decides in a contest, competition, dispute, etc.

3. person qualified and able to give opinions on merits and values

e.g. a good judge of horses.

judge, v 1. act as a judge (1)

2. give a decision (in a competition, etc.)

3. estimate; consider; form an opinion about

e.g. Judging from what you say, he ought to win.

judgment, n 1. judging or being judged

e.g. pass judgment on a prisoner (give a decision after trial)

2. decision of a judge or court

e.g. The judgment was in his favour.

3. process of judging

e.g. an error of judgment

4. good sense; ability to judge (2, 3)

e.g. He showed excellent judgment in choosing a wife.

5. misfortune considered to be a punishment from God

6. opinion

e.g. in the judgment of most people.

mastery, n 1. complete control of knowledge of

e.g. his mastery of the violin

2. supremacy

e.g. Which side will get the mastery (over us)?

odd, adj 1. (of numbers) not even; not exactly divisible by two

e.g. 1, 3, 5 and 7 are odd numbers.

2. of one of a pair when the other is missing

e.g. an odd shoe/glove

3. of one or more of a set or series when not with the rest

e.g. two odd volumes of an encyclopedia

4. with a little extra

e.g. twelve pounds odd

5.not regular, habitual or fixed; occasional

e.g. do odd jobs; at odd times/moments

6. strange; peculiar

e.g. How odd; an odd old man.

odd man out 1. person or thing left when the others have been arranged in pairs

2. (infml) person who keeps away from, or cannot fit himself into the society, community, etc. of which he is a member

oddity, n 1. quality of being odd (6); strangeness

e.g. oddity of behavior/dress

2. queer act, thing, or person.

oddment, n sth left over; spare piece

e.g. The chair was sold as an oddment at the end of the auction.

oddly, adv in a strange manner.

pass by (sth/sb), v pay no attention to

e.g. I can't pass the matter by without a protest.

pick sth up, v take hold of; hear or see (usu. by means of apparatus)

reject, v 1. put aside, send back, throw away, as not good enough

e.g. reject fruit that is overripe

2. refuse to accept,

e.g. reject an offer of help/marriage; I applied for the job but was rejected.

Syn: turn down

reject, n sth rejected

rejection, n rejected or being rejected; instance of this; sth rejected

require, v 1. need; depend on for success, etc.

e.g. We require extra help.

2.(fml) order; demand; insist on as a right or by authority

e.g. Students are required to take three papers in English literature.

requirement, n (fml) sth needed

e.g. meet his requirements (= do what he wants done)

resolve, v 1. decide; determine

e.g. He resolved to succeed.

2. (of a committee, public meeting, legislative body) pass by formal vote the decision (that).

e.g. The House of Commons resolved that...

3. put an end to (doubts, difficulties, etc.) by supplying an answer

4. break up, separate (into parts); convert, be converted

e.g. resolve a problem into its elements.

resolve, n sth that has been decided

e.g. keep one's resolve

resolvable, adj that may be resolved

resolution, n 1. quality of being determined

e.g. show great resolve/resolution

2. sth that is decided; formal expression of opinion by a legislative body, etc.; proposal for this

e.g. pass/carry/adopt/reject a resolution for/against/in favour of/that...

3. sth one makes up one's mind to do

e.g. a New Year resolution (e.g. to give up smoking in a new year)

4. resolving, solution (of a doubt, etc.)

resolute, adj (fml) determined

e.g. a resolute man

resolutely, adv

scholar, n 1. (dated) boy or girl at school

2. student who, after a competitive examination or other means of selection, is awarded money or other help so that he may attend school or college

3. person with much knowledge (usu. of a particular subject)

e.g. Prof X, the famous Greek scholar

4. (infml) person able to read and write

e.g. I'm not much of a scholar.

scholarship, n 1. learning or knowledge obtained by study; proper concern for scholarly methods

2. payment of money, e.g. a yearly grant to a scholar so that he may continue his studies

e.g. win a scholarship to the university

scholarly, adj having or showing much learning; of or suitable for a scholar (3); fond of learning

e.g. a scholarly translation/woman.

shallow, adj 1. of little depth

e.g. shallow water

2. (fig) not reasonable or serious, superficial

e.g. a shallow argument/talk/ thinker

shallow-minded, adj

shallow, n (often pl) shallow place in a river or in the sea

shallowness, n

shallowly, adv

Opp: deep, adj profound, adj

snatch, v 1. put out the hand suddenly and take

e.g. He snatched the letter out of my hand. He snatched at the letter (i.e. tried to seize) but was not quick enough.

2. get quickly or when a chance occurs

e.g. Snatch a meal/ a kiss/ an hour's sleep

snatch, n 1. act ofsnatching

e.g. make a snatch at the letter

2. (as an adj), e.g. a snatch decision (i.e. made quickly)

3. short outburst or period

e.g. overhear snatches of conversation

snatcher, n one who snatches

stand out, v be easily seen above or among others

e.g. Does your work stand out from that of others? (= Is it obviously better?) His ability stands out a mile (= is obvious).

stretch, n

ç at a stretch without stopping

e.g. work 6-12 hours at a stretch.

NOTES

Browning, Elizabeth Barret (1806 – ‘61) English poet

David Copperfield (1850) a novel by Ch. Dickens (1812 – ‘70), English novelist

encyclopedia, n a book or set of books containing articles on various topics, usu. in alphabetical arrangement, covering all branches of knowledge, or less commonly, all aspects of one subject.

Johnson, Samuel (1709 – ‘84) English lexicographer, critic, poet and conversationalist.

Scott, Walter (1771 – 1832) Scottish writer, author of romantic poems, e.g. The Lady of the Lake (1810) and historical adventure novels, e.g. Ivanhoe (1820).

Vanity Fair (1847) a novel by W.M. Thackeray, English novelist (1811 – ‘63).