Mercedes Davis
English 091
March 11, 2011

An Open Reader Reading is the foundation of our life. Without reading we would be like lost souls in the world. Everywhere we go and anything we do we have to read; at work, school, driving, etc. People who do not know how to read are limited in life, they cant get a job, and the everyday life would be a struggle. Someone who knows how to read has no restrictions, the sky is the limit for them, they are our lawyers, doctors, and teachers. In Moody’s article “The Joy and Enthusiasm of Reading”, he expressed his love for the unpopular selections, and how he learned how to dissect his readings. Moody also states that nobody will ever be able to tell him how to read, and also believes there is no right or wrong way to read. In Moody’s article “The Joy and Enthusiasm of Ready”, he explains his high school and college reading experiences. He tells us how his, Mr. Buxton, taught him how to analyze Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Mr. Buxton did not give him his own interpretation and made sure Moody noticed how Shakespeare repeated somethings to help Moody come to a conclusion. In eleventh grade Moody’s teacher Mr. Flanders encouraged Moody to develop his own relationship with the Gospels, in his religious studies. Then Moody continued onto college where he read Umberto Eco’s Role of the Reader, where he was introduced to Eco’s “Open Text” philosophy. He also read some of the great European and Latin Americans articles. After his college and high school experiences he talked about the critics who believed there are right and wrong ways to read at the end of the article Moody expressed that there will never be a person who will tell him how to read. He believes in the freedom o f seeing literature unfold. I believe that there is no right or wrong way to read, and absolutely agree with Moody. I agree with Moody because I have rarely came across one book, article, or selection that has one specific and obvious conclusion. Some authors like to keep their readers guessing, as if the story never ended. For example, last semester Fall 2010 my professor assigned us to read Kate Chopin’s The Story of An Hour. and in it there was a character named Mrs. Mallard who was told her husband was killed in an accident. Our jobs as students and readers to interpret her emotions after being told. My point is there was not one answer there were many. So yes I believe there is no right or wrong way to read. If I was questioned about believing there is a right or wrong way to read prior to taking a College English course I probably would have said yes there is, due to my prior reading experiences where I was told to read, and we would all be looking for the same conclusion. SInce being introduced into the “open text” I have begun to pit a but more critical thinking in reading. Moody’s reading experiences, with his teachers that encouraged him to get his own conclusions from every reading, lead him to believe that there is no right or wrong way to read. Like Moody after being introduced to this way of reading freely I also believe that there is not a right or wrong way to read. I understand why some people believe that there is a right and wrong way for reading, and thats because they have not been introduced to the “open text” yet. I believe that the significance of reading is relevant as a subject, and that the world without reading would be a dull place.Ar