Analysis Of Richard Rodriquez's The Lonely Good Company Of Books

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Each year as I grow old, I tend to discover and learn new things about myself as a person as well as a reader, writer and a student as a whole. My educational journey so far has been pretty interesting and full of surprises. Back in Bangladesh where I studied until high school, my interest for learning, reading or writing was so very different compared to how it has become over the years. I could relate those learning days to Richard Rodriquez’s essay “The lonely Good Company of Books”. In the essay the author says, “Friends? Reading was, at best, only a chore.”(Rodriguez, page 294). During those days I sure did feel like reading was a chore for me and how I was unable to focus and I could never understand what all those jumbled up words ever meant. It was quite a struggle for me in class when the teachers used to assign us reading homework. I felt like reading a book was more difficult or painful than trying to move a mountain. Just like how moving a mountain is impossible, trying to find an interest in reading was …show more content…

I almost forgot that I had a problem with reading. It’s so fascinating to know about people and their various opinions regarding their relationship with reading. For example in Richard Rodriquez’s essay he tries to explain himself when one day the nun concluded a session by asking him why he was so reluctant to read by himself. He then says, “I tried to explain; said something about the way written words made me feel alone---almost, I wanted to add but didn’t, as when I spoke to myself in a room just emptied of furniture.” (Rodriguez, page 294). Unlike the author, my case was completely opposite of him. I figured when I’m alone in an isolated place, I understand what I read way more in depth than I ever can while I’m surrounded by people. Though I truly like to read occasionally now, that still doesn’t mean I have become a

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