Reasons Why You Might be Reading Some Particular Text

Pleasure and enjoyment

This is probably the best reason to read anything. You have chosen the material for the purpose of enjoying yourself. Reading gives you pleasure, even relaxes you. However, this will seldom be the purpose behind the reading you need to do for your subjects at university.

Practical application

Here the purpose is to gain information that you can apply or use in a practical situation. Books such as laboratory manuals, computer manuals, and instruction booklets are all texts that you would refer to with the purpose of gaining specific information.

To get a general idea

The point here is to get a general feel for the material, to determine whether is relevant, useful, up to date, and to get a sense of how the topic is tested by the author. This is likely to be the main purpose behind your reading when you:
　　-- are given a long reading list for an assignment;
　　-- are starting library research for an essay, research report or similar assignments;
　　-- need to decide which texts are most relevant to or useful for your assignment.

To find specific information

Sometimes you know that you are looking for but do not know exactly where to find it. For example, you might be looking for
　　-- a specific passage;
　　-- examples to support a particular argument;
　　-- details about a specific person or event;
　　-- a map;
　　-- a statistic or table of statistics.

To find this sort of information mean that you have to refer to several books or sources. In these cases you will be reading with the aim of finding the information you are looking for.

To develop a detailed and critical understanding

Often, you will need to master fully the material in a book, journal article or manual so that you can judge its arguments, opinion, and supporting examples. This will require you to:
　　-- read the material carefully;
　　-- make relevant notes;
　　-- keep an open mind by comparing with your own ideas and opinions.