Finish chapter

>finish chapter
>read summary of chapter on sparknotes to make sure I didn't miss anything

Pic captures the nature of that process quite well.

>read every day
>comprehension is very low

>read chapter numerous times at different rates to ensure full comprehension of what ive just read
>uncomfortable when i cant remember what just occured in the last chapter event by event
>repeat

who else /paranoid/

for me that only applies for stuff like Shakespeare

not even with Dickens or Eliot would I stoop so low

What about Joyce

>bad memory
>Can barely remember details of Napoleons life (for example) despite reading entire books about it

Is there any hope?

anyone who says they didn't need help understanding joyce the first time is an idiot (unless they're genius tier)

>about to read a chapter
>read analysis of the chapter beforehand so I can "get it"

I do this all the time with philosophy since I skipped the greeks

But whats's the difference? You mentioned serial novelists who are mostly focused on plot development anyways (not underrate the philosophical explorations of Eliot, which I find to be brilliant at times). So, of course you wouldn't have to "stoop so low." Generally speaking those pieces were developed for the popular rags anyways. Effectively, you've played into the irony of this greentext, and have assumed the role of the non-thinker solely by admitting you do in fact rely on a system designed to aid high schoolers too jaded or retarded to do the actual work of reading. And, in all honesty, you're even dumber than you think. The target audience Sparknotes was designed for (grade school kids) can't be to blame. After all, high school isn't for the reading of serious literature (how can those little fucks appreciate the works anyways) whereas you should possess the mental faculties to train your mind to comprehend this stuff not just on the superficial level of plot, but on the critical level. Otherwise, I don't even know why you bother with reading Shakespeare. There's plenty of good, entertaining literature that doesn't require you to rely on a second hand source for even the most sacrificial level of engagement. Either that, or you're a high schooler.

>read a chapter in Ulysses
> read multiple chapter summaries online
>each of them has a different interpretation of what happened
>none of them match my interpretation
>cry

t. never read ulysses, or any summaries of ulysses

ulysses is incredibly well understood

this might apply to FW

>read a chapter
>have to reread it since the next chapter alludes to to it

same
i literally have to look up every word i don't recognize, which makes reading Gene Wolfe especially cock numbing, and i read each sentence multiple times so i don't miss anything

fuk

Just take notes of the major points or events of every chapter

ive watched like 5 hours of this ww1 documentary and i literally cant remember a single thing
i still watch it tho

>read books
>still dumb

What am I doing wrong?

IQ89

...

how do you know what events are major points as you're reading it for the first time?

Are there any iq raising exercises or are you fucked if born with low iq?

There's various things you could be doing which would lower your effective IQ.

Eat a good, fresh diet. Sleep well and long. Interact with people, socially. Exercise.