Question

which excerpt from \how should one read a book?\ best states the author’s purpose?
○ most commonly we come to books with blurred and divided minds, asking of fiction that it shall be true, of poetry that it shall be false, of biography that it shall be flattering, of history that it shall enforce our own prejudices.
○ but if you open your mind as widely as possible, then signs and hints of almost imperceptible fineness, from the twist and turn of the first sentences, will bring you into the presence of a human being unlike any other.
○ thus to go from one great novelist to another—from jane austen to hardy, from peacock to trollope, from scott to meredith—is to be wrenched and uprooted; to be thrown this way and then that.
○ but a glance at the heterogeneous company on the shelf will show you that writers are very seldom \great artists\ far more often a book makes no claim to be a work of art at all.

Explanation:

To determine the author's purpose in "How Should One Read a Book?", we analyze each option:

• The first option describes common flawed approaches to reading (asking for fiction to be true, etc.), not the purpose.
• The second option ("But if you open your mind as widely as possible...") emphasizes the correct approach to reading to truly engage with the author's work, aligning with the purpose of guiding readers on how to read.
• The third option talks about the experience of moving between great novelists, not the purpose of reading.
• The fourth option comments on the nature of writers and books, not the purpose of reading.

Answer:

B. But if you open your mind as widely as possible, then signs and hints of almost imperceptible fineness, from the twist and turn of the first sentences, will bring you into the presence of a human being unlike any other.