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Read pages 137-154 of MAN’S SEARCH FOR MEANING and Upload a Reading Log
Pages 137-154 are a section of the book called “The Case for a Tragic Optimism” which begins with the words, “Let us first ask ourselves” and ends with the words, “we know what is at stake.”
Reading Log Instructions for Man’s Search for Meaning
Remember, as you read, that one of the most important skills you can cultivate in college is the
ability to tolerate ambiguity. The ability to tolerate ambiguity is the ability to keep reading
(or writing an essay or participating in a discussion) even when you are not sure you
understand everything you are learning about and/or when you are not sure what you
think about what you are learning about. In other words, it means to keep exploring a
topic even when it’s confusing to you. You will feel confused when you are reading. Try to be
patient and keep reading. After a while, you will start to see you understand more than you think
and that you don’t need to understand everything all the time to learn and develop your skills.
Remember: this assignment is graded only on thoughtful completion. You don’t have to be
“right” about anything here. You just have to be honest. Do your best, but don’t worry about
being perfect.
1. What Schema and Vocabulary You Learned: Jot down 5 words or references you
looked up on the Britannica link on our Canvas page, and put in your own words what
they mean or refer to.
2. What Makes Sense to You – Jot down 3 or 4 things you think you understand from this
part of the reading. It could be something Frankl is telling us about his experiences in the
concentration camps or something else – whatever seems clear.
3. What Confuses You – Pick a sentence or a paragraph from the reading where you felt
especially lost and indicate which one it was here. You don’t have to copy it down. Just
write “third paragraph on page 29” or “the sentence that begins with … on page 32.”
Then try to form 2 or 3 questions about it – e.g. “What does he mean when he says …?”
You might use one of the sentence frames from the sentence frame handout to help you
form your questions.
4. What You Think This Part of the Book is About – Whenever a writer writes
something, it is because he or she is trying to change our thinking in some way. What do
you think Frankl is trying to show us or explain to us about his experience in the camps?
What does he most want us to know that we might not have known before?
5. Your “Golden Line” and Why You Picked It – Pick a sentence or two from the reading
that stands out to you. It could stand out to you because you agree with it, because it
reminds you of something in your own experience, because you hate it or disagree with
it, or for some other reason. Jot it down here and write 2 or 3 sentences about why you
picked it.
Sentence Frames You Might Want to Use in Your Reading Log or to Contribute to the
Discussion
What does __________ mean?
Why is _____________ doing that?
What does ___________ mean when he says _______________?
Something that really confuses me is ________________.
One question I have is …
I don’t know what ______________ means, but one guess I have is … because …
What the author is trying to say here is …
This part surprised me because …
This part confused me because …
I think what is going on here is that …. but what I still don’t get is ….
I thought this was funny because …
This reminded me of … because
One thing I wondered about is …
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