Lesson 43. Parallelism & Cognition│The Mechanics of Fiction Writing
Understanding the Cognitive Process of Reading
The Importance of Working Memory
- The speaker emphasizes the complexity of understanding reading as a mental process, highlighting its significance for clearer writing.
- Introduces "working memory" as the conscious mind's container, crucial for processing information while reading.
- Notes that working memory is limited compared to overall knowledge, with an average capacity of about seven items.
- Explains how distractions can easily fill this small cognitive space, affecting reading comprehension.
- Acknowledges the remarkable ability humans have developed to read despite these limitations.
Chunking: A Cognitive Strategy
- Introduces "chunking" as a cognitive strategy that helps manage information in working memory more effectively.
- Uses phone numbers as an example to illustrate how chunking allows us to remember longer sequences by breaking them into smaller parts.
- Discusses the shared cognitive challenges faced by both readers and writers due to limited working memory capacity.
- Highlights that reading and writing are not instinctive skills but require significant cognitive effort and training over time.
- Describes how children learn to read through gradual recognition of letters and words, eventually leading to easier processing.
The Role of Rhythm and Parallel Construction in Writing
- Connects the development of reading skills with the ability to process complex sentence structures more efficiently over time.
- Presents two sentences with similar content but different structures, illustrating how parallel construction aids readability.
- Points out that parallel structure allows readers to process information faster due to reduced cognitive load on working memory.
- Analyzes how readers engage with sentences differently based on their grammatical structure, impacting comprehension speed.
Understanding Cognitive Load in Sentence Structure
The Impact of Sentence Construction on Comprehension
- The phrase "to balance the budget" follows a familiar grammatical structure, allowing readers to chunk information effectively. This leads to a simplified cognitive load as they process key promises made by the president: health care, social security, and balanced budget.
- Readers can manage four items in their cognitive container, which allows them to consider broader implications while processing the sentence's meaning.
- In contrast, when encountering "the preservation of social security," readers face an abstract noun phrase that complicates comprehension due to its deviation from expected grammatical patterns.
- The introduction of mismatched grammatical constructions requires more cognitive effort from readers, leading to a sensation of slowed processing as they juggle multiple meanings simultaneously.
- The complexity increases with additional faulty parallels; this mental juggling act can overwhelm readers and hinder their understanding of the original proposition regarding presidential promises.
Importance of Parallel Structure in Writing
- Writers should aim for clarity by constructing sentences that do not overload the reader's cognitive capacity. Simplifying sentence structures can enhance readability and comprehension.
- An example illustrates how non-parallel construction ("Marta loved watching...") creates confusion for readers who struggle to identify what Marta enjoyed watching due to inconsistent phrasing.
- Each item in the list presents different grammatical forms (noun vs. gerund), which adds complexity. Maintaining consistency is crucial for effective communication.
- By converting gerunds into noun phrases, writers can create parallelism: "the marathon in April," "the Independence Day parade in July," and "the Veterans Day procession in November." This enhances clarity and flow within sentences.