Memory: How to Develop, Train, and Use It

William Walker AtkinsonProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 212K words
Chapters: 22

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Memory: How to Develop, Train, and Use It by William Walker AtkinsonAuthor: Atkinson, William Walker, 1862-1932,Language: English, Class: BF: Philosophy, Psychology, Religion: Psychology, Philosophy, Psychoanalysis, Release Date: Nov 25, 2012

Editor's review

Memory: How to Develop, Train, and Use It is a practical psychology book on memory training by William Walker Atkinson. A representative figure in early twentieth-century self-help and popular psychology writing, Atkinson discusses the cultivation, training, and use of memory, placing the book within the early literature on memory techniques. The English original is freely available from Project Gutenberg, giving readers access to the source text. Its value lies in presenting ideas and methods of memory training from a century ago, useful to readers interested in the history of psychology, self-help reading groups, or English learners. It is best read with a historical perspective, comparing its views with modern cognitive science rather than adopting them wholesale.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in memory training and early popular psychology literature
Self-help learners who want to practice reading with English public-domain books
Researchers of the history of psychology or self-help culture, for reference

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a rigorous memory guide based on the latest contemporary cognitive science
Professionals needing systematic textbooks in clinical or educational psychology

Reading tips

Start with the table of contents to grasp the overall structure, then select chapters relevant to your own memory needs.
As you read, note the similarities and differences between the book's methods and modern memory research, and take critical notes.
Read alongside a contemporary introductory book on cognitive psychology to avoid following old claims blindly.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Are the methods in this book still applicable today?

This book was written long ago and belongs to early memory-training literature. Some of its exercise ideas still have reference value, but modern cognitive science has developed more systematic memory research. Read it as a historical and supplementary source, and judge its applicability in light of contemporary material.

What English level is needed to read this book?

This is the English original, written in an early twentieth-century style. An intermediate reading level is enough to attempt it; use a dictionary for unfamiliar expressions. It can also serve as extensive reading material for English learners.

How does this book differ from modern books on memory techniques?

This is an early popular work on memory training, focused on presenting ideas and exercises rather than systematic argument within a contemporary experimental psychology framework. Readers can treat it as an introduction to the history of memory training, not as the latest scientific guide.

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About the author

William Walker Atkinson Author · United States · 1862–1932

William Walker Atkinson (1862–1932) was an American lawyer, publisher and writer, and one of the pioneers of the New Thought movement. Born in Baltimore, he was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1894, after which he turned to writing on spirituality, yoga and practical psychology. He authored more than a hundred works over his lifetime, often under pen names such as Theron Q. Dumont and Yogi Ramacharaka. His writings cover a wide range of subjects, including breathing methods, Raja Yoga and Gnani Yoga, clairvoyance and occult powers, mental technique, logical thinking and memory training; they combine popular exposition with practical guidance and have had a lasting influence on later mind-body literature. He died in Los Angeles in 1932.