Hyper-Literal Textual Analysis In Action
On SAT and ACT Reading, HLTA is a critical strategy for improving speed and accuracy. But many students struggle to apply it to literature passages. In this article, I show you how.
As I’ve discussed previously, Hyper-Literal Textual Analysis (HLTA) is an invaluable strategy for enhancing your performance on ACT Reading, paper-based SAT Reading, and digital SAT Reading (dSAT).
HLTA is a powerful reading strategy, designed to optimize your speed and accuracy on these standardized tests. It means avoiding symbolic, figurative, or subjective interpretations, instead steering you towards a literal, precise, and objective understanding of the text. While inferences do sometimes play a part, they are confined to three specific categories. These inferences are more akin to logical deductions than what is commonly envisioned when the term "inference" is mentioned.
In the realm of ACT and SAT reading, personal interpretations are set aside. The spotlight is almost invariably on what the text explicitly states, except in the case of the aforementioned specific types of allowable inferences.
The three pillars of HLTA are extreme precision, accuracy, and literalness. Today, we'll concentrate on the third pillar - literalness. We'll illustrate this concept using an example from an official ACT Reading Test. It's important to remember, however, that the principles of HLTA we'll be discussing are equally applicable to the ACT, paper-based SAT, and dSAT.
The beauty of HLTA is that it applies to every passage you encounter on these tests, whether it's fiction or non-fiction, and to every question. The answer is always there in the passage. HLTA helps you quickly and accurately identify what that answer is and isn't.
Now, let’s see how HLTA can be applied to a real reading question based on a literature passage:
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