Contents — Finding your way through this book

On a first reading, follow the book from beginning to end: the argument builds as it goes. When you return with a particular difficulty, these questions may help you find your place.

“I know my subject. Why is it so difficult to make others understand it?”

Start with Part I — Expertise is complex; it must become homely and clear. The knowledge you acquired and the work of making it accessible are not the same competence.

“Why does a simple explanation persuade—even when it is wrong?”

Read Part II — Why simplification works, then Part V — The dark side of ‘simple’. The features that help understanding can also create its illusion.

“What can earlier thinkers teach me about this work?”

Turn to Part III — A heritage of thought about understanding: different approaches to learning, interpretation, complexity and the limits of our minds.

“Tomorrow I must explain, teach or advise. Where do I begin?”

Go to Part IV — The practice of making simple, especially the tactical cycle. Begin with the people and their situation, not merely with the information you want to deliver.

“Am I making the matter accessible—or making it falsely easy?”

Return to Part V. Use the comparison between vulgarisation and making-simple to examine what your explanation preserves, what it loses, and what it enables the receiver to do.

“Should I simplify this at all?”

Read Part VI — The wisdom to simplify—or not. Making something easier to grasp is not, by itself, a sufficient reason to intervene.

These are starting places, not substitutes for the whole argument.