Q&A: Breadth of Study
Breadth of Study
Question
I saw that the Rabbi wrote that he does not see value in breadth-oriented study. My question is: how is a person supposed to acquire the knowledge needed in order to engage in give-and-take analysis and study in depth if he does not have a lot of broad knowledge from across the Talmud behind him? Isn’t there a danger that such a person will just confuse himself and his study partner without that kind of knowledge? Doesn’t one need background in order to build the foundations that make in-depth study possible?
Answer
Background can of course help, but breadth study usually does not provide that background. People simply forget. It is better to study in depth, because then the material is structured and remembered better, and that also gives you better breadth knowledge. That breadth is not acquired page by page through a tractate, where there is no orderly structure but rather the associations of the editor of the Talmud. In in-depth study, you see many topics and medieval authorities (Rishonim) from all kinds of places, all dealing with the same issue. That way too, the breadth comes out better.