Attention to the context. Texts don’t exist in isolation: they are influenced by and contribute to ongoing conversations, controversies, or debates, so to understand a particular text, you need to understand its larger context. Nussbaum opens by describing fans’ critical response to the evolution of 30 Rock’s main character. Safire notes the source of the phrase “of the people, by the people, for the people” and is clearly writing in the context of the United States after 9/11.