I‘m sure that’s not the case. It’s not a talent you’re born with but something you learn and can train. The Yale professor did not just pick up a book one day and analyzed/interpreted everything. He studied what to look for, how to connect these things with the authors life, the historical context and other works by the same author as well as completely different ones with similar themes. He has a lot of experience and most likely was well prepared for the lecture.

I‘d advise you to study the authors behind the book a bit and try to find connections between their life and their work.

And don’t beat yourself up if you can’t make sense of something instantly, you‘ll get their