The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History
The importance of the library, from ancient times to the digital era

From Greek and Roman times to the digital era, the library has remained central to knowledge, scholarship, and the imagination. The Meaning of the Library is a generously illustrated examination of this key institution of Western culture. Tracing what the library has meant since its beginning, examining how its significance has shifted, and pondering its importance in the twenty-first century, notable contributors—including the Librarian of Congress and the former executive director of the HathiTrust—present a cultural history of the library. In an informative introduction, Alice Crawford sets out the book's purpose and scope, and an international array of scholars, librarians, writers, and critics offer vivid perspectives about the library through their chosen fields. The Meaning of the Library will appeal to all who are interested in this vital institution's heritage and ongoing legacy.

"1120692746"
The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History
The importance of the library, from ancient times to the digital era

From Greek and Roman times to the digital era, the library has remained central to knowledge, scholarship, and the imagination. The Meaning of the Library is a generously illustrated examination of this key institution of Western culture. Tracing what the library has meant since its beginning, examining how its significance has shifted, and pondering its importance in the twenty-first century, notable contributors—including the Librarian of Congress and the former executive director of the HathiTrust—present a cultural history of the library. In an informative introduction, Alice Crawford sets out the book's purpose and scope, and an international array of scholars, librarians, writers, and critics offer vivid perspectives about the library through their chosen fields. The Meaning of the Library will appeal to all who are interested in this vital institution's heritage and ongoing legacy.

21.95 In Stock
The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History

The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History

The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History

The Meaning of the Library: A Cultural History

Paperback(Reprint)

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Overview

The importance of the library, from ancient times to the digital era

From Greek and Roman times to the digital era, the library has remained central to knowledge, scholarship, and the imagination. The Meaning of the Library is a generously illustrated examination of this key institution of Western culture. Tracing what the library has meant since its beginning, examining how its significance has shifted, and pondering its importance in the twenty-first century, notable contributors—including the Librarian of Congress and the former executive director of the HathiTrust—present a cultural history of the library. In an informative introduction, Alice Crawford sets out the book's purpose and scope, and an international array of scholars, librarians, writers, and critics offer vivid perspectives about the library through their chosen fields. The Meaning of the Library will appeal to all who are interested in this vital institution's heritage and ongoing legacy.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780691175744
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication date: 03/07/2017
Edition description: Reprint
Pages: 336
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Alice Crawford is digital humanities research librarian at the University of St Andrews Library in Scotland. Her books include Paradise Pursued: The Novels of Rose Macaulay.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations ix

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction, Alice Crawford xiii

Part 1 The Library through Time

Chapter 1 Adventures in Ancient Greek and Roman Libraries, Edith Hall 1

Chapter 2 The Image of the Medieval Library, Richard Gameson 31

Chapter 3 The Renaissance Library and the Challenge of Print, Andrew Pettegree 72

Chapter 4 From Printing Shop to Bookshelves: How Books Began the Journey to Enlightenment Libraries, Robert Darnton 91

Chapter 5 “The Advantages of Literature”: The Subscription Library in Georgian Britain, David Allan 103

Chapter 6 Literature and the Library in the Nineteenth Century, John Sutherland 124

Part 2 The Library in Imagination

Chapter 7 The Library in Fiction, Marina Warner 153

Chapter 8 The Library in Poetry, Robert Crawford 176

Chapter 9 The Library in Film: Order and Mystery, Laura Marcus 199

Part 3 The Library Now and in the Future

Chapter 10 “Casting and Gathering”: Libraries, Archives, and the Modern Writer, Stephen Enniss 223

Chapter 11 Meanings of the Library Today, John P. Wilkin 236

Chapter 12 The Modern Library and Global Democracy, James H. Billington 254

Selected Bibliography 267

Contributors 281

Index 285

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"This wide-ranging survey of the long and tumultuous history of libraries contains at least a dozen tantalizing bits of information per page. I was fascinated and enriched. And because these essays began as lectures delivered in a library, they illustrate beautifully one of the library's most important roles—as a stage set for writers to share what they've learned about various subjects, including Roman bathhouses, Victorian fumigators, plunder, lust, and the eighteenth-century librarian upon whose death, it was said, ‘The books are grievin, ‘mang themselves.'"—Marilyn Johnson, author of This Book Is Overdue!: How Librarians and Cybrarians Can Save Us All

"The Meaning of the Library covers the history of the library from antiquity to the present day. This is a very good collection of essays."—Colin Burrow, editor of Metaphysical Poetry

"The library as a topic is currently of increasing cultural interest. I enjoyed The Meaning of the Library and learned a lot from the book's eclectic and interesting mix of essays."—Richard Ovenden, Bodley's Librarian, University of Oxford

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