History of Libraries in the Western World -syllabus - Kent State University Taught by Miriam Kahn

History of Libraries in the Western World LIS 61095 (Kent State University) Summer 2010
session 1	session 2		session 3	session 4		session 5
session 6	session 7		session 8	session 9		session 10

Description of Assignments			Links to websites & bibliography
Session 1 Introduction to the History of Libraries Ancient World to 400 CE The library and its place within society and history Readings: “Reading the Library” Chapter 1 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p3-21. · “The Library of Babel” from Borges Labyrinths http://jubal.westnet.com/hyperdiscordia/library_of_babel.html · Houston, George W. “Tiberius and the Libraries: Public Book Collections and Library Buildings in the Early Roman Empire” Libraries & The Cultural Record 43 No. 3 (September 10, 2008): 247–269. (available through KentLink on EJC) Discussion - : Lawler, Andrew. “Raising Alexandria.” Smithsonian (April 2007) http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Raising-Alexandria.html View: Carl Sagan – Library of Alexandria on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jixnM7S9tLw&feature=fvst New Alexandrian Library http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vZY6nfVIQo Lawler, Andrew. “Raising Alexandria.” Smithsonian (April 2007) http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Raising-Alexandria.html
Session 2 Medieval Libraries Readings “Burning Alexandria” Chapter 2 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p22-55. Blackburn, Robert H. “The Ancient Alexandrian Library: Part of It May Survive!” Library History 19 No. 1 (March 2003): 23-34. Casson, Lionel. Libraries in the Ancient World. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001 Read "From Roll to Codex (on e-reserve) Barker, Nicolas “Libraries and the Mind of Man.” In A Potencie of Life: Books in Society. (New Castle, DE: Oak Knoll Press, 2001): 179-194. O'Toole, J. “Herodotus and the Written Record.” Archivaria [Online] 33 No. 1 (1991). http://journals.sfu.ca/archivar/index.php/archivaria/article/view/11806/12757 Optional Reading: Gamble, Harry Y. “Early Christian Libraries.” Ch. 4 in Books and Readers in the Early Church: A History of Early Christian Texts. (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1995): 144-202. Ranasinghe, Rhis. “How Buddhism Influenced the Origin and Development of Libraries in Sri Lanka (Ceylon): From the Third Century BC to the Fifth Century AD.” Library History 24 No. 4 (Dec 2008): 307-312. (available through KentLink) Hunt, R.W. “The Library of the Abbey of St. Albans.” In Medieval Scribes, Manuscripts & Libraries; Essays Presented to N.R. Ker. Edited by MB. Parkes and Andrew G. Watson. London: Scholar Press, 1978, 251-277. Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapters 1-5
YouTube Video: Herculaneum Papyrus unrolled and deciphered http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQBgoLZZjHM
Session 3 Late Middle Ages to Renaissance Paper Topic descriptions due Readings “The House of Wisdom” Chapter 3 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p56-81. Rukanci, Fatih and Hakan Anameric. “Libraries as Scientific, Educational and Cultural Institutions in the Ottoman Empire (XIVth –XVIIth Centuries) Libri 56 No. 4 (Dec 2006): 252-263. Clark, J.W. Libraries in the Medieval and Renaissance Periods. Rede Lecture June 13, 1894 (Chicago: Argonaut Inc. Publishers, 1968). “Lydgate’s Libraries: Duke Humfrey, Bury St. Edmunds, and The Fall of Princes” Chapter 1 in Jennifer Summit Memory’s Library: Medieval Books in Early Modern England (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2008) p16-52 notes 47-263. Optional: Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapter 6-8 Discussion topics: How we perceive libraries in Medieval Renaissance times, changes in culture and literacy, importance of printed materials, bibles, books, maps Related materials: Umberto Eco Name of the Rose Links to articles about Eco and Libraries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Name_of_the_Rose http://www.critiquemagazine.com/article/umbertoeco.html http://www.emory.edu/home/news/releases/2008/09/umberto-eco-delivers-ellman-lectures.html (there are 4 lectures by Umberto Eco available through their site and iTunes) Discussion – View of Libraries & Librarians in Umberto Eco’s “The Name of the Rose”
Session 4 Europe 17^th & 18^th Centuries Readings Manley, K.A. “Scottish Circulating and Subscription Libraries as Community Libraries.” Library History 19 No. 3 (Nov 2003): 185-194. Kaltwasser, Franz Georg. “The Common Roots of Library and Museum in the Sixteenth Century: The Example of Munich.” Library History 20 No. 3 (Nov 2004): 163-181. Roberts, Daphne and Bob Duckett. “The Bradford Library and Literary Society, 1774-1980.” Library History 22 No. 3 (Nov 2006): 213-226. Satterley, Renae. “The Libraries of the Inns of Court: An Examination of their Historical Influence.” Library History 24 No. 3 (Sept 2008): 208-219. Schwill, Rudolph “An Impression of the Condition of Spanish American Libraries.” Modern Language Notes 20 No. 5 (1905): 142-145 (also available through JSTOR) Optional Readings: Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapter 9 Discussion “Da Vinci Code” and its use of libraries Related Materials: Giuseppe Arcimboldo http://www.abcgallery.com/A/arcimboldo/arcimboldo9.html Jacob Soll talking about Libraries during the Enlightenment -on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOJP0HijXD4
Session 5 Modern Libraries in Europe 1800-2000 Readings “Books for All” Chapter 5 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p117-155. A.S. Popowich, “Carlyle, Panizzi, and the Public Library Ideal,” Library Student Journal (Feb 2007) on e-reserve Koch, Theodore W. “The Bibliothèque Nationale: Organization and History.” Library Journal 39 (May 1914): 339-350. Sturges, Paul. “Great City Libraries of Britain: Their History from a European Perspective.” Library History 19 No. 2 (July 2003): 93-111. Kenny, Colum. King’s Inns and the Battle of the Books, 1972: Cultural controversy at a Dublin Library. Dublin: Four Courts Press / The Irish Legal Society Library, 2002. Read Chapters 1. Guerrini, Mauro “Libraries in Italy: A Brief Overview.” IFLA Journal 35 No. 2 (2009): 94-116. Optional Readings: Oliver, Bette Wyn. “The Bibliothèque Nationale from 1792-1794: Becoming a National Institution during the French Revolution.” Libraries & the Cultural Record 42 No. 1 (April 2007) 48-56 [available through Kentlink] Reid, Peter H. “The Decline and Fall of the British Country House Library.” Libraries & Culture 36 No. 2 (Spring 2001): 345-366.[available through Kentlink] Buckridge, Patrick. “Generations of Books: A Tasmanian Family Library, 1816-1994” Library Quarterly 76 No. 4 (Oct 2006): 388-402. Gaunt, Heather. ”A Native Instinct of Patriotism: Nationalism in the Austrailian Public Library from Federation to the 1930s: A case study of the Public Library of Tasmania” Library History 24 No. 2 (June 2008): 152-166. Guerrini Mauro and Giovanna Frigimelica "Libraries in Italy: A Brief Overview" IFLA Journal 35 No. 2 (2009): 94-116 http://ifl.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/35/2/94 Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapter 11
Session 6 New World – American & Canadian Libraries 1600-1800 Readings “The Battle for the Books” Chapter 4 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p82-116. Shera, Jesse H. “The Beginnings of the Public Library,” Chapter 6 in Foundations of the Public Library: The Origins of the Public Library Movement in New England 1629-1855, (Shoestring Press, 1965): 156-199. Glynn, Tom. “The New York Society Library: Books, Authority, and Publics in Colonial and Early Republican New York.” Libraries & Culture 40 No. 4. (Fall 2005): 493-529. [available through Kentlink] Optional Readings: William J. Van Beynum, “The Book-Company of Durham,” Library History Seminar No. 3 Proceedings, 1968, (Tallahassee, FL: School of Library Science Florida State University, 1968): 73-97. Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapter 10
Session 7 North American National Libraries and Specialized Libraries Readings Cole, John Y. “Jefferson’s Legacy: A Brief History of the Library of Congress” http://www.loc.gov/loc/legacy/ Lawrence W. Towner, “The Newberry Library: A Research Opportunity in Library History,” Library History Seminar No. 3 Proceedings, 1968, (Tallahassee, FL: School of Library Science Florida State University, 1968): 1-16. Bird, Jr., William L. “A Suggestion Concerning James Smithson’s Concept of ‘Increase and Diffusion’,” Technology and Culture 24 No. 4 (April 1983): 246-255. Gracy II, David B. “The History of the Library in Western Civilization: A Review Essay” Libraries & the Cultural Record, Vol. 42, No. 4 (2007): 438–444. (available through Kentlink on EJC) Optional Reading: Glasgow, Eric. “The Huntington Library.” Library History 20 No. 1 (March 2004): 69-74. Cole, John Y. “The Library of Congress Becomes a World Library, 1815-2005.” Libraries & Culture: Historical Essays Honoring the Legacy of Donald G. Davis, Jr. ed. Cheryl Knott Malone, Hermina G.B, Anghelescu, and John Mark Tucker. (Washington, DC: Library of Congress Center for the Book, 2006): 163-176 / Special Issue of Libraries & Culture 40 No. 3 (Summer 2005) [available thru KentLink and e-reserves] Harris, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World. 4^th edition Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1995 Chapter 12
Session 8 Modern Libraries in America Public Libraries, Subscription Libraries, University Libraries Readings Liebaers, Herman. “The Impact of American and European Librarianship Upon Each Other.” Libraries and the Life of the Mind in America. Chicago: American Library Association, 1997, 67-83. Hamlin, Arthur T. The University Library in the United States: Its Origin and Development. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1981: 3-59. Augenbraum, Harold. “New York’s Oldest Public Libraries.” RBM 1 No. 2 (Fall 2000): 145-159 http://rbm.acrl.org/content/1/2.toc Andrew Carnegie “Library Philanthropy” in Schlup Librarianship in the Gilded Age p 105-107. Tyler, Moses Coit. “1884: The Free Public Library in the United States: Evolution and Function” in Schlup Librarianship in the Gilded Age p78-88. “Temples for the People: Largess for Learning at Philadelphia’s Carnegie Libraries.” Common Ground (Spring 2010): 6-11. (on e-reserve) Optional Reading: Arenson, Adam. “Libraries in Public before the Ages of Public Libraries; Interpreting the Furnishings and Design of Athenaeums and Other ‘Social Libraries,’ 1800-1860.” In The Library as Place: History, Community, and Culture Edited by John E. Buschman and Cloria J. Leckie. (Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited, 2007): 41-60. Javersak, David T. “One Place on this Great Green Planet Where Andrew Carnegie Can’t Get a Monument with His Money.” West Virginia History 41 (1979): 7-19 (on e-reserve) Lorenzen, Michael. “Deconstructing the Carnegie Libraries.” Illinois Libraries 81 No. 2 (Spring 1999): 75-78 http://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/il990275.html Shera, Jesse H. “The Circulating Library,” Chapter 5 in , Foundations of the Public Library: The Origins of the Public Library Movement in New England 1629-1855, (Shoestring Press, 1965): 127-155. Videos – public & university libraries in North America Links What's the Deal: New York Public Library http://www.nbcnewyork.com/station/as-seen-on/What_s_the_Deal__New_York_Public_Library_New_York.html Videos – public & university libraries in North America Bill and Melinda Gates, Warren Buffett 6 Billion Dollar Challenge - Philanthropy and libraries http://features.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2010/06/16/gates-buffett-600-billion-dollar-philanthropy-challenge/
Session 9 Non-Western World Libraries Readings “Knowledge on Fire” Chapter 6 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p156-191 Kim, Chin. “A New National Library: The National Diet Library of Japan.” The Journal of Library History IV No. 3 (July 1969): 225-238. · Wani, Zahid Ashraf. “Development of Public Libraries in India.” Library Philosophy and Practice (2008) available through Kentlink or http://unllib.unl.edu/LPP/wani.htm Sturgeon, Roy L. “Preserving the past, preparing for the future: Modern Chinese libraries and librarianship 1898-2000s.” World Libraries 14 No. 1 (Fall 2004) http://www.worlib.org/vol14no1/sturg_v14n1.shtml Schwill, Rudolph. “Impression of the Condition of Spanish American Libraries.” Modern Language Notes 20 No. 5 (May 1905): 142-145. · Beer, Joan F. de. “National Library of South Africa.” Libraries for the Future: Progress and Development in South African Libraries 2007. IFLA 43-60 http://www.dissanet.com/jsp/ifla/book.jsp Optional Readings: Liao, Jing. “The Genesis of the Modern Academic Library in China: Western Influences and the Chinese Response.” Libraries & Culture 30 No. 2 (Spring 2004): 161-174. [available through KentLink] Articles in World Libraries http://www.worlib.org/ · Lin, Sharon Chien. Libraries and Librarianship in China. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998 . · Dynasties in Chinese history, from Wikipedia. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynasties_in_Chinese_history · The Mellon International Dunhuang Archive (MIDA) http://www.artstor.org/what-is-artstor/w-html/col-mellon-dunhuang.shtml High-quality digital reconstructions of the mural paintings and related art and texts associated with the several hundred Buddhist cave shrines in Dunhuang, China, a uniquely important cultural crossroads on the ancient Silk Route in the Gobi Desert. · International Dunhuang Project (IDP) http://idp.bl.uk/ Videos & Views of Libraries of the World Link to info & slides re: Dunhuang Project compiled by Dr. Zeng http://www.slis.kent.edu/~mzeng/Dunhuang/libraryhistory.htm Timbuktu Libraries http://www.sum.uio.no/timbuktu/ http://www.timbuktufoundation.org/libraries.html manuscripts from the libraries at Timbuktu at the Library of Congress http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/mali/ Images of the Cairo Geniza http://modiya.nyu.edu/modiya/handle/1964/165/ Geniza Project http://www.genizah.org/index.htm
Session 10 Libraries in the 21^st century and beyond Final Paper Due Essays about Thought Questions Due Readings “Lost in the Stacks” Chapter 7 in Matthew Battles Library: An Unquiet History p192-214. Carpenter, Kenneth and Thomas Augst "The History of Libraries in the United States": A Conference Report. Libraries & Culture 38, No. 1 (Winter, 2003): 61-66 (available through KentLink on JSTOR) If: book: The really modern library (October 2007) http://www.futureofthebook.org/blog/ Levy, Steven. “The Future of Reading” (Amazon and Kindle) Newsweek 150 Issue 22 (26 Nov 2007): 57-64 (available through KentLink) · Shaw, Jonathan. “Gutenberg 2.0 Harvard’s libraries deal with disruptive change.” Harvard Magazine (May-June 2010): 36-41, 82-83. available online at http://harvardmagazine.com/2010/05/gutenberg-2-0 Lippman, Walter. “The Museum of the Future.” Atlantic Monthly 182, no. 4 (October 1948): 70-72. Printed version of a talk he gave at the AAM annual meeting in 1948. http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1969/12/the-museum-of-the-future/6626/2/ AAM “Museums & Society 2034: Trends and Potential Futures” The Center for the Future of Museums, Dec 2008 http://futureofmuseums.org/reading/publications/2008.cfm OPTIONAL: Pennavaria, Katherine. “Representations of Books and Libraries in Depictions of the Future.” Libraries & Culture 37 No. 2 (Summer 2002): 229-248. [available through KentLink] Jacob, Christian. “Gathering Memory: Thoughts on the History of Libraries,” Diogenes 49 No. 4 (April 2002): 41-57. Videos of Libraries of the Future




Syllabus		Description			Links to websites & bibliography

LIS 61095 (Kent State University)

Related Materials:

· Shaw, Jonathan. “Gutenberg 2.0 Harvard’s libraries deal with disruptive change.” Harvard Magazine (May-June 2010): 36-41, 82-83. available online at http://harvardmagazine.com/2010/05/gutenberg-2-0

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