On Libraries
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| Oliver Sacks |
About the Author
· Oliver Sacks was born in 1993 in London, and was educated at the Queen’s College, Oxford
· He was a neurologist and an author whose case studies of patients with unusual disorders became best – sellers.
· He completed his medical training at San Francisco’s Mount Zion Hospital and at UCLA before moving to New York
· He spent almost fifty years working as a neurologist and wrote a number of books
About the essay
“On Libraries” is written in praise of intellectual freedom, community work and the ecstasy (bliss, happiness, frenzy) of serendipitous (unexpected/ happening by chance in an interesting or pleasant way) discovery. Among the titans of mind and spirit shaped and saved by libraries was the great neurologist, author and voracious (avid/hungry) reader.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions
a. Where could the author be found when he was late for lunch or dinner?
When the author was late for lunch or dinner, he could be found in his home library which was his favorite room at home, completely absorbed by a book. It was a large oak-paneled room with all four walls covered by bookcases. For him, the library was the quietest and the most beautiful room in the house. He would curl up in a chair and become so absorbed in what he was reading that all sense of time would be lost.
b. What are his first memories?
His early age (at three or four) when he learnt to read, books, and their library, are among his first memories. The books of his interest and the library at his home are unforgettable for the writer. The library room is his favorite place where he used to spend most of his time. He vividly remembers his childhood days when he used to be absorbed by a book in the library. Whenever he was late for lunch or dinner, he could be found in the library.
c. Why did he dislike school?
He disliked school because he had to sit quietly in the classroom receiving teachers’ instruction. He was so passive in the classroom that the information seemed to go in one ear and out by the other. The school couldn’t ensure learner autonomy. In other words, the school couldn’t be the place of intellectual freedom. Receiving instruction from a teacher is just like making an attempt to learn and adapt others’ styles.
d. What did he feel about at the library?
He felt free at the library, free to look at the thousands, tens of thousands of books. He also felt free to roam and enjoy the special atmosphere. He felt free to enjoy quiet companionship of other readers on quests of their own just like himself. For him, the library was a place of intellectual freedom. He felt free to choose books and learn in entirely peaceful environment. He would be on quests of his own.
e. Why was he so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry?
He was so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry as he got older because he had a keen interest on those subjects. In other words, as he grew older, his interest started growing on astronomy and chemistry. He preferred books on science to the abundance of books on history and politics. Eventually, the books on sciences, in the Walker Library, became insufficient for him.
f. Why did he become so fascinated by Hook?
He became so fascinated by Hook that he decided to write a sort of biography or case history of him because Theodore Hook was greatly admired in the early nineteenth century for his wit and his genius for theatrical and musical improvisation. He was said to have composed more than five hundred operas on the spot. The Bodleian library gave him chance to review or study the forgotten works of Theodore Hook.
g. Describe library at Queen’s College.
The library at the Queen’s College was complicated by structure and very rich in books in their original publication. The building is magnificent which was designed by Christopher Wren. It had ancient books richly illustrated with drawings of animals such as rhinoceros and volumes on fossil fishes. It also had books on seventeenth- and eighteenth-century literature produced by famous writers like Dryden, Pope, John-son and Hume. The books were available freely for those who want to study being present at the library.
h. Why did the students ignore the bookshelves in the 1990s?
The students increasingly ignored the bookshelves in the 1990s, accessing what they needed with their computers. That is to say, soft copies of the books had been made available. The books, so far as they were concerned, were unnecessary. This means some of the books seemed to be outdated. Since, the majority of users were no longer using the books themselves, the college decided, untimely, to dispose of them.
i. Why was he horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago?
He was horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago because he found the bookshelves, once overflowing, sparsely occupied. Most of the books seemed to have been thrown out with remarkably little objection from anyone. He felt that a murder or felt as if a crime had been committed. For him, it was the act of destroying centuries of knowledge. Having seen the indiscriminately thrown books, he was distressed.
j. What did the librarian assure the author? (Grade Increment Examination 2079)
The librarian assured him that everything ‘of worth’ had been digitalized, and all the books, even old and rare ones had been saved and preserved in a special room. This means that the books carelessly thrown out could be found in the digital copies and preserved for ever.
Reference to the Context
a. The author says, “I was not a good pupil, but I was a good learner.” Justify it with the textual evidences.
The author says, “I was not a good pupil, but I was a good learner”. This statement reveals his dislikes to school education. A pupil is a person who is taught in a school in a formal setting, especially within the four walls, but a learner is not necessarily confined within such a classroom. This is true in the case of the author too.
He disliked school. He felt boring to sit in the classroom receiving information from the teacher. He couldn’t pay attention to the teacher’s instruction. He tried hard to be active but all in vain. On the contrary, he felt happy and excited in the libraries. He was willing to learn the matter of his interests in his own manner. He was completely absorbed by books. At the library, he felt free to look at abundance of books. He enjoyed complete freedom of learning and the quiet companionship of other readers on quests of their own. Thus, he is a good pupil who enjoys intellectual freedom.
b. The proverb says, “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library.” Does this proverb apply in the essay? Explain.
The proverb “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library” presents the significance of a library for one’s intellectual development and the author’s preference of library to the books imposed in the school. A library offers people books of interest and a peaceful learning environment. Readers in the library are found to be absorbed by the books of their interests. They enjoy the freedom of choosing books, having voracious companions and the way they read and learn.
This proverb is applicable to this essay as the central idea is on the praise of intellectual freedom and ecstasy of serendipitous discovery. The author disliked school as he was terribly bored by the teacher’s instruction. He couldn’t concentrate on learning while he was in the classroom. He wanted to be active in learning in the classroom but all in vain. After he visited libraries, he appeared to be a good learner. He was completely absorbed by books in the library. He learned to read early at the age of three or four in his home library. If was late for lunch or dinner, he could be found in the library. He seemed to be active, happy, and satisfied in the library. Being a voracious reader, library is the most pleasant place for the author.
c. Are there any other services that you would like to see added to the library?
In my opinion, one would like to see added to the library are:
· Availability of digital copies of the books – e-library
· Provision of membership cards so that one can borrow books for certain time span
· Availability of photocopies for those who wants to take
· Availability of Audio books
· Catalogues and book sections
· Security Cameras
· Digital membership system
Summary
The essay, ‘On Libraries’ is written in praise of intellectual freedom and community work by the writer
Oliver Sacks. narrating his personal experience, Sacks persuades the readers to value library culture and
enjoy being extensive reader.
Being nostalgic, Sacks makes the readers know his favorite room of his home and it was the library room. The room was filled with books and bookcases. His father had set up the library in his home. It was in the same library where he read The Jungle Book and got fascinated by the adventure of its main character, Mowgli. His mother had collected books English literary figures such as Milton, Bernard Shaw, Thackeray, Kipling, Shakespeare and others. The library also offers some medical books.
The library was his quietest and the most beautiful room for him. He would sit on a chair and become completely absorbed in reading. Whenever he is late for lunch or dinner, he could be found in the library completely absorbed by a book. According him, he learned to read early, at three or four, and books and their library, are his first memories. The Willesden Public library, the local public library, was his next favorite place where he spent many of the happiest hours of his growing-up years. He believes that he received his real education there. He preferred library to school. He did not like sitting passively in class, receiving instruction and information. He believed that he was not a good pupil but was a good learner.
In Willesden Library, he had the freedom to select whatever books he liked. He got chance to look at the thousands of books; free to roam and to enjoy the special atmosphere and the quiet companionship of other readers. As he got older, he started being biased towards astronomy and chemistry. When he was twelve, he was at St. Paul’s school, which had an excellent general library, the Walker Library which was particularly heavy in history and politics, but it could not provide all of the science and especially chemistry books he now hungered for. With the help of a school master, he was able to get a ticket to the library of the Science Museum where he read the volumes of Mellor’s Comprehensive Treatise on Inorganic and Theoretical Chemistry and the Gmelin’s Handbook of Inorganic Chemistry.
When the author went to university, he had access to Oxford’s two great university libraries: The Radcliffe Science Library and The Bodleian. In 1602, at Bodleian, he read Theodore Hook and became so fascinated by the writer that he decided to write a sort of biography or “case history” of him. The British Museum Library provided him with the materials he needed to write. But the library he most loved at Oxford was the Queen’s College’s library. There he adored many books including Darwin’s in their original editions and so many others.
Though the library was a quiet place, where all read their own books, silently, absorbed in their own worlds, and yet, the writer feels that there was a sense of community and intimacy. But the writer found a complete change in library culture by the 1990s. Then also he visited libraries and noticed the students ignoring the bookshelves and accessing the materials from their computers. He found the majority of users no longer using the books. He was horrified when he visited the library and found the shelves empty. Over the last few years, most of the unused books had been thrown out, with little objection from anyone. To see all this the writer felt that a serious crime like a murder had been committed. He thought that the people were destroying centuries of knowledge. Seeing his distress, the librarian assured him that everything of worth had been digitalized. In this way, the essay beautifully presents the writer’s experience-based argument which tries to convince the readers to love library for the development of reading culture.
