Reading about the ancient libaries made me think a lot about libraries and identity. What should be included in a libary? What does the library say about the community that built it? How can we see libraries as extensions of ourselves and our aims?
The Ptolemies seem to have wanted to create their image of the universal library with the Library of Alexandria. “They sent out agents with well-filled purses and orders to buy whatever books they could, of every kind on every subject, and the older the copy the better.Older books were preferred on the grounds that, having undergone less recopying, they were that much less likely to have errors in the text.” (Reading the Library 34) “The policy was to acquire everything, from exalted epic poetry to humdrum cookbooks; the Ptolemies aimed to make the collection a comprehensive repository of Greek writings as well as a tool for research.” (35). Nevertheless, the library didn’t fail to represent what the Greek themselves valued: “The library became particularly strong in Homer, and for good reason: Home was the poet, revered by all Greeks no matter what city or area they were from.” (36). The means by which the library also reflects their haves and wants. The Ptolemies had the money to acquire books and pay scholars to build upon their collection, which they then controlled as “the strategic implications of a monopoly on knowledge…were not lost on the Ptolemies” (Burning Alexandria 29) as they maintained an aggressive acquisitions policy in Alexandria.
The importance of libraries reflecting the identity of communities can also be seen by Shi Huangdi in his attempt erase the history and cultural identity of his empire prior to his reign through book burning. Other examples include the Spanish conquerors’ burning books in Mexico, and the Aztecs in the Valley of Mexico.
Leave a Reply