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Famous librarians have defined "library" in a variety of ways.

Melvil Dewey thought of the library as, "The best reading for the largest numbers at the least cost." He thought of libraries as institutions for getting books into the hands of the readers not as a place to hoard books. (Dickson 20)

 "In his article "The Relation of the State to the Public Library," Melvil Dewey used the analogy of a municipal water supply. Just as a city must take steps to provide pure water to its residents lest they die of disease, so a library must exclude the pernicious and promote what is wholesome for society. Good reading, Dewey thought promotes good character, and public libraries are a necessary part of the educational system because they provide the opportunity to continue the process of education after formal schooling. Therefore, he argued, the state must protect and promote public libraries to further the welfare of its citizens." (Rogers 20)

 Daniel J. Boorstin, Librarian of Congress, said, "Libraries remain the meccas of self-help, the most open of open universities. . .where there are no entrance examinations and no diplomas, and where one can enter at any age." (Dickson 236)

 Sam Walter Foss thought of the library as an amphitheater of warring creeds, beliefs and tastes. A place to find the widest possible range of ideas. (Rogers 17)

 D. J. Foskett, British librarian, said the library should attend to the individual reader. The goal is value the right of the individual patron within the widest possible range of opinions and information. (Rogers 19)

 "John Cotton Dana stressed the role of the library as a reconciler of group conflicts. Libraries in his view, can help different groups in society learn of one another's customs and beliefs, thus promoting tolerance, understanding, and greater social harmony." (Rogers 20)

Peggy Sullivan says that the library is in the business of providing meaning. (Sullivan 994)

Herb White thinks information and libraries are synonymous.

Lester Ashiem stated, "I like to believe the library is society's memory."

Library is an agency of communication

Library is a disseminator of information not a guardian of information.

The intellectual heart of any community of learning is the library.

Library is a guardian of society's graphic records.

Some authors' thoughts on "library"

Ray Bradbury said I graduated from the library when I was 28 years old. In 1950 at a cost of $9.80 he typed Fahrenheit 451 using the typewriters in the basement of the UCLA Library. Mr. Bradbury has written of and been in love with libraries and books for years.

Issac Assimov attributes his beginning curiosity and interest in science to reading the books he found in the library as a child.

 "Gary Paulsen credits librarians-particularly the one who gave him his first library card in a small Minnesota town-for turning his life around by introducing him to the power of the printed word." Lewis, Randy. "He Owes It All to Librarians and Dogs." (Los Angeles Times E1 9/31/94, p. 1)

 Anaya writes in his reader on The Magic of Words, "It is the word freedom that eventually must reflect what this collection, or the collection of any library, is all about." (Anaya 278)

"A library should be the heart of a city. With its storehouse of knowledge, it liberates, informs, teaches, and enthralls. A library indeed should be the cultural center of any city. Amidst the bustle of work and commerce, the great libraries of the world have provided a sanctuary where scholars and common man alike come to enlarge and clarify knowledge, to read and reflect in quiet solitude." (Anaya 279)

"Yes, the library is a place where people should gather. It is a place for research, reading, and for the quiet fomentation of ideas, but because it houses the collective memory of our race, it should also be a place where present issues are discussed and debated and researched in order for us to gain the knowledge and insight to create a better future. The library should be a warm place that reflects the needs and aspirations of the people." (Anaya 280-81)

 Americans response to libraries

Americans make 3.5 billion visits to school, public and college libraries each year--about three times the attendance at movie theaters. (ALA)

 The nation's reference librarians answer 295 million questions annually. Standing in line single file, those asking questions would stretch from coast to coast. (ALA)

 A recent Colorado study found the highest achieving students come form schools with good library media centers. (ALA)

 Students visit school library media centers 1.7 billion times during the school year--about twice the visits to state and national parks. (ALA)

 More children participate in summer reading programs at libraries than play Little League baseball. (ALA)

College and university libraries loan 180 million items each year at a cost of a billion dollars. If students and faculty had to purchase those materials, they would have to pay $8 billion! (ALA)

 Ron Smith thinks of the library as a place that helped to change his life as he learned to read in the literacy program offered at the Carlsbad City Library. (Launer 3)

 As we can see from librarians who work in libraries, to those who write books for libraries to those who use libraries, they are thought of as noble institutions. They are considered variously as a collective social memory providing an interface for constituencies at different points on a time space spectrum to a pathway to intellectual freedom. Libraries provide their users the means to analyze, reason about, and form independent judgments on a broad range of issues. This is all made possible because of the free access to carefully organized information which patrons can make use of because of the conscientious library personnel.

Works Cited

American Library Association. Library Advocacy Now! Chicago: American Library Association, [1995].

Anaya, Rudolfo A. The Anaya Reader. New York: Warner Books, 1995.

Dickson, Paul. The Library in America. New York: Facts on File, Inc., 1986.

Launer, Pat. "Opening the Books on Illiteracy." Los Angeles Times 19 Sept. 1992: North County Focus 3.

Lewis, Randy. "He Owes It All to Librarians and Dogs." Los Angeles Times 31 Sept. 1994: E1.

Rogers, A. Robert. The Library in Society. Littleton, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1984

Sullivan, Peggy. "Technology and Behavior: An Essay on Meaning." American Libraries Nov. 1991: 994.

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Original Content by Carolyn Funes
Last updated: Oct. 2001