The Essay: On Libraries 

                                                                        By: Oliver Sacks

The essay 'On Libraries' has been written by Oliver Sacks. He was a neurologist and an author whose case studies of patients with unusual disorders became best-sellers. “On Libraries” is written in praise of intellectual freedom, community work, and the ecstasy of serendipitous discovery. Among the titans of mind and spirit shaped and saved by libraries was the great neurologist, author, and voracious reader.

In this essay, the essayist remembers his childhood. He grew in an oak-panelled library inherited from his father where so many books were stacked. He was found reading books in the library when he was late for dinner or lunch. He is delightful in this essay because it is his autobiographical writing. The essayist talks about his good habit of reading books in libraries for a long time. He has found his natural curiosity unstimulated by the industrial model of education into which he was pushed. After reading a large volume of books in the library, he was the master of his own time and mind. His habit of studying books helps him to get so many ideas from them. He discovered the living substance of learning without the ill-fitting structure of schooling. He didn't like school as he had to listen to the teachers passively obeying their instructions. He liked to learn himself in libraries being free to choose books of his own choice. He also found a surprising sense of community, which became a wonderful complement to his newfound intellectual autonomy. Autonomous learning is very important and good to achieve success in life.

When the essayist moved to New York City in 1965, he started to live in a small apartment. At that time, it was difficult for him to read and write. After this, he began to write. He wrote the books on the mind. Then, he was accepted into Albert Einstein College of Medicine where he felt comfortable reading and writing. There he met a friend who was also searching for the books of the brain. This created a close connection between them because they shared their knowledge with each other. Then his habit of reading books in the library continued.

The essayist considers that in the library we may be reading our own books, absorb in our own worlds and yet there prevail a sense of community, even intimacy. He says he would continue reading books in the library. But at that time students ignored bookshelves because of their access to the materials on the computers. Some libraries started to discard old books. He didn't like that. According to him, the library became his escape from the oppressions and adversity of a young person. He was inspired to write his own books after reading books of other writers.

 

Understanding of the text

Answer the following questions.

a)       Where could the author be found when he was late for lunch or dinner?

Ans:- The author could be found in an oak-panelled library that belonged to his father when he was late for lunch or dinner.

b)      What are his first memories?

Ans:- The beautiful oak panel library and books were the first memory of the writer.

c)       Why did he dislike school?

Ans:- The author didn't like school because he had to listen to the teachers passively obeying their instructions. The author liked to learn himself in libraries being free to choose books of his own choice. 

d)      What did he feel about at the library?

Ans:- At the library, he felt free to look out thousands of books, to roam around and to enjoy the special atmosphere and the quiet companionship of other readers all like him in the same quest.

e)      Why was he so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry?

Ans:- He was so biased about sciences especially astronomy and chemistry because science was his study of interest. Any library could provide books on various subjects and faculties, and to read all of them is not possible. We must focus our study on a specific subject to get a wide range of knowledge on that subject. So, the writer, to get specific knowledge, focused himself in astronomy and chemistry very much.

f)        Why did he become so fascinated by Hook?

Ans:-  The writer became so fascinated by Theodore Hook because he was greatly admired in the 19th century for his wit and his genius for theatrical and musical improvisation. He was said to have composed more than 500 operas on the spot.

g)       Describe library at the Queen’s College.

Ans:-The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. It has a magnificent library building which was designed by Christopher Wren, one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history. Beneath the library building, there is the vast subterranean holding of the library

h)      Why did the students ignore the bookshelves in the 1990s?

Ans:- The students ignored the bookshelves in the 1990s because they have found an access to the materials on the computers to read the computerized books.

i)        Why was he horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago?

Ans:- He was horrified when he visited the library a couple of months ago because most of the shelves were sparsely occupied. Most of the books had been thrown out or digitalized.

 

Reference to the Context 

a.       The author says, “I was not a good pupil, but I was a good listener.” Justify it with the textual evidences.

Ans:-  In the essay, Oliver Sacks says, “I was not a good pupil, but I was a good listener.” To be a good pupil, one has to be a good relation to teachers in a school. S/he has to attend classes regularly under the instructions provided by the teachers. S/he has to complete all the assignments given by the teacher after the lectures. But Oliver Sacks was not like that kind of pupil. He didn’t like to learn passively. Instead, he likes to learn actively in libraries selecting books of his choice. He loves reading varieties of books in the library being free.

b.       A proverb says, "Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library." Does this proverb apply in the essay? Explain.

Ans:-  The beautiful quotation, “Nothing is pleasanter than exploring a library.” Walter Savage Landor talks about the happiness, any studious person gets in a library. Any library provides enormous sources of information on a variety of topics. Nothing gives much satisfaction as reading books gives to a bookish fellow. Oliver Sacks is a bookworm who spends much of his time in different libraries in different places. His book reading started from his own library at home. All of his family members loved reading books and he was grown up in that environment. The oak-panelled library at his own home was his favourite room. Instead of attending formal schools, he preferred to read freely in libraries. Especially he enjoyed the library environment and the quiet companionship of other readers. He would love to sit at a table in libraries, with a mountain of books in front of him.

c.     Are there any other services that you would like to see added to the library?

Ans: When we hear the term “Library”, an image comes to our mind that is a room filled with several stocks of bookshelves and book lovers reading there. In the past, the shelves were full of paper-based books. I would like to see libraries offering an abundance of additional services which we can enjoy. I like to have access to audiobooks, E-books, large print and braille materials, CDs, DVDs, Internet access, community clubs, Interaction manuscripts and so on. They could provide access to reading to different readers. Even blind people can read books in a library if they provide braille materials. Internet users can read E-Books there.