Defending the continued relevance of libraries

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Attempt, if you will, to imagine a society in which there is no meaningful emphasis placed upon the schooling or education of its members. If such a society be somehow conceivable and not rapidly dissolve into the ensuing chaos of destructive barbarism, one would have to concede at least a subsequent absence of mankind’s inherent desire to pursue the attainment of most knowledge. In only a dismal place such as this could the institution of libraries be regarded as fundamentally superfluous and unnecessary, if such a ‘society’ like this were to exist therein at all. Evidently, we do not exist in such a world. The individual’s education, if not always in practice then perhaps in theory and intent, is of critical importance. Even if a formal educational background should be lacking, we consistently remain compelled to further expand our knowledge base about various topics that interest us to varying to degrees of expertise. Ranging from the mere casual interest to the burning existential quest, mankind has for millennia been able to satiate and expand its ravenous appetites for knowledge in a number of different ways. One of the primary means by which this has been achieved has no doubt been through the library itself. In this role, the library has and continues to serve as a dynamic transcendental vehicle by which the higher aspirations of humanity might be sought and achieved. By elevating each individual patron, the library in turn elevates the whole of society itself as well. Dismissing the current and future relevance of libraries is almost akin to saying that education itself has become obsolete or extraneous If these are indeed society’s sentiments, the regression into the chaos mentioned above is not a far off conclusion. My opinion is however, more optimistic in that libraries will continue to provide their primary age old functions, while likewise expanding to accommodate and address the needs of an ever changing society in which they are an integral force.