Library in Society

Library in society may be created and at least partly supported by the government. An increasingly popular modern variation of this type of library is the establishment of an academy of sciences, a network of research institutes covering most fields of learning.

 The library is seen as a component part of the history of civilization. Its story appears through the story of the people it has served. Thus no one can express the form, nature, purposes and service of the library throughout the history for they have been determined by the needs of the people who have used

the book is its multiple form in which come from the clay tablet to the original scientific report and the magnetic tape and disc of today..

Recurring Basic Needs

 The need is served also by state and national libraries which preserve the government documents and other kinds of materials that are necessary to the conservation and transmission of local and state.

 The need for libraries appears in the story of library development. It is noted in relation to the Sumerian school which came to be the center of culture and learning in the community and also the center of creative writing, in which the literary creation of the past were studied and copied and new literary were produced.

 Alcuin made the library an indispensable aid to the school in the eight and ninth centuries and this function has become the basic purpose of all school and academic libraries.

 The American public library comes quickly to mind as the instrument which has have its fundamental purpose the serving of this crucial need.

The desire and need for some means of self improvement and self education prompted the founding of social libraries.

 Self education at practical nature was made possible by specific types of social libraries, such as the mechanics, apprentices, libraries and the mercantille libraries and both self education and self improvement are too integral parts of the program of the American public library.

 The type of library was organized specifically for this purpose which is the lending library or it means rental library as it is often called a still provides materials at small cost not only for recreational enjoyment but for cultural and educational improvement as well.

 From the time of Rameses the Great to the present day, libraries have bought personal pride and satisfaction to their owners, and during the Renaissance they were the source of both spiritual and intellectual sustenance for the Humanist collectors.

 Many of the treasurers collected by booklovers for their personal enjoyment have been given to the rare-book collections of our libraries, where they strengthen our cultural heritage, provide invaluable resources for the scholar, afford aesthetic enjoyment to all who see them.

Conditions Favorable to Library Development

1. In societies of political and cultural maturity with recognized the necessity of preserving, transmitting and enlarging the body of knowledge.

2. During the period of relatives peace and tranquility which afford time to plan and pursue cultural and intellectual activities.

3. When individuals have both the leisure and the means to cultivate the fine arts and improve the common stock of knowledge.

4. In period of intellectual creativity and scholarly activity, when large and varied collections of materials are required for study research.

5. When there is large societal emphasis on self-improvement and a well-informed citizenry.

6. During revivals with learning which center around and depend upon accumulations of graphic materials and access to them.

7. When institutional stability and security of tenure offer permanence and continuity.

8. In areas with concentrated population and specially in an Urban environment which can provide the leadership, the financial means to support libraries and the cultural and intellectual interest to stimulate their use.

9. When economic prosperity provide sizeable individual and corporate wealth and encourages philanthropic giving.

10. In times, in recent decades, economic growth and national power and status are considered to be dependent upon the wide dissemination and use of information and knowledge which have utilitarian value.

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