Where Are the Libraries Going?

This blog is most commonly about translated literature and the art and business of being a translator, but every now and then it's important to take a look at the larger literary culture that translated literature fits in to. I was surprised to see this piece by Charles Simic at The New York Review, where he denounces what have become of our nation's libraries as a result of cutbacks occasioned by the bad economy:

All across the United States, large and small cities are closing public libraries or curtailing their hours of operations. Detroit, I read a few days ago, may close all of its branches and Denver half of its own: decisions that will undoubtedly put hundreds of its employees out of work. When you count the families all over this country who don’t have computers or can’t afford Internet connections and rely on the ones in libraries to look for jobs, the consequences will be even more dire.

Simic goes on to make a passionate and very personal case for libraries, which, to me, is somewhat amazing--that a case for the existence of libraries even needs to be made. Here in the Bay Area we've been fortunate to retain most of our local libraries, though there have been attempts to cut back service here, attempts that have been met with vicious outcry that has generally won the day.

It's well worth reading and well worth pondering Simic's piece. Literary translation is very often considered a cause in itself--and it should be--but oftentimes it feels like literary culture, or at least important parts of it, has also become a cause.

I'm going to conclude this with an image I saw online yesterday that speaks to how much people might value books: