LIBR 280-10
History of Books and Libraries
Summer 2007 Greensheet
Todd Gilman
E-mail
Office Location: Virtual
Phone: (203) 432-1761
Office Hours: M-F 9-5 EST
| Greensheet Links Textbooks and Readings Course Requirements Course Schedule About your Instructor |
Resources Blackboard Blackboard Tutorials SLIS e-Bookstore |
Blackboard course enrollment dates are 1 – 5 June 2007. Students must self-enroll for this course on Blackboard during these dates. You will be required to use a password access code that I will provide using MYSJSU Messaging system. For more information on access code enrollment, see the tutorial entitled Enrolling in a Blackboard course.
Course Description
This class examines the role of the book and the library in expressing and fostering culture throughout history. It traces the development of the book through its many stages--cuneiform fragments, illuminated manuscripts, printed books, and electronic journals-and explores how the creation, use, and storage of information are affected by social and technological change. The development of libraries and librarianship and how they have accommodated themselves to the changing form of the book will also be considered.
Prerequisite: LIBR 200
Course Objectives
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the course students will:
- understand the evolution of graphic communication symbols, and be able to identify alphabetic and ideographic systems in use in various parts of the world;
- be familiar with the material and practice of book production in various parts of the world from antiquity to the present;
- understand some of the external forces—social, economic, political, religious, and artistic—that have affected the content, appearance, and methods of publishing and distribution of books in several specific parts of the world;
- be able to identify and discuss major technical and artistic developments in typography, book design, and book production
- understand and be able to discuss the theoretical writing of many of the seminal figures in book history including Roland Barthes, Roger Chartier, Robert Darnton, Elizabeth Eisenstein, Michel Foucault, Wolfgang Iser, Jerome McGann, and Walter Ong.
- understand how and why libraries became established and how they have evolved in response to economic, social, and technological change;
- understand the social functions of the library and be able to explain how, why, and when library service evolved from a collection-centered to a client-centered institution;
LIBR 280 supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:
- recognize the social, cultural and economic dimensions of information use;
- use the basic concepts and principles related to the creation, evaluation, selection, acquisition, preservation and organization of specific items or collections of information.
In addition, this section supports the following SLIS Core Competencies:
- contribute to the cultural, economic, educational, and social well-being of our communities.
Textbooks and Readings
Course Texts
You do not need to own all of these—the combined cost is quite high—but you should have access to all of them via a library near you. If you want to own only one, The book history reader is probably the best choice.
- Avrin, Leila. (1991). Scribes, script and books: The book arts from Antiquity to the Renaissance. Chicago: ALA. (0-7123-0245-X)
- Febvre, Lucien & Martin, Henri-Jean. (1976). The coming of the book: The impact of printing 1450-1800. Trans. David Gerard. New York: Verso. (1-85984-108-2)
- Finkelstein, David & McCleery, Alistair. (2006). The book history reader. Second edition. New York: Routledge. (0-415-35948-1)
- Harris, Michael H. (1995). History of libraries in the western world. Fourth edition. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. (0-8108-2972-X)
- Howard, Nicole. (2005). The book: The life story of a technology. Westport, Ct: Greenwood Technographies. (0-313-33028-X)
The textbooks may be ordered directly from the publishers or through Web-based vendors such as the SLIS e-Bookstore or Barnes & Noble at www.bn.com.
NOTE:You will need to have the Avrin and Finkelstein & McCleery books in hand by the first day of class, so please make sure you can obtain easy access to them as soon as you read this Greensheet.
Additional Readings
Additional course materials will be available through the Blackboard course site or free on the Web.
Course Requirements
Contacting the Instructor
I shall have no specific online office hours, but shall be available to answer questions submitted either through the Blackboard course site, or directly to todd.gilman@yale.edu. Please note that I am on Eastern Standard Time, and that you should expect to receive a reply to any questions within 48 hours of receipt. Any extended absences that might affect response time will be announced through the Blackboard course site.
Primary Requirements
Primary requirements consist of:
- Successfully completing assignments related to objectives listed above.
- Reading assignments must be completed each week. Readings not in the course books are provided through Blackboard or are free on the Web.
Evaluation Criteria
I shall evaluate ALL written work according to the following criteria in addition to the specific requirements for each assignment:
- Quality of the presentation-neat and error-free
- Quality of the writing-clear, direct, and correct
- Quality of the organization-smooth, logical flow and content
- Quality and amount of reflection, analysis, and evaluation
Assignment Submissions
All papers must be typed, double spaced, with a font size of at least 12 points. They must also conform to APA style. You should own a copy of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th edition (2001). For further information, see the SLIS APA Style Resources page.
Late Assignments
Let the instructor know in advance if you will be unable to participate during a given week. Late assignments will be accepted up to five days past the deadline, with a penalty of 1 point (1% of course grade) per day. With an appropriate reason stated BEFORE the due date, students may be allowed additional time without penalty. I shall not accept any paper that is more than five days late.
Technical Requirements
You must have access to the following: Internet/World Wide Web access, Java-enabled Web browser, Microsoft Office (particularly Word and PowerPoint), and Adobe Acrobat Reader 5+.
You must be able to send and receive e-mail, including attachments. You should plan to check your e-mail and the Blackboard course site regularly for announcements.
For more detailed information, consult the SLIS home computing environment page.
Blackboard
This course is run via Blackboard. Stanley Laufer, the SLIS Network Administrator, has created a "Blackboard Tutorials and Resources for SLIS Instructors and Students" site. It is located at http://witloof.sjsu.edu/blackboard/. Use the tutorial to learn how to set up your Blackboard account.
Course enrolment dates are 1 – 5 June 2007
Grading
There are 100 possible points for this course, divided as follows:
| Assignments | Total Point Value |
| 4 Article Reviews=5 points each x 4 | 20 points |
| 4 Exercises [i.e., sets of 10 identification questions each]=5 points each x 4 |
20 points |
| 15 Threaded Discussions (1 due each week, based on that week’s readings)=2 points each x 15 | 30 points |
| 2 Papers (the first is 1500 words; the second, 3000 words)=10 points and 20 points |
30 points |
Specific requirements for each assignment, including due dates, will be posted in the course site via Blackboard.
Grading Scale
The standard SJSU SLIS Grading Scale is utilized for all SLIS courses:
| 97-100 | A |
| 94-96 | A- |
| 91-93 | B+ |
| 88-90 | B |
| 85-87 | B- |
| 82-84 | C+ |
| 79-81 | C |
| 76-78 | C- |
| 73-75 | D+ |
| 70-72 | D |
| 67-69 | D- |
| Below 67 | F |
Additional Information
Each student will
- assume responsibility for his/her learning
- use the provided learning guides and resources; conduct data searches when necessary
- manage his/her time effectively (plan a schedule and practice time management)
- ask for assistance when needed; avoid unnecessary frustration and confusion
- remain active in Discussions and Email
- prepare all work at graduate performance levels
- enter each Unit beginning the date that Unit starts. He/she is then free to access that Unit as many times as he/she likes through the end of the course
- follow good online etiquette
Please note:
- I prefer not to use the Chat function for this course, though you are welcome to; formal interaction of the class as a whole will take the form of Discussions.
- So that I am not inundated with email, please limit the number of emails you send me to two per week if possible. That means saving up questions, perhaps, for several days.
- Plagiarism will result in a failing grade for the assignment in question (see more on plagiarism below).
The instructor will
- welcome the class to each Unit on the day it opens and include updates and other announcements
- provide assistance/knowledge in facilitating understanding of the course content
- guide students through the course
- provide feedback
- maintain records
- mark assignments and maintain records within 15 working days
- respond to messages on Tuesdays and Thursdays
Reasonable Accommodation of Disabilities
If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability,
please e-mail me as soon as possible. Presidential Directive 97-03 requires
that students with disabilities register with the Disability Resource Center
(DRC) to establish record of their disability.
No matter where students reside, they should contact the SJSU DRC to register. The DRC Web site: http://www.drc.sjsu.edu/
Academic Integrity
Your own commitment to learning, as evidenced by your enrollment at San José State University, and the University's Academic Integrity Policy requires you to be honest in all your academic course work. Faculty members are required to report all infractions to the Office of Student Conduct and Ethical Development. The policy on academic integrity can be found at http://sa.sjsu.edu/student_conduct.
Course Schedule
| Unit | Topic |
| 1 | Writing; The Alphabet; The Book in the Ancient World—Mesopotamia |
| 2 | The Egyptian Book; The Hebrew Book |
| 3 | The Greek and Hellenistic Book; The Roman Book |
| 4 | Latin Script; Books Written by Hand |
| 5 | Manuscript Illumination; The Islamic Book |
| 6 | Papermaking; Bookbinding; On the Eve of Printing |
| 7 | The Coming of the Book Part 1 |
| 8 | The Coming of the Book Part 2 |
| 9 | The Coming of the Book Part 3 |
| 10 | The Coming of the Book Part 4 |
| 11 | Books in the Age of Automation, 1800-1900 |
| 12 | The Future of Books: Twentieth Century and Beyond |
| 13 | Libraries in the Ancient World |
| 14 | Medieval Libraries |
| 15 | Modern Library Development in the West |
About your instructor
Professor Gilman holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Toronto and an M.S. in Library and Information Science from Simmons College in Boston. He is Librarian for Literature in English at Yale University Library (www.library.yale.edu). He also teaches part-time for the Library and Information Science Program at Wayne State University.
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Phone: 408-924-2490
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