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Libricide
KNUTH, Rebecca. Libricide: The Regime-Sponsored Destruction of Books and Libraries in the Twentieth Century. Westport, CT: Praeger (CT), 2003. xiii, 277p., ISBN# 0275980887, (hc), $43.95. Index, Bib. Acid Free.
Rebecca Knuth first published the word libricide, which literally means, “the destruction of books” and Knuth focuses specifically on government sponsored destruction of books and libraries during the 20th century. She links the phenomena of libricide to genocide and ethnocide, the destruction of a whole race or ethnicity of people, and chose to examine five case studies: Nazi Germany, Greater Serbia, the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, China’s Cultural Revolution, and China’s invasion of Tibet.
Dr. Knuth is an Associate Professor at University of Hawaii Manoa and is a member of the American Library Association and the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. Her primary research interest is the modern destruction of the history of books and libraries. Her publications include “Systematic Book Burning as Evil?" In Terrie Wadell (ed.). Cultural Expressions of Evil and Wickedness, 2002 and "Libricide: The State-Sponsored Destruction of Books and Libraries." In Allen Kent (ed.). Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. Volume 72. New York: Marcel Dekker) pp. 234-244.
Libricide discusses how books and libraries have been used as tools to destroy the enemy, especially regimes that emphasize ideology over the individual. Knuth suggests that the destruction of books is not an inherently evil act, those who destroy strongly believe in the cause of their ideology. She argues for a theoretical framework for trying to explain and understand the causes and reasons for these occurrences. These ideologues are contrasted with democratic humanists, who focus on the worth of the individual over a radical ideology meant to benefit the collective society.
The case studies cover much of the 20th century, from the 1930s to the early 1990s and across three major regions of the globe; Europe, East Asia and the Middle East. The regimes responsible for partaking in libricide were from both extremes of the political spectrum, from right-wing Nazis to the Chinese Communist Party.
Libricide is a unique contribution to the field of book and library history and will also appeal to scholars across disciplines, including 20th century political and social historians, social anthropologists, literary scholars, and Area Studies specialists. For generalists interested in the topic, there is plenty of introductory information for those not intimately familiar with the historical backgrounds for each of the case studies.
Libricide is the first academic monograph that has focused on the destruction of books, and specifically on 20th century regimes. Knuth has a forthcoming book, Biblioclasm: Extreme Mindsets and the Modern Destruction of Books and Libraries. The title indicates that this work will have a similar focus as Libricide. As such, Knuth is probably the foremost expert on the topic currently. Knuth’s work is a good introduction to the role of libraries in society within the context of them as a special target during times of conflict, war and revolution.
Rebecca Knuth first published the word libricide, which literally means, “the destruction of books” and Knuth focuses specifically on government sponsored destruction of books and libraries during the 20th century. She links the phenomena of libricide to genocide and ethnocide, the destruction of a whole race or ethnicity of people, and chose to examine five case studies: Nazi Germany, Greater Serbia, the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, China’s Cultural Revolution, and China’s invasion of Tibet.
Dr. Knuth is an Associate Professor at University of Hawaii Manoa and is a member of the American Library Association and the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. Her primary research interest is the modern destruction of the history of books and libraries. Her publications include “Systematic Book Burning as Evil?" In Terrie Wadell (ed.). Cultural Expressions of Evil and Wickedness, 2002 and "Libricide: The State-Sponsored Destruction of Books and Libraries." In Allen Kent (ed.). Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. Volume 72. New York: Marcel Dekker) pp. 234-244.
Libricide discusses how books and libraries have been used as tools to destroy the enemy, especially regimes that emphasize ideology over the individual. Knuth suggests that the destruction of books is not an inherently evil act, those who destroy strongly believe in the cause of their ideology. She argues for a theoretical framework for trying to explain and understand the causes and reasons for these occurrences. These ideologues are contrasted with democratic humanists, who focus on the worth of the individual over a radical ideology meant to benefit the collective society.
The case studies cover much of the 20th century, from the 1930s to the early 1990s and across three major regions of the globe; Europe, East Asia and the Middle East. The regimes responsible for partaking in libricide were from both extremes of the political spectrum, from right-wing Nazis to the Chinese Communist Party.
Libricide is a unique contribution to the field of book and library history and will also appeal to scholars across disciplines, including 20th century political and social historians, social anthropologists, literary scholars, and Area Studies specialists. For generalists interested in the topic, there is plenty of introductory information for those not intimately familiar with the historical backgrounds for each of the case studies.
Libricide is the first academic monograph that has focused on the destruction of books, and specifically on 20th century regimes. Knuth has a forthcoming book, Biblioclasm: Extreme Mindsets and the Modern Destruction of Books and Libraries. The title indicates that this work will have a similar focus as Libricide. As such, Knuth is probably the foremost expert on the topic currently. Knuth’s work is a good introduction to the role of libraries in society within the context of them as a special target during times of conflict, war and revolution.
Submitted in April 2006, by Jennifer McLaughlin, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa
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