Chapter 20 Part Two: Reflections on the "Famous School Complex" Wandering in the Library

After class, I took the teacher's list with a long list of titles to the library of the department to pick up the books, but it was already too late.There are many people who work hard.I'm used to being lazy, and I think I've worked a lot these days, and it seems that I'm really presumptuous.Fortunately, there are still some books on the shelf that are not loaned out, so you can sit there and read them. Institutional economics is completely unfamiliar to me, and I only feel abstract and vague after turning a few pages.Shakespeare on another shelf was smiling at me, and I was about to move.This half-hearted problem seems to be hard to change-it doesn't matter if you don't change it, who said: In the vast sea of ​​books, my attitude is as good as anyone can do.It's wonderful!Scholars are always in a hurry, like the new and dislike the old.Classics and best-selling novels, sociology books and travelogues, historical legends and cookbooks, epistolary collections and Nordic legends make no difference to them, and they mix them up without difficulty.In the library, I can't help but rummaging through it. Occasionally encountering an interesting book is like encountering a confidant, and I refuse to let it go.So I forgot the time after reading it, and even forgot the target book I was going to consult.In this way, you still feel at ease and don't blame yourself for wasting time.Here's the benefit of the library: you can kill a lot of time without feeling guilty.

There are too many libraries in Cambridge. Except for the largest school-level library, each department has its own library, and each college also has its own library.The most famous one is naturally the Wren Library of Trinity College.The library was proposed by Newton's teacher, Dean Isaac Barrow, in 1673, and was designed by Barrow's friend, the famous British architect Christopher Wren.The exquisite and simple bookshelves, benches and desks in the museum are all from his handwriting.Four stone sculptures stand on the outer columns of the library roof, which respectively symbolize the four oldest disciplines - theology, law, physics and mathematics.This hallowed temple almost sparked a feminist movement.The famous British novelist and literary critic Virginia Woolf once wrote in her famous speech "A Room of One's Own" that in a gorgeous autumn On the afternoon of the 1st, she strolled around the campus.While nostalgic for the past, she suddenly remembered that the Wren Library close at hand contained the manuscript of Thackeray's novel "Esmond". In order to see the "respect", she knocked on the door of the library with great interest. But was ruthlessly turned away.It turned out that women were not allowed to enter the library without the guidance or introduction of male scholars and academicians.This kind of gender exclusion in the spiritual field is a clear evidence of the discrimination and oppression of women in Western civilization for thousands of years. Woolf, who was despised in Cambridge, spoke out, striving for "a room of her own" for women-this is not only material. Space is the prerequisite for women to move towards independence and equality, and it is also a spiritual world; only with "a room of their own" can they seek independence and let their hearts free to pursue freedom.This speech was later published, which sang the harbinger of the Western feminist movement.Time has passed, and now I, an ordinary little girl, can finally roam freely in this ancient treasure house of knowledge.

The structure of this library is not complicated, it is just a rectangular hall.It is located on the second floor. On the walls on both sides of the stairs, there are oil portraits of famous people related to Trinity College.Around the corner of the stairs is a marble statue of JJ Thomson.Entering the reading room, the two sides are divided into small areas by old bookcases. On the bookcases are many statues of famous scholars throughout the ages. In front of the bookcases is the most attractive display table.Many exhibits are old and extremely precious. In order to reduce the impact of light on the exhibits, the glass of the table is covered with thick curtains.I carefully opened the curtain and browsed through these ancient manuscripts and rare books.There are not only the manuscripts of St. Paul's "Epistle" (the Epistle of St. Paul) in the 8th century, but also the first editions of Shakespeare's works and the manuscripts of Milton's Psalms in the 17th century.There are also many collections about Newton: the first edition of Newton's "Principles of Mathematics" published in London in 1687, with the revised text written by Newton himself for the revision of the second edition; Newton's notebook, the first half This was used to practice Latin when he was studying in middle school, and the second half was used by him as an account book to record personal expenses; the pocket watch that Newton gave to friends at Trinity College as a gift in 1717, and even his wisp hair.Next to Newton's neatly handwritten notes, there is actually a cartoon comic strip of my favorite (Winnie the Pooh).It turns out that AA Milne, the author of this popular cartoon all over the world, and his son are also alumni of Cambridge.Today, the library is also where new students register.Every autumn when they enter school, freshmen have to take turns to write their names, addresses, etc. in handwriting on the notebooks registered by Newton, Byron, Russell, Bacon, etc., according to the same procedure.This is the dominant inheritance of the tradition of Cambridge, and the registered freshmen have a strong sense of history spontaneously.

In addition to the Wren library, the libraries of other colleges also have their own characteristics.I go to the library in my college most often. Although it is not big, it is open 24 hours a day and unattended.All the students in the courtyard have keys, and they only need to sign to borrow books when they go in.I like to sit in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows and read books. When I am tired, looking at the beautiful scenery outside the window is a kind of relaxation. I have spent a lot of free time in the library since I was a child, it is really a place that makes people feel intimate.In the sixth year of middle school, I studied in Nanjing Foreign Language School.In addition to a Chinese library, NFLS also has a foreign language library, which contains books and magazines in four languages: English, French, German, and Japanese.I feel lucky now that I was able to have two libraries in middle school, that kind of happiness.The graphic materials in the library were impossible to buy in China at that time, and most of them were entrusted by foreign teachers to raise donations from foreign charitable foundations.The administrator was a fat, kindly old French lady, who was about sixty then, but very voluptuous.I can't remember the exact look, but her bright red lips and the smell of French perfume linger in my memory, very vivid.It was from her that I borrowed my first original copy of National Geographic.Those virgin forests, vast grasslands, and exotic customs photographed from all over the world aroused my desire to explore, and the vast world outside my living space strongly tempted me.In that small library, I had a wish: When I grow up, I want to travel around the world with a dog, a parrot, and a camera.

Later, I walked from Nanjing to Shanghai, where I continued my studies in Fudan, in the northeast corner of that bustling and noisy city.In the early morning of the weekend, I poured a bottle of tea, carried my schoolbag, wandered unhurriedly to the liberal arts library, carefully stuffed the schoolbag into the locker, then slipped into the library, and wandered slowly in front of the bookshelf, Pick a few favorite books, choose a sunny seat by the window, and spend time.When I was tired, I went to the second floor of the science library and spent two yuan to watch an old English movie in original version.Such a day is called full of life.It is cold in winter, and the small reading room on the second floor of the canteen in the East District is also a good place to read.I often hold a hot water bottle, bring a bag of peanuts, and supplement my calories while reading.

Now, I am walking from Shanghai to this ancient English town.The vast collection of books in many libraries is an important reason why I fell in love with Cambridge. UL, this simple acronym stands for University Library, the largest library in Cambridge.The library has a history of more than 600 years, and it has the right to collect any book published in the UK for free.Every year, the area of ​​UL's book collection continues to expand, so that some remote corners of it have not been patronized for several years.As a result, those dark corners have become a place for campus lovers to seek passion.A student in Cambridge lamented in the school newspaper: My girlfriend and I often find the most deserted section for a quiet working environment; it's easy to get distracted...So there you go; if you want to spice up your sex life, go in search of the soil and cookery periodics (my girlfriend and I find those quiet areas off the beaten track are good environments to work in, it just might be easier to get distracted there...if you want your sex to be more exciting, go to Soil Science , culinary science magazine area).

I haven't seen such a passionate scene, I just listened to it as an anecdote.However, there are not many people who come to UL to study.Probably due to the rich collection of books here, the process of finding books is naturally cumbersome.When I came to borrow books for the first time, I searched hard for three hours before I found all the four books I needed.It can be a disaster if the book you are looking for is misplaced by a previous reader.The curator of the Argentine National Library and the novelist Boes once wrote in a novel: The best place to hide a leaf is the forest.Finding a misplaced book in a collection of more than seven million books is like finding a fallen leaf in a forest.That book is also pitiful, I am afraid that it will never see the light of day.

Cambridge provides students with a wealth of online resources.The convenience of the Internet seems to save a lot of trouble in the library.One "up" and one "down" in front of the computer - surfing the Internet and downloading, and you're done.But this so-called "digital library" just doesn't suit me. I'm still so hopelessly infatuated with the traditional library: the labyrinth-like corridors, the endless bookshelves; The good smell of the wood as a whole, the warm and mellow book fragrance that has been dusted for a long time for a long time; obsessed with the eyebrow comments in the book, the small holes gnawed out by insects, and even the ink stains on the thick wooden table.And what fascinates me the most is actually a state of mind: the shock and touch when facing the vast sea of ​​books.

Forgot which philosopher once said: A good library is equivalent to a university.Extending this statement, it can be generally said that the style of the library can represent the style of a university, at least UL is so close to the temperament of Cambridge.Every time I walk into a Cambridge library, I feel a sense of happiness and steadfastness: there are so many books to read!The thick wooden door completely separates the hustle and bustle of the outside world, and the quiet atmosphere really reassures me.The place is full of books but there are no people. Old books, newspapers and magazines with a history of decades or even hundreds of years are pushed one by one to the other side without lights; the whining sound of the elevator in the distance further sets off the silence around.My heart found its home immediately.

I remember such a picture in the German movie "Wings of Desire": angels in black trench coats haunt the Berlin library listening to people's voices; In fact, the museum is full of solemn angels in black, as well as the murmuring monologues in the ears of the angels.Such charming and strange images often appear in front of my eyes.Really, the time in the library is frozen, and if you stay for a long time, you will have an illusion of eternity and illusion. When I was very young, a picture of the future often appeared in my mind: I stood in front of rows of old and tall bookshelves and picked out my favorite books one by one.When I was surrounded by the vast sea of ​​books, I was small, but also joyful.Zen Buddhism said: "Smile while picking up flowers; but I am really "smiling while holding a book".In many dusks in Cambridge, I happily wandered among the quiet maze of bookshelves, feeling that the angel who guarded me was bending over my shoulder, smiling, and reading the ancient pages with me.