BKHIS 818 The Social History of Collecting
Steve Ferguson
Princeton University Library
Email: ferguson@princeton.edu
Telephone: 609 258 3165
Fax: 609 258 2324
Class resources: http://www.princeton.edu/~ferguson/bkhis818/
SYLLABUS
Objectives
Introduce students to knowledge and experiences which will be useful for understanding the process of collecting, so that we can answer the questions: What is it? How and why does it begin? Who does it? Under what circumstances? Why is it interesting? What good is it? What is society’s interest in collecting and collectors? How does it vary over time and from culture to culture?
Our chief attention, since this course is being offered in the context of a program of study focused on the history of the book, will be on book collections. But the concept of the book is broadly construed for purposes of this course. Historians of the book work chiefly with materials held by research libraries. Such materials are organized for use, accessible, physically conserved and held permanently so that one’s evidence can be consulted by others if so needed. The collecting domain of the American research library today is not restricted to just printed books of the last 500 years but also includes other products of the press, pen and such like.
General calendar
There will be a mix of class sessions and field trips.
1. Beginning:
Consideration of the above questions from a variety of disciplinary standpoints. For this section the following texts will be read:
Lawrence Weschler. Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder.
John Elsner and Roger Cardinal (editors) The Cultures of Collecting.
Werner Muensterberger Collecting : an unruly passion : psychological
perspectives.
G Thomas Tanselle "A Rationale of Collecting" in
Studies in Bibliography Volume 51 (1998) 1-25 (Xerox). Also published
in an edited form in Raritan. A Quarterly Review (Summer 1999) 23-50.
Benjamin, Walter. "Unpacking My Library: A Talk about Book Collecting" in
Trans. Harry Zohn. Illuminations: Essays and Reflections. New York: Harcourt, Brace & World, 1968. 59-67. (Xerox)
Susan Stewart "The Collection, Paradise of Consumption" in
On Longing: Narratives of the Minature, the Gigantic, the Souvenir, the Collection. Durham: Duke University Press, 1993. 151-169. (Xerox)
Jean Baudrillard "A Marginal System: Collecting" in
The System of Objects translated by James Benedict. London: Verso, 1996. 85-106. (Xerox) Supplements translation by Roger Cardinal in The Cultures of Collecting pp 7-24.
The language of the collector: ABC for Book Collectors by John Carter
Collectors and their stories
Early modern
19th century US and England
20th century US and England: Certain Small Works by Robert H. Taylor
Student book collectors
The antiquarian book trade
The collectors clubs
Publications for the collector
The catalog of a collection
A Gentle Madness by Nicholas A. Basbanes
Institutional collectors
Institutional collecting: present and future
Understanding the origins of rare book collections in American academic libraries
Provenance research: Provenance Research in Book History. A Handbook by
David Pearson
Institution to collector: Deaccessioning. Nicholson Baker "Deadline" in The New
Yorker, June 24, 2000. Likely to be reprinted in his forthcoming Double Fold:
Libraries and the Assault on Paper (Random House, April 2001)
Fakes and forgeries
Theives and theft
Miles Harvey. The Island of Lost Maps. A True Story of Cartographic Crime.
Mechanics and requirements
The chief exercises of the course will be
Grades will be based on a combination of grades for the various papers as well as classroom attendance and participation. The final paper will be worth about half your final grade. Originality of your research will count greatly.
Book sources:
Daniel Traister's page at <http://www.english.upenn.edu/~traister/book_sources.html>. Note that certain links are restricted.