Sunday, February 27, 2011
The Library of Babel- PCM
The library of Babel by Borges is a masterful piece of literature that attempts to provide some light on the intricacies of the world. The library appears to be a metaphor for the world, and the books a metaphor for all of the people and elements of this world. The library is described as endless, with floors upon floors of books that contain every combination of the "twenty two orthographic symbols." The narrator of this text is best described as aging and on the verge of death. It appears that this is a reflection on a library that is representative of every possible source of knowledge attained by people in this world. The binaries of finite/infinite and reality/fantasy are depicted well in this text. Borges identifies the race of human kind as being finite and on the verge of extinction but the world and the library as being endless and infinite. It is Borges hope that a book exists that contains all other information; a book that he has been diligently searching for his entire life. He states that "there must exist a book that is cipher and perfect compendium of all other books" and that God is the "librarian must have examined this book." It appears that this book might represent a sense of ultimate self realization and the attainment of all pertinent knowledge. Religion plays a significant role in this text as there are a plethora of references to God and a supreme being. Borges does an outstanding job of providing a metaphor that constructs a picture of the nuances of the world. In his concluding statement, Borges states his desire for order. He states "the library is unlimited but periodic. If an eternal traveler should journey in any direction, he would find after untold centuries that the same volumes are repeated in the same order- which, repeated, becomes order: the Order. My solitude is cheered by that elegant hope."
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The library of Babel by Borges is a masterful piece of literature that attempts to provide some light on the intricacies of the world. The library appears to be a metaphor for the world, and the books a metaphor for all of the people and elements of this world. The library is described as endless, with floors upon floors of books that contain every combination of the "twenty two orthographic symbols." The narrator of this text is best described as aging and on the verge of death. It appears that this is a reflection on a library that is representative of every possible source of knowledge attained by people in this world. The binaries of finite/infinite and reality/fantasy are depicted well in this text. Borges identifies the race of human kind as being finite and on the verge of extinction but the world and the library as being endless and infinite. It is Borges’s hope that a book exists that contains all other information; a book that he has been diligently searching for his entire life. He states that "there must exist a book that is cipher and perfect compendium of all other books" and that God is the "librarian must have examined this book." It appears that this book might represent a sense of ultimate self realization and the attainment of all pertinent knowledge. Religion plays a significant role in this text as there are a plethora of references to God and a supreme being. However, Borges is not best described as religious and seems to criticize the legitimacy of the bible by calling into question the legitimacy of any translated book. The title also makes reference to the Tower of Babel and supports the criticism of the Catholic religion and the Bible itself. If God intended to create language barriers to prevent man from obtaining to much knowledge, how is it possible the bible is accurately translated? He describes death as impending but does reflect significantly on the afterlife or refer to a religious haven. Borges does an outstanding job of providing a metaphor that constructs a picture of the nuances of the world. In his concluding statement, Borges states his desire for order. He states "the library is unlimited but periodic. If an eternal traveler should journey in any direction, he would find after untold centuries that the same volumes are repeated in the same order- which, repeated, becomes order: the Order. My solitude is cheered by that elegant hope." From an analytical perspective, the Library of Babel demonstrates some common themes related to Borges’s work in the form of infinity, reality, and labyrinths.
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