The Library Card

Summary : In this essay entitled “The Library Card,” Richard Wright has presented a vivid picture of his desire for reading and value of education. Wright was a Negro boy. The black people weren’t allowed to borrow books from the library. One day, he read a article on H. L. Mencken. Mencken was severely criticized in the article, so Wright wanted to know why he was criticized. He decided to read the books by Mencken. So he asked an Irish catholic named Mr. Falk to provide him the library card. Richard Wright forged the signature of Mr. Falk and was able to bring two books by H. L. Mencken. He knew more about Mencken. The reading broadened his mind. The more knowledge he gained, he was able to understand the world around him. The hunger of knowledge increased, and he read a lot of books. It made him different than the other blacks. He understood why the blacks were discriminated. And similarly, he understood why Mencken was criticized. 

Because of reading, Richard’s attitude towards the world and his society changed. He was better able to understand the injustice and prejudices deep rooted in the society. Thus, Richard Wright sings the importance of education in this essay. Education enhances our knowledge about ourselves and the world.

Interpretation : Richard Wright says that one can have education by reading a lot of books . One can have informal education at home , among friends , in society , and in other circumstances. Informal education in not like the formal education that we can have after going to schools or colleges . Reading books can develop our emotion and feeling and we can have enough knowledge to understand our society closely.  

Critical thinking : There are three kinds of education formal , informal and non-formal. Informal education can be received form home , friends and society. Sharing of individual experience among us is very common. Thats why, education also means the experience that one gains in his/her life. Reading books also works as sharing of the experiences of the writers. Such experience help us with the maturity to understand the society very closely. Sense of evaluation is developed more by reading books. The writer is right in his view reading books can change our sense of looking at world.

Assimilation : I still recollect the time period after my SLC which was nearly six month's gap that we had to spend without doing any works. In the present time, people have many provisions-computer training , singing and dancing , and some people even like go to abroad . Along with my friends , i had the provision of reading books. By reading novels, i had really enjoyed the imaginary world created by the writer. I had experienced that emotion and feelings were developed.