Pakistani Readers discussion

Welcome to March Read! :)

@min11

Good observations. I could not reconcile the idea of an orderly library with the chaotic universe; but it being an allegory for all the knowledge we have, or will have, definitely makes sense. And it certainly also makes sense of religions being an unintended consequence of mankind's lust after knowledge.

Although, I still have to admit that it provides a far more depressing picture of man's search for knowledge than it really is. The library puts in clear view man's ignorance whereas in reality, there's such a thing as 'unknown unknown'. We can put all our current queries in Physics on a table and that would seem like a monstrous but possible task. But the library provides an impossible picture by default. There's also the fact that knowledge increases exponentially, not linearly. Know two things today, and tomorrow you'll know four or eight or more, stemming from the prior two. The psychological pleasure of merely knowing, and the visible observation of our progress in terms of technology, is enough for us humans to continue toiling without caring for the fact that we'll never know everything. The library, on the other hand, pits man directly against his ignorance -- a terrifying image. Reality provides enough distractions.

Summarily, the book serves its purpose as an excellent metaphor/allegory and also does the job of portraying our task as a species. But what it gains from doing its job is still up to the reader. It can be a discouragement for the cowardly, and a consolation for the courageous. After all, the thought of there being an end to knowledge is far more terrifying.

@Genio

Fair point, the library can be hellish when viewed from a certain perspective. But it's also heavenly from another.