H-30: The Printed Book in the West to 1800
8-12 January 2007 in NYC
1) How useful were the pre-course readings?
1: Chappell [Short History of the Printed Word]: Very important; ABC [ABC for Book Collectors]: Very helpful. 2: Very useful. I think it is essential reading before coming to class[History of the Printed Word]3: Excellent, glad I read them! 4: Chappell was helpful; Carter [ABC for Book Collectors] is/was/always will be essential. 6: Very useful – not too heavy to read all the material before the course. 8: Very helpful. The course was so wide-ranging in terms of content (entire history of printed book in the West to 1800) that there would have been no way to cover all topics in pre-course readings. Nevertheless, the reading we were assigned laid an appropriate level of foundational knowledge. 10: The readings were very useful and right on target. 11: Carter and Chappell were helpful. I didn’t find Chappell very engaging, but I don’t have a good alternative suggestion. 12: The readings were important for laying a common knowledge foundation for the course.
2) Were the course syllabus and other materials distributed in class appropriate and useful (or will they be so in the future, after you return home)?
1: Very useful! 2: Appropriate for the class. Not sure yet whether I will refer to them again after I return home. I will use the bibliography, though wish it was arranged by subject (or annotated). 3: Absolutely, will keep them for reference at my job. 4: Yes. 5: The course workbook was very thoughtful and valuable. 6: Yes – but more notes would have been helpful for the lecture components of the course. 7: Yes, very. 8: Yes. 9: Excellent materials – I will continue to use them as a resource. 10: They were useful in following along day-by-day and will be invaluable to refer to in later days and weeks. 11: Very much so. They were quite clear; I was appreciative of the lists of slides and books, and names in the notes. 12: I will refer to the bibliography and slide info for many years to come when shaping reading lists and AV presentations.
3) What aspects of the course content were of the greatest interest or relevance for your purposes? Was the intellectual level of the course appropriate?
1: Discussion of history of literacy; technical explanation of printing process; great intellectual level! 2: I especially enjoyed the lectures on type and typography, as that was the area I knew least about, and those lectures were very informative and clear. 3: All of them – typography, history of printing, culture of book development, use, production – the material culture aspect of history 1450-1800. 4: Intellectual level was pitched higher than any of the other (three) RBS courses I have taken, and was very welcome. 5: The introductory level of the course gave me a very firm ground on which to evaluate my current collection. It has also given me substantial confidence in purchasing these materials for additions to my collection. 6: I particularly like the connections made between book history and the intellectual/political history of Europe. 7: Yes, entire content useful, was especially interested in general history of books. 8: I was very impressed with the level of the course teaching and class discussion. I most enjoyed discussions of early script forms (paleography) and their use as a basis for early type. Helpful for dating manuscripts. 9: This course was outstanding! I wish that it could continue indefinitely. MA is one of the most throughly engaging and informed instructors I have ever encountered. 10: The study of typography and the printing process. 11: This was a good introduction to the material. I’m not particularly interested in some of the material about typography, but I realize it’s good background information for what I do. 12: All of it. The intellectual level was challenging, and it drew many aspects of a strong liberal arts/classical education into the topic.
4) If your course had field trips, were they effective?
1: Extremely effective and inspiring! A very important part of the course for me. There is nothing like learning about an incredible book with it before you. 2: I loved our visits to the NYPL. Yes, they were effective and tied in nicely with the class. 3: Excellent, got to see things I doubt I would ask for by myself – would they even show them to me? 4: Treasures of the NYPL are just that – “treasures,” and they fit in beautifully with MA’s program. 5: The field trips were very effective. 6: Two, both to NYPL – very effective. 7: Wonderful trips to NYPL. 8: Trips to NYPL were very effective – wonderful opportunity to see rare texts, bindings, illustrations and typefaces which beautifully illustrated topics being covered in class. 9: Brilliant field trips! So helpful to actually interact with materials and professionals. 10: The field trip was very effective, as it gave me an opportunity to view books of the same years in my library’s collection, but of a different genre. My library is so focused on the Bible that it was important for me to see other material using the same fonts, bindings, &c. 11: NYPL – very important. 12: Yes, the trips to the Rare Book Room of NYPL was enlightening. We saw examples of printing history that would not have been seen otherwise. Also, it was a chance to see the actual objects along with slides of the same or similar items.
5) What did you like best about the course?
1: The teacher. Also - excellent teaching materials! I also loved meeting like-minded individuals and getting to handle (or closely inspect) such incredible books. 2: Structure, i.e., the fact that it was not a strict chronological overview of the history of the book. 3: Like everything, like the slides shown as examples – seeing it is learning – show me. 4: The discussions of literacy, censorship, &c. and the various social aspects of the development of the book and of readership. Also, MA’s slides (PowerPoint) were excellent; they brought the dry pre-course reading to life. 5: The general atmosphere of the love of the subject shared by the instructor and class participants. 6: The instructor – a very skilled and knowledgeable teacher who demonstrates genuine scholarly enthusiasm for the subject and interest in his studies. 7: Instructor was wonderful. Tremendous command of topic and a very honest teaching style – sadly this is rare. 8: I loved MA’s combination of lecture, slides, and hands-on viewing. Taken together, these teaching methods kept the course lively and engaging. Fantastic overview of all aspects of early bookmaking processes – from type formation to papermaking to binding. Also peppered throughout – and very useful for informing other discussions – were the theoretical discussions. Everything was wonderful! 9: MA himself. He is so knowledgeable and personable. He made sure that everyone was at ease and up to speed on the material. 10: The social history aspects of the history of the book. The instructor handled the questions from students very well. He was encouraging and enthusiastic. 11: I think there was the right mix of dialogue between the instructor and students. 12: The intellectual content and sharing, as well as the topic. MA pulled the topic together for me.
6) How could the course have been improved?
1: I really don’t know. More time? 2: We did run out of time. Start a little earlier in the day? 4: We really could have used more time. Also could we have had a project similar to the one MA does in Charlottesville? 6: Needs more class time to cover the syllabus. 7: I honestly don’t know. 8: Only thing to suggest might be a visit to a functioning letterpress/printmaking shop and bindery, e.g. the Center for Book Arts or any number of private studios. 9: If there were more time available, it would be useful for those who have never experienced the letterpress/composition process first hand to have a session with Mindy Belloff. Perhaps this could be an extra assignment for those who want it outside class time. 10: It is perfect as it is. 11: The course covered a fair amount of material about the book as object and book production. I would have appreciated a bit more about the history of book distribution and consumption, or in lieu of that, given the time constraints, perhaps a brief discussion of the state of scholarship on distribution and consumption. 12: A slightly longer day.
7) We are always concerned about the physical well-being both of the RBS teaching collections and of materials owned by the Grolier Club. If relevant, what suggestions do you have for the improved classroom handling of such materials used in your course this week?
3: Requires more time, but give everyone a chance to get closer to books; or else have them available to look at later – leave them out. 4: It was just fine. 5: Perhaps a brief preparatory instruction on handling of these materials and a chance to wash our hands if needed. 7: Materials were handled with complete care and respect. 8: None. 9: No suggestions. 12: None that I can think of.
8) If you attended the Monday and/or Tuesday night lectures, were they worth attending?
1: Absolutely. Every class should be so lucky! 2: Tuesday night lecture was fun and entertaining. Definitely worth it. Also, the cocktail hour afterwards was a good ice-breaker to meet and mingle. 3: Yes, Eric Holzenberg’s lecture was great – a coincidental tie-in to material we saw in class – demonstrated bibliophily and bibliomania – Sir Thomas Phillipps. EH also showed us around the Club. 4: EH’s lecture was superb. 8: N/A. 9: Yes! Very valuable experience. It is important for students to interact with members of this field. 10: Yes, the Tuesday lecture was entertaining and informative. 11: Yes. 12: Yes, I attended the Tuesday lecture on Bibliomania and learned about Sir Thomas Phillipps. I might not have come across such an interesting character otherwise. EH gave a very polished lecture.
10) Did you get your money’s worth? Any final or summary thoughts, or advice for other persons considering taking this course in a future year?
1: MA is one of the best teachers I have ever had. I am amazed that he can be so elegant, so articulate and so clear. He explained things so that a child could understand, yet he was discussing profound and difficult subjects. He is unbelievably accessible, warm, funny, and a joy to listen to. Also taking the course here, at the Grolier Club, was a real treat! 2: Absolutely! 3: Do the reading, be alert and enjoy. I loved this class – it’s been an enlightening and transforming week – the immersion into the material was wonderful. Can’t wait to continue RBS again to pick up on later time period. 4: Take it – MA and the material are both top drawer. 5: Yes. 6: Yes – well worth the fee. 7: Yes, I look forward to attending future courses. 8: Absolutely! Wonderful, intellectually engaging course for all levels of students. 9: Yes. This was a remarkable experience, life-changing, and utterly inspiring in fact. Thank you so much! 10: Yes, you will receive your money’s worth, if you prepare first by completing the readings and come ready to absorb it all. Please offer more classes in New York City. 11: Yes. 12: Yes, I cannot wait to take another session. It was worth both my time, and money, and time away from my business to come here and meet others of a like ilk.
Number of respondents: 12
Percentages
Leave Tuition Housing Travel
Institution Institution Institution Institution
gave me leave paid tuition paid housing paid travel
58% 42% 17% 25%
I took vaca- I paid tui- I paid for my I paid my own
tion time tion myself own housing travel
8% 42% 17% 33%
N/A: self- N/A: Self- N/A: stayed N/A: lived
employed, re- employed, with friends nearby
tired, or had retired, or or lived at
summers off scholarship home
33% 17% 67% 42%
There were 4 general librarians with some rare book duties (33%); 2 teacher/professors (17%); 2 conservators/binders/preservation librarians (17%); 1 rare book librarian (8%); 1 archivist/manuscript librarian; 1 book collector; and 1 independent with a “personal interest in special collections librarianship” (8%).