Memory's Library
eBook - PDF

Memory's Library

Medieval Books in Early Modern England

  1. English
  2. PDF
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

Memory's Library

Medieval Books in Early Modern England

About this book

In Jennifer Summit's account, libraries are more than inert storehouses of written tradition; they are volatile spaces that actively shape the meanings and uses of books, reading, and the past. Considering the two-hundred-year period between 1431, which saw the foundation of Duke Humfrey's famous library, and 1631, when the great antiquarian Sir Robert Cotton died, Memory's Library revises the history of the modern library by focusing on its origins in medieval and early modern England.

Summit argues that the medieval sources that survive in English collections are the product of a Reformation and post-Reformation struggle to redefine the past by redefining the cultural place, function, and identity of libraries. By establishing the intellectual dynamism of English libraries during this crucial period of their development, Memory's Library demonstrates how much current discussions about the future of libraries can gain by reexamining their past.

Frequently asked questions

Yes, you can cancel anytime from the Subscription tab in your account settings on the Perlego website. Your subscription will stay active until the end of your current billing period. Learn how to cancel your subscription.
At the moment all of our mobile-responsive ePub books are available to download via the app. Most of our PDFs are also available to download and we're working on making the final remaining ones downloadable now. Learn more here.
Perlego offers two plans: Essential and Complete
  • Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
  • Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Both plans are available with monthly, semester, or annual billing cycles.
We are an online textbook subscription service, where you can get access to an entire online library for less than the price of a single book per month. With over 1 million books across 1000+ topics, we’ve got you covered! Learn more here.
Look out for the read-aloud symbol on your next book to see if you can listen to it. The read-aloud tool reads text aloud for you, highlighting the text as it is being read. You can pause it, speed it up and slow it down. Learn more here.
Yes! You can use the Perlego app on both iOS or Android devices to read anytime, anywhere — even offline. Perfect for commutes or when you’re on the go.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Yes, you can access Memory's Library by Jennifer Summit in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Literature & British History. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Contents
  2. List of Illustrations
  3. Acknowledgments
  4. Introduction: Libraries of Memory
  5. 1. Lydgate’s Libraries: Duke Humfrey, Bury St. Edmunds, and The Fall of Princes
  6. 2. The Lost Libraries of English Humanism: More, Starkey, Elyot
  7. 3. Reading Reformation: The Libraries of Matthew Parker and Edmund Spenser
  8. 4. A Library of Evidence: Robert Cotton’s Medieval Manuscripts and the Generation of Seventeenth-Century Prose
  9. 5. “Cogitation against Libraries”: Bacon, the Bodleian, and the Weight of the Medieval Past
  10. Coda: Memories of Libraries
  11. Notes
  12. Index