O livro e o processo civilizatório em Alagoas: do Gabinete de leitura à Biblioteca Pública

Abstract

The research deals with the emergence of the Office of Reading in Maceió / AL in the midnineteenth century, therefore, politically the country was under the aegis of the monarchy. From the historical point of view, the study provides a long narrative about the writing system and later the birth of the book and its evolution in the context of the societies of advanced civilization. Specifically, the concern appears to be scientific in order to relate the appearance of books and reading perspective of civilization based on the ideas of Norbert Elias (1897/1990). The investigation was carried out by means of successive visits to the Historical and Geographical Institute of Alagoas as well as the State Public Library and Public Archives of Alagoas State. In such areas had access to a wealth of material, what showed the reality of the Office of Reading and its transition in the current Public Library. This historical process with the participation of intellectuals adherents of positivism Titara da Silva, Thomas and Alexander Bomfim Espíndola José de Melo Moraes The methodological approach was configured in the collection of ancient documents and the seizure of key information. The theoretical foundation of the study was done by scholars such as Bloch (2001), Chartier (1998), Certeau (1982), Farge (2009), Costa (2011), Verçosa (2006) and Madeira (2005, 2008, 2010, 2011 .) Other scholars in the field of librarianship were visited as Higounet (2003), Sampaio (2009), Campos (1994), Martins (1998) and Schwarcz (2001). Was reached the following conclusion: writing and reading are important elements of civilized Western culture. In the case of Alagoas, the Office of Reading in its eight years of life failed to materialize in the daily life of maceioenses the simple fact that here the elitist culture did not allow its democratization. However, we can not deny its importance in the civilization and its transformation into State Public Library