Public Libraries

In the early seventeenth century, public libraries became prominent with the introduction of Justus Lipsius's De bibliothecis syntagma (Arrangement of Libraries, 1602), and Gabriel Naudé's Advis pour dresser une bibliothèque publique (Advice for Setting Up a Public Library, 1627), books that incentivized others to publicize their libraries and that created comprehensive guides to do so. Soon, numerous private libraries opened themselves up for the benefit of a wider community, though the publicizing of libraries occurred only gradually; academic libraries were first made available only to authorized scholars while the general public was barred from accessing them. Eventually, public libraries became widespread, though the definition of “public” was still relatively confined to scholars and aristocrats for another century after the Enlightenment. 
The founding of public libraries during the Enlightenment reflected the values of compiling knowledge and dissecting knowledge according to logical reasoning, as well as the value of freedom of expression. Public libraries not only allowed knowledge to become systemically recorded and examined, but educated the general public on the virtue of reason-based decisions, and improved the quality of life by ensuring that political decisions in general society were rational and just. Thus, public libraries furthermore reflected the value of a knowledge-based society that aimed to educate the general public, a prevalent concept during the Age of Enlightenment. 

Public libraries, a concept that began during the Age of Enlightenment, are now common resources for academic and personal achievements for the general population. Public libraries continue to uphold the values represented during the Enlightenment, including the widespread propogation of knowledge and scholarly interest. Public libraries are valuable for educational purposes as well, providing an easily accessible resource to foster academic growth. Though modern public libraries reflect many of the values of the Enlightenment, the reason for their existence differs somewhat from the late eighteenth century; while public libraries were considered effective ways to eliminate the irrational and fanatic arguments and dissect information using a basis of reason during the Enlightenment, modern public libraries are less focused on rationalizing information and instead are centered around making all facets of knowledge accessible to the general public, regardless of bias or content.

Image sources: Image 1: http://www.beautiful-libraries.com/library%20photos/libraries%20of%20history%20and%20myth/libraryalexandriainside.jpeg
Image 2: http://pcdn.500px.net/8741225/447e4984f12adc9c94ea51be4bc787dcf6548276/4.jpg