My Views - Sharni

The poem was called the portrait of a sentenced library and was talking about a library being demolished and about the wonderful memories the library had left behind in the speakers mind such as reading the book the little prince which had brought him great joy. Therefore I chose the article on the closing of the Singapore National Library in Stamford road in 2004 which also had given people many fond memories and had been operating for 44 years. That’s how the poem and the article are related as they both talk about libraries closing and the memories it had left behind. I chose this artwork of a dark hallway which gives us a feeling of emptiness and loneliness just like the libraries once closed are no longer lively but instead quiet and dark like this hallway.

The wordles seemed to have words liked memo

ries, emotions, nostalgia , much loved, fond, memorable which have around the same idea which is that even though the library was closed it had left behind many fond memories and evokes a sense of nostalgia. The words such as torn, reassembled, dismantled, closed tell us that the lib

rary is going to be gone permanently. Thus we can learn from this even when old things physically disappear, they still hold emotional attachment in our hearts. It made the ideas clearer as it picked out the key words so we could easily compare words of similar meanings.

I like the picture. This is because when I look at it I immediately feel the sense of loneliness and abandonment compared to poem or article when they talk about the library being shut down.

It tells us that in life today some of our most memorable hangouts would have to go and the only thing left behind would be memories. I think this feeling would apply to people in 25or 100 years time. Only that in their time probably older buildings might be places like city hall or raffles place. However, if they were to see articles on the library closing down they might not feel much or have any memories on it because some of them might not even have heard of it.

I would pair this picture of an old man with the poem as the old man is just like the library in the poem as he would be leaving soon but yet his memories would be felt by his loved ones.

Another thing I would use would be this book the forgotten few which shows us that even after the war the people’s efforts are still remembered although individually they might have been forgotten which is quite different from the library as it is remembered for it successes and also for itself rather than the soldiers who are only remembered for their efforts.

The Picture

daniel dangers lock and key or latchkey a house you tricked empty

The News Article I selected (abstract)

the National Library of Singapore)

Commemorating the Closing Chapter of the National Library at Stamford Road By Janice Ong Corporate Communications National Library Board Singapore

Ms. Ngian Lek Choh releases the banner symbolising the closure of the National Library It was hard to keep emotions in check when Singapore's National Library at Stamford Road closed its doors for the last time on 31 March 2004. After 44 memorable years of service to the reading public, the familiar much-loved red-bricked building marked its final day in a simple, low-key, yet dignified commemorative ceremony. There were no visible tears among the 200-odd that witnessed the closure. Instead, there was a somewhat carnival atmosphere in the library among the National Library Board (NLB) staff, board members and business associates. The guests mingled around with each other and chatted with some library users who had turned especially for one last look at the library. In a spontaneous and moving display, some staff burst into a rendition of auld lang syne when a banner, announcing the relocation of the National Library to its new premise in Victoria Street in 2005, was unfurled in a symbolic gesture just after the library closed at 9pm. A Place for All Opened in 1960 by Singapore's very first president, Mr. Yusok Ishak, the National Library was the first library, which did not charge entrance or loan fees to its users. Over the years, the library evolved to keep up with satisfying the changing needs of its users, whilst building up its rich collection and developing the expertise and experience of its librarians. The National Library is "more than just a libraryE[it holds] a special place in the hearts and minds of generations of users," said Ms. Ngian Lek Choh, Director of the National Library and Deputy Chief Executive of the NLB, in her speech at the closing ceremony, billed as "The Closing Chapter". "Many people, Singaporeans and visitors from overseas alike, have benefited from the library and what it has been offering, be it reference collections, the enquiry service, rare books from the specialized collection or just a quiet and conducive place to sit back, relax and have a cup of coffee," she added. up Preservation of Memories Ms. Ngian also thanked the ardent fans of the National Library for the continuous support they had given over the years. Hundreds turned up on the last day to take pictures and even savoured the last chance to walk down its historical corridors. Some participated in the "My Fond Memories" contest, one of the initiatives organized by NLB to commemorate the memories of the National Library building. Others took part in the variety of other programmes organized by NLB, including the National Library Virtual Walkthrough, the sale of commemorative items, the photography contest and the National Library Guided Tours. "As we prepare for the opening of the new National Library in 2005, we also recognize the special place that the National Library has in the hearts of the public who have grown up with it," Ms. Ngian said. She could not have said it any better. For the full article :http://www.ndl.go.jp/en/cdnlao/newsletter/051/516.html

The poem I selected

The Portrait of a Sentenced Library

Alfian Sa’at

So these bricks will be torn down

And books will still not have learnt

To spread their feathers and fly

Like pigeons from a shaken tree

So this balustrade will be dismantled

Perhaps reassembled somewhere else –

A conch paperweight by my head is a beach.

Each hour from a postcard Big Ben chimes.

This is the logic of nostalgia –

This is what I mean when I say

That my memory is selfish.

Who can guarantee that roaming

Through a tunnel I will find again

The Children’s Section, where a boy walked

With ‘the Little Prince’ in his hands,

His smile the first line of a novel

Neither of us had read before?

One cymbal left in Chinatown.

Blueprints and forums and rhetoric ensure

That a firecracker makes no sound.