--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963…" description: "\"As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963, I began writing about books in revolutionary France, helping to found the discipline of book history. I was in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/robert-darnton-20759_about_as-a-graduate-student-at-oxford-in-1963_60209.jpg" --- # As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963, I began writing… ![“As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963, I began writing about books in revolutionary France, helping to found the discipline of book history. I was in my academic corner writing about Enlightenment ideals when the Internet exploded the world of academic communication in the 1990s.” quote by Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/robert-darnton-20759_about_as-a-graduate-student-at-oxford-in-1963_60209.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/robert-darnton-20759_about_as-a-graduate-student-at-oxford-in-1963_60209.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dce/robert-darnton-20759_about_as-a-graduate-student-at-oxford-in-1963_60209.jpg) > “As a graduate student at Oxford in 1963, I began writing about books in revolutionary France, helping to found the discipline of book history. I was in my academic corner writing about Enlightenment ideals when the Internet exploded the world of academic communication in the 1990s.” [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author reflects on his early scholarly focus on French Revolutionary book history and contrasts it with the transformative impact of the Internet on academic communication decades later. **In simple terms:** From niche book history to digital scholarly exchange. Key Takeaway Technological shifts reshape research dissemination. Themes History of ideas Digital transformation Academic communication Enlightenment Book studies Mood Nostalgic Optimistic Reflective Type Personal anecdote Historical observation When to use this quote - Writing a dissertation - Teaching a seminar - Publishing a monograph - Collaborating across institutions - Presenting at conferences Key Concepts Book history Internet Scholarly networks Practical Applications - Digital archiving of historical texts - Online scholarly forums Questions to Reflect On - How has the Internet altered the way scholars engage with primary sources? - What challenges arise when traditional disciplines adapt to digital platforms? A Different Perspective null ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Academic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/academic/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Corner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corner/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Enlightenment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enlightenment/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [Graduate student](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graduate-student/) [Graduate students](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graduate-students/) [Graduates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/graduates/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Ideals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideals/) [Internet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/internet/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) [Student](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/student/) [Students](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/students/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“...but every living soul is a book of their own history, which sits on the ever-growing shelf in the library of human memories.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gantos/but-every-living-soul-is-a-book-of-their-own-history-which-sits-on/) [Jack Gantos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-gantos/) > [I really want to do a book on the history of the no-wave music scene in New York, how it extended out and formed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurston-moore/i-really-want-to-do-a-book-on-the-history-of-the-no-wave-music-scene/) [Thurston Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurston-moore/) > [I'd done a lot of research in Hollywood and in academia. 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Before I knew it, I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/as-president-of-the-american-historical-association-i-started-a/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) > [I would not minimize the digital divide, which separates the computerized world from the rest, nor would I underestimate the importance of traditional books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/i-would-not-minimize-the-digital-divide-which-separates-the/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) > [“By seeing the way a joke worked in the horseplay of a printing shop two centuries ago, we may be able to recapture that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/by-seeing-the-way-a-joke-worked-in-the-horseplay-of-a-printing-shop/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) > [The idea of a national digital library has been in the air for a long time, and there was a danger that some people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/the-idea-of-a-national-digital-library-has-been-in-the-air-for-a-long/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) > [The fact that I spend a lot of time in the 18th century doesn't mean I'm not concerned with the 21st.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/the-fact-that-i-spend-a-lot-of-time-in-the-18th-century-doesn-t-mean/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) > [We need librarians who can handle this tremendous jumble of information that is in cyberspace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-darnton/we-need-librarians-who-can-handle-this-tremendous-jumble-of/) [Robert Darnton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) [Explore all 30 Robert Darnton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-darnton/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. 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