--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Access to knowledge is the superb, the…" description: "\"“Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries stand..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/toni-morrison-271_civilization_access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-su_168207.jpg" --- # Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of… ![“Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries stand virtually alone in accomplishing this.” quote by Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/toni-morrison-271_civilization_access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-su_168207.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/toni-morrison-271_civilization_access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-su_168207.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43a/toni-morrison-271_civilization_access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-su_168207.jpg) > ““Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries stand virtually alone in accomplishing this.”” [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote emphasizes that providing unrestricted access to information is a hallmark of an advanced society, and free libraries uniquely fulfill this role. **In simple terms:** Free libraries give everyone the chance to learn and grow. Key Takeaway Support and protect free public libraries. Themes education access civilization knowledge libraries Mood hopeful determined Type inspirational advocacy When to use this quote - school research - community learning - personal development - policy advocacy Key Concepts information equity public good cultural development Questions to Reflect On - How can communities ensure libraries stay funded? - What role should digital resources play alongside physical books? A Different Perspective Even free libraries face funding cuts and digital competition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Institutions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institutions/) [Libraries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/libraries/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Missions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missions/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [Access to knowledge is the superb, the supreme act of truly great civilizations. Of all the institutions that purport to do this, free libraries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/access-to-knowledge-is-the-superb-the-supreme-act-of-truly-great-2/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I choose free libraries as the best agencies for improving the masses of the people, because they give nothing for nothing. They only help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/i-choose-free-libraries-as-the-best-agencies-for-improving-the-masses/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [All great civilizations, in their early stages, are based on success in war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-clark/all-great-civilizations-in-their-early-stages-are-based-on-success-in/) [Kenneth Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-clark/) > [Civilizations may clash, but they surely fall if robbed of light from above. It could come from the 1 percent or the 99%, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-forbes/civilizations-may-clash-but-they-surely-fall-if-robbed-of-light-from/) [James A. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-forbes/) > [This world has seen a great many civilizations. And many of them have survived for longer periods than ours up to the present. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thor-heyerdahl/this-world-has-seen-a-great-many-civilizations-and-many-of-them-have/) [Thor Heyerdahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thor-heyerdahl/) > [Nearly all great civilizations that perished did so because they had crystallized, because they were incapable of adapting themselves to new conditions, new methods,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-roosevelt/nearly-all-great-civilizations-that-perished-did-so-because-they-had/) [Eleanor Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-roosevelt/) > [“People, not commercial organizations or chains of command, are what make great civilizations work. Every civilization depends upon the quality of the individuals it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/people-not-commercial-organizations-or-chains-of-command-are-what/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [Historically, if you look at great civilizations, why do they crumble? Is it because of what's outside or because of something internal? It's always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phylicia-rashad/historically-if-you-look-at-great-civilizations-why-do-they-crumble/) [Phylicia Rashad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phylicia-rashad/) > [We are like ignorant shepherds living on a site where great civilizations once flourished. The shepherds play with the fragments that pop up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-bloom/we-are-like-ignorant-shepherds-living-on-a-site-where-great-2/) [Allan Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-bloom/) > [What you of the CHOAM directorate seem unable to understand is that you seldom find real loyalties in commerce. ... Men must want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/what-you-of-the-choam-directorate-seem-unable-to-understand-is-that/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [We are like ignorant shepherds living on a site where great civilizations once flourished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-bloom/we-are-like-ignorant-shepherds-living-on-a-site-where-great/) [Allan Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-bloom/) > [The average age of the world's great civilizations has been two hundred years. These nations have progressed through the following sequence: from bondage to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-fraser-tytler/the-average-age-of-the-world-s-great-civilizations-has-been-two/) [Alexander Fraser Tytler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-fraser-tytler/) > [“Therefore, good-bye Columbus? Balzac once suggested that all great fortunes are founded on a crime. So too all great civilizations. The European conquest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/therefore-good-bye-columbus-balzac-once-suggested-that-all-great/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [Until very recently, most knowledge was inaccessible to people who couldn't read text. But this is changing. The computer opens up other channels of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-papert/until-very-recently-most-knowledge-was-inaccessible-to-people-who/) [Seymour Papert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-papert/) > [“We use other people's brains to navigate the world: to acquire skills and practices, and to access knowledge systems of long-dead strangers. We call…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-earls/we-use-other-people-s-brains-to-navigate-the-world-to-acquire-skills/) Mark Earls ## More by Toni Morrison > [Perhaps that's what all human relationships boiled down to: Would you save my life? or would you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/perhaps-that-s-what-all-human-relationships-boiled-down-to-would-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [In times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/in-times-of-dread-artists-must-never-choose-to-remain-silent/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Not know it was hard;knowing it was harder”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/not-know-it-was-hard-knowing-it-was-harder/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Didn’t everything on God’s earth have or acquire defense?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/didn-t-everything-on-god-s-earth-have-or-acquire-defense/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You looked at them and wondered why the were so ugly; you looked closely and could not find the source. Then you realized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-looked-at-them-and-wondered-why-the-were-so-ugly-you-looked/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [All she saw, down in the cellar well beneath the stoop, was a light yellow feather with a tip of green. And she had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/all-she-saw-down-in-the-cellar-well-beneath-the-stoop-was-a-light/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [For me, Art is the restoration of order. It may discuss all sort of terrible things, but there must be satisfaction at the end.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/for-me-art-is-the-restoration-of-order-it-may-discuss-all-sort-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“To Sethe, the future was a matter of keeping the past at bay”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/to-sethe-the-future-was-a-matter-of-keeping-the-past-at-bay/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Hate does that. Burns off everything but itself, so whatever your grievance is, your face looks just like your enemy's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/hate-does-that-burns-off-everything-but-itself-so-whatever-your/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You know how a star is supposed to twinkle? We say twinkle because that is how it looks, but when a star feels itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-know-how-a-star-is-supposed-to-twinkle-we-say-twinkle-because/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-bad-luck-in-the-world-but-whitefolks/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [My father saw two black men lynched on his street in Cartersville, as a child. And I think seeing two black businessmen - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/my-father-saw-two-black-men-lynched-on-his-street-in-cartersville-as/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“She was fierce in the presence of death, heroic even, as she was at no other time. Its threat gave her direction, clarity, audacity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/she-was-fierce-in-the-presence-of-death-heroic-even-as-she-was-at-no/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) [Explore all 774 Toni Morrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## More Civilization quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. Women will bring this into politics. Home, sweet home, is as powerful on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-ellen-foster/sentiment-is-the-mightiest-force-in-civilization-not-sentimentality/) [Judith Ellen Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-ellen-foster/) > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. Each civilization dies from indifference toward the unique values which created it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/violence-is-not-necessary-to-destroy-a-civilization-each-civilization/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“The voice in the head that never stops speaking becomes a civilization that is obsessed with form and therefore knows nothing of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-voice-in-the-head-that-never-stops-speaking-becomes-a/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Whenever we touch nature we get clean. People who have got dirty through too much civilization take a walk in the woods, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/whenever-we-touch-nature-we-get-clean-people-who-have-got-dirty/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has done nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/the-invention-of-gunpowder-and-the-constant-improvement-of-firearms/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“The mission is, not to replace old world mindlessness with new world mindlessness, but to put an end to all forms of brainless authoritarianism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-mission-is-not-to-replace-old-world-mindlessness-with-new-world/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. 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