--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We collect books in the belief that we…" description: "\"We collect books in the belief that we are preserving them when in fact it is the books that preserve their collector.\" — Walter Benjamin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d7/walter-benjamin-1723_belief_we-collect-books-in-the-belief-that-we-a_1462704.jpg" --- # We collect books in the belief that we are preserving them… ![“We collect books in the belief that we are preserving them when in fact it is the books that preserve their collector.” quote by Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d7/walter-benjamin-1723_belief_we-collect-books-in-the-belief-that-we-a_1462704.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d7/walter-benjamin-1723_belief_we-collect-books-in-the-belief-that-we-a_1462704.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d7/walter-benjamin-1723_belief_we-collect-books-in-the-belief-that-we-a_1462704.jpg) > “We collect books in the belief that we are preserving them when in fact it is the books that preserve their collector.” [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Books act as vessels that retain the memories and identities of their readers. **In simple terms:** Books keep their owners alive. Key Takeaway Read and cherish books. Themes memory preservation literature Mood reflective nostalgic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - library curation - personal collections - archival work - digital preservation Key Concepts cultural continuity personal identity Questions to Reflect On - What does a book mean to you? - How can we protect literary heritage? A Different Perspective Physical books may degrade over time. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Belief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/belief/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Books Preserve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books-preserve-2528125/) [Collect Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collect-books-808725/) [Collectors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collectors/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Preserve Collector](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preserve-collector-5288612/) [Preserves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preserves/) [Preserving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preserving/) [Preserving Fact](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preserving-fact-5288613/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I was born, I think, with the desire to make beautiful books — brave books that would preserve the glories of the Dream untarnished,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-branch-cabell/i-was-born-i-think-with-the-desire-to-make-beautiful-books-brave/) [James Branch Cabell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-branch-cabell/) > [Conservation is key to preserving many of the worlds natural beauty spots, so do your best to help by keeping to designated footpaths and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheherazade-goldsmith/conservation-is-key-to-preserving-many-of-the-worlds-natural-beauty/) [Sheherazade Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheherazade-goldsmith/) > [“I have no feeling of guilt regarding the books I have not read and perhaps will never read; I know that my books have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/i-have-no-feeling-of-guilt-regarding-the-books-i-have-not-read-and/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [I collect books, and I love libraries. I love bookstores. And to me meeting a writer is important. And when I saw a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/i-collect-books-and-i-love-libraries-i-love-bookstores-and-to-me/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) > [“Collect books, even if you don't plan on reading them right away. Nothing is more important than an unread library.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-waters/collect-books-even-if-you-don-t-plan-on-reading-them-right-away-2/) [John Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-waters/) > [I know not how it is, but during a voyage I collect books as a ship does barnacles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/i-know-not-how-it-is-but-during-a-voyage-i-collect-books-as-a-ship/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [I don't collect books just because other people collect them, and I'm not going to have books in my collection if I think it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-prince/i-don-t-collect-books-just-because-other-people-collect-them-and-i-m/) [Richard Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-prince/) > [Collect books, even if you don't plan on reading them right away. Filmmaker John Waters has said, "Nothing is more important than an unread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/collect-books-even-if-you-don-t-plan-on-reading-them-right-away/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Professors of literature collect books the way a ship collects barnacles, without seeming effort.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/professors-of-literature-collect-books-the-way-a-ship-collects/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Always be reading. Go to the library. There’s magic in being surrounded by books. Get lost in the stacks. Read bibliographies. It’s not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/always-be-reading-go-to-the-library-there-s-magic-in-being-surrounded/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [I collect books, primarily first-edition 20th-century fiction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-larroquette/i-collect-books-primarily-first-edition-20th-century-fiction/) [John Larroquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-larroquette/) > [As a rule people don't collect books; they let books collect themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/as-a-rule-people-don-t-collect-books-they-let-books-collect-themselves/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [“People who collect books, and categorize them by Roy G. Biv instead of alphabetically, are displaying the fact that their books aren't meant to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/people-who-collect-books-and-categorize-them-by-roy-g-biv-instead-of/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [I don't really collect books. I tend to lose interest in them the minute I've read them, so most of the books I've read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/i-don-t-really-collect-books-i-tend-to-lose-interest-in-them-the/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [As a child, I felt that books were holy objects, to be caressed, rapturously sniffed, and devotedly provided for. I gave my life to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-sendak/as-a-child-i-felt-that-books-were-holy-objects-to-be-caressed/) [Maurice Sendak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-sendak/) ## More by Walter Benjamin > [All efforts to render politics aesthetic culminate in one thing: war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/all-efforts-to-render-politics-aesthetic-culminate-in-one-thing-war/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [“The construction of life is at present in the power of facts far more than of convictions, and of such facts as have scarcely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/the-construction-of-life-is-at-present-in-the-power-of-facts-far-more/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [“It should be pointed out that certain correlative concepts retain their meaning, and possibly their foremost significance, if they are referred exclusively to man.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/it-should-be-pointed-out-that-certain-correlative-concepts-retain/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [Allegories are, in the realm of thought, what ruins are in the realm of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/allegories-are-in-the-realm-of-thought-what-ruins-are-in-the-realm-of/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [Things are only mannequins and even the great world-historical events are only costumes beneath which they exchange glances with nothingness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/things-are-only-mannequins-and-even-the-great-world-historical-events/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [“to great writers, finished works weigh lighter than those fragments on which they labor their entire lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/to-great-writers-finished-works-weigh-lighter-than-those-fragments-on/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [All religions have honored the beggar. For he proves that in a matter at the same time as prosaic and holy, banal and regenerative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/all-religions-have-honored-the-beggar-for-he-proves-that-in-a-matter/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [The camera introduces us to unconscious optics as does psychoanalysis to unconscious impulses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/the-camera-introduces-us-to-unconscious-optics-as-does-psychoanalysis/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [During long periods of history, the mode of human sense perception changes with humanity’s entire mode of existence. The manner in which human sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/during-long-periods-of-history-the-mode-of-human-sense-perception/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [Melancholy betrays the world for the sake of knowledge. But in its tenacious self-absorption it embraces dead objects in its contemplation, in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/melancholy-betrays-the-world-for-the-sake-of-knowledge-but-in-its/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [For what is the program of the bourgeois parties? A bad poem on springtime, filled to bursting with metaphors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/for-what-is-the-program-of-the-bourgeois-parties-a-bad-poem-on/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [There was the pedestrian who wedged himself into the crowd, but there was also the flneur who demanded elbow room and was unwilling to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/there-was-the-pedestrian-who-wedged-himself-into-the-crowd-but-there/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [The power of a text is different when it is read from when it is copied out. Only the copied text thus commands the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/the-power-of-a-text-is-different-when-it-is-read-from-when-it-is/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [Quotations in my work are like wayside robbers who leap out armed and relieve the stroller of his conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/quotations-in-my-work-are-like-wayside-robbers-who-leap-out-armed-and/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) > [Each morning the day lies like a fresh shirt on our bed; this incomparably fine, incomparably tightly woven tissue of pure prediction fits us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-benjamin/each-morning-the-day-lies-like-a-fresh-shirt-on-our-bed-this/) [Walter Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) [Explore all 207 Walter Benjamin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-benjamin/) ## More Belief quotes > [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/) [Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/) > [“MIND & GRIND Self-belief and hard work can propel you past more talented peers”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamil-ali/mind-grind-self-belief-and-hard-work-can-propel-you-past-more/) [Kamil Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamil-ali/) > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/) [Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/) > [“Here is a fundamental difference between the man of faith and the man of unbelief. The unbeliever is 'of the world', judges everything by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-w-pink/here-is-a-fundamental-difference-between-the-man-of-faith-and-the-man/) [Arthur W. Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-w-pink/) > [“She herself vacillated when it came to belief. She did not particularly believe in God. Or, rather, she didn't believe in a particular God.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-goodman/she-herself-vacillated-when-it-came-to-belief-she-did-not/) [Allegra Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-goodman/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“Rigid traditions capture souls prisons of spiritual thought man’s religion has captured a god grown too small and very weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle/rigid-traditions-capture-souls-prisons-of-spiritual-thought-man-s/) [David W Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle/) > [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/) [Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/) > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [In business, as in politics, it is never easy to go against the beliefs and attitudes held by the majority. The businessman who moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-paul-getty/in-business-as-in-politics-it-is-never-easy-to-go-against-the-beliefs/) [J. Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/) > [There's no greatest moment in the arts. It's a life; it's a continuity thing. You can't have a great moment because it's spiritual. 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