57991
Current Talk '16 II / Re: Was There a Library at Collinwood?
« on: June 18, 2016, 07:40:51 PM »
A study and a library share some similarities but there are differences:
In the classic historical sense, the study of a house was reserved for use as the private office and reading room of a family father and the formal head of a household and that person would tend to the family business there. This is why it's referred to as Joshua's study in 1796, though its uses blur as subsequent generations come along. For instance, by the 1960s both Liz and Roger use the study to tend business, but other household members also use the room freely - but honestly that's probably mostly due to the fact that set space was limited in the DS studio.
On the other hand, a library tends to be a much larger room in a house and is a formal though generally public place set apart from the rest of the house to mostly store books (though it can also house other collectibles). The whole design, purpose, and function of a library is devoted to books first and foremost, with built in bookcases that prominently showcase the placement of books in the room. And in the absence of a formal music room, a portion of a library may also be a place to store a music collection and a room to go to enjoy listening to that music. (It's very interesting that Stokes refers to Liz having her own private library - but then Liz does refer to the fact that during those 18 years when she never left the estate, she did an awful lot of reading. )
In the classic historical sense, the study of a house was reserved for use as the private office and reading room of a family father and the formal head of a household and that person would tend to the family business there. This is why it's referred to as Joshua's study in 1796, though its uses blur as subsequent generations come along. For instance, by the 1960s both Liz and Roger use the study to tend business, but other household members also use the room freely - but honestly that's probably mostly due to the fact that set space was limited in the DS studio.
On the other hand, a library tends to be a much larger room in a house and is a formal though generally public place set apart from the rest of the house to mostly store books (though it can also house other collectibles). The whole design, purpose, and function of a library is devoted to books first and foremost, with built in bookcases that prominently showcase the placement of books in the room. And in the absence of a formal music room, a portion of a library may also be a place to store a music collection and a room to go to enjoy listening to that music. (It's very interesting that Stokes refers to Liz having her own private library - but then Liz does refer to the fact that during those 18 years when she never left the estate, she did an awful lot of reading. )