| The goal of the dissertation is to analyse the relationship between bibliophily and personality from the perspective of book science. The phenomenon of bibliophily is investigated as a cultural manifestation and one of the ways of personal cultural acquisition. The subject of the research is a case of elite bibliophily exemplified by the personal library (acquired while in exile in the USA) of Kazys Varnelis, a known bibliophile and Lithuanian painter. The library is unique in the post-soviet Lithuania and therefore presents itself as a worthy object of current cultural research. Personality in creative work is treated phenomenologically as the personality of the creator, rather than analysed from the psychological or social perspective. The personality of the bibliophile Kazys Varnelis is revealed through its creative manifestation - the bibliophilic library. Other contributions of the dissertation include: more general analysis of the relationships among book science, library science, museology and culture studies; analytical comparison of public (or institutional) and private libraries in terms of their function and structure; and, introduction of several terms and concepts of western book culture into current Lithuanian usage. |
