Letters to the Editor: Shhhh... it's still a library!
By: Katie McLain
Issue date: 4/16/09 Section: Opinion
At the beginning of the semester, The Stentor published a letter to the editor regarding the noise level in the library. With finals approaching and the library becoming increasingly crowded, I decided to send in a follow-up to that first letter.
We're approaching the last few weeks of the semester, and I have seen many of my fellow students taking shelter in the library for hours at a time, surrounded by books, binders, and several empty cups of coffee. I can certainly sympathize.
I have four lengthy papers to finish by semester's end in addition to the rest of my daily homework, and the library has been my second home since the end of spring break. Lately, I've been hiding out in the basement, mainly because it's easier to find a table and because it's quieter than the other floors. Or at least it's supposed to be.
The last letter to the editor said it best: Ladies and gentlemen, we are adults, and it is high time we started acting like it. It shouldn't be difficult to find a quiet spot in the library, yet I have been driven out on multiple occasions by people who insist on using it as a place to carry on extended conversations. I use my music to eliminate distractions while I'm studying, but even that has failed to drown out the giggling and the whispering in the basement.
Let's try a little common courtesy, shall we? If you're going to talk with the person sitting next to you, go outside, go to your room, go anywhere else but the library. This is not the place to show your friend the hysterical video you found on YouTube, nor is this the place to giggle over the newest pictures from last weekend. I'd like to think that college students are capable of a little more restraint, but apparently I'm wrong.
Do I sound a little aggravated? A little too uptight, perhaps? Maybe so. Maybe I'm taking this a little too seriously. But after finding myself unable to concentrate for the seventeenth time because of inconsiderate people, my patience has worn remarkably thin.
All I ask for is a little respect. Think about those of us who are surrounded by mountains of books and take your conversations elsewhere.
Remember: there are an infinite number of places on campus to chat with a friend and very few places to enjoy a bit of quiet. Please, let us study in peace. I don't think it's too much to ask for.
We're approaching the last few weeks of the semester, and I have seen many of my fellow students taking shelter in the library for hours at a time, surrounded by books, binders, and several empty cups of coffee. I can certainly sympathize.
I have four lengthy papers to finish by semester's end in addition to the rest of my daily homework, and the library has been my second home since the end of spring break. Lately, I've been hiding out in the basement, mainly because it's easier to find a table and because it's quieter than the other floors. Or at least it's supposed to be.
The last letter to the editor said it best: Ladies and gentlemen, we are adults, and it is high time we started acting like it. It shouldn't be difficult to find a quiet spot in the library, yet I have been driven out on multiple occasions by people who insist on using it as a place to carry on extended conversations. I use my music to eliminate distractions while I'm studying, but even that has failed to drown out the giggling and the whispering in the basement.
Let's try a little common courtesy, shall we? If you're going to talk with the person sitting next to you, go outside, go to your room, go anywhere else but the library. This is not the place to show your friend the hysterical video you found on YouTube, nor is this the place to giggle over the newest pictures from last weekend. I'd like to think that college students are capable of a little more restraint, but apparently I'm wrong.
Do I sound a little aggravated? A little too uptight, perhaps? Maybe so. Maybe I'm taking this a little too seriously. But after finding myself unable to concentrate for the seventeenth time because of inconsiderate people, my patience has worn remarkably thin.
All I ask for is a little respect. Think about those of us who are surrounded by mountains of books and take your conversations elsewhere.
Remember: there are an infinite number of places on campus to chat with a friend and very few places to enjoy a bit of quiet. Please, let us study in peace. I don't think it's too much to ask for.
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