مکالمه ی اول

Conversation 1 - Restricted Access

Listen to a conversation between a student and a librarian.

Student: Hi, I need to get into special collections, in particular the British Literature. I was working with some of the William Blake books.

Librarian: Well, then you must know that access is restricted.

Student: Um, I was in a seminar with Professor Gray and she authorized access for us.

Librarian: Oh, if that’s the case, let me check. Right. Yeah. But it looks like that expired at the end of last semester

Student: But I really need to get back in there. See…I didn’t quite finish my project.

Librarian: Aha! The plot thickens. Well, it’s easy enough. Have Professor Gray authorize you again. You see, these editions are rare and shouldn’t be handled more than necessary. Can you work from later editions or microfilm?

Student: Not really. Actually my project…Well, it involves some annotations in the particular edition here. They haven’t been reproduced because they are really not part of the text. You know, they generally clean them up. They are quite hard to see.

Librarian: Well, often the characteristics of the manuscripts have been recorded. These types of extraneous markings might also be noted.

Student: I don’t think they are. They are very faint, and, well, I think I have a new angle on them. There was a study once a long time ago about these notes that everybody else has taken for granted without checking for themselves. I think there might have been a mistake in the past, that they were misread.

Librarian: So get Professor Gray…

Student: Uh…she’s away this semester I had to beg her to give me extra time on this project. I haven’t even received a grade in the class yet. And this class is a prerequisite for other classes in my major. I really need to see those books so I can finish this project and get back on course to graduate on time.

Librarian: Everybody has special circumstances.

Student: Two hours? One hour?I promise to be careful. just need to look at a few pages with a strong magnifying glass.

Librarian: Well, I can’t let you in without authorization from your professor. Can you get in touch with her somehow?

Student: Maybe she’d be checking her email. I really thought I would be able to straighten this out without her. You know, she did me a huge favor by giving me the extra time. I feel like I’m skating on thin ice with her.

Librarian: You know, you were lucky to have had permission to look at the books last semester. If we don’t maintain our policies, they’ll disintegrate.

Student: I know. Would an email from her or a phone call be good enough?

Librarian: Of course.