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Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)


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TITLE:

The Virtue of Reference

AUTHOR(S):
Wayne Bivens-Tatum, Princeton University

DOCUMENT TYPE: Article

ABSTRACT:
Reference work is neither an art nor a science. Its motivating virtue is an intellectual virtue, but the one most difficult to teach: what Aristotle called phronesis, which is usually translated as prudence or practical wisdom. Reference is a phronetic activity. The concept of "virtue ethics," and Aristotle's views on virtue are applied to library reference, and applied to being a reference librarian.