In Chapter 3 she writes: “Muted books take on a totemic significance. Because we can’t ‘read’ a book object or book sculpture, we see the idea of the book, a metaphor that has penetrated our culture so deeply it informs the language we use to describe ourselves.”

This made me realize how much the book is more than just paper and ink. Even when we strip away the actual text, the shape and idea of a book still carry symbolic meaning.

Borsuk connects this to how deeply the book is embedded in culture and language. I never thought about how many expressions in English (and in German, too) are built on the metaphor of the book. For example, someone can be “an open book,” or we might “judge a book by its cover.” These phrases have nothing to do with literal books, but they show how strong the idea of the book is in shaping how we talk about people and life.

The phrase “totemic significance” stood out to me as well. I learned a totem is something that represents a belief system or community identity, and thinking of the book in this way is powerful. It means that books are not only tools for reading but also cultural symbols we treat almost with reverence. I thought about how in my home, even when we didn’t read certain books anymore, we still kept them on the shelf, as if just having them there made the room feel more intellectual or meaningful.

For me, this passage helped to see that books work on two levels at once. They are objects you can read, but also symbols you can’t escape. Even in an age of screens and e-books, the metaphor of the book is still shaping how we understand knowledge, identity, and even morality.