phrase
General Slang
the library is open
· phrase · drag
The call that announces it's time to read — i.e. to start tearing each other apart with wit.
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Definitions
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The opening bell for a reading session — when the clever, cutting insults are about to fly. 'Library' is the metaphorical place where you read people, since reading is the art of the well-aimed verbal takedown. On RuPaul's Drag Race, Ru declares the library open before the queens read each other to filth, then asks 'Because reading is what?' — answer: 'Fundamental!'. The whole bit is lifted from the reading tradition immortalised in Paris Is Burning.
“Ru clocked everyone's outfits, smiled, and said 'the library is open' — and it was over for half the cast.”
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the library is open In A Sentence
Ru clocked everyone's outfits, smiled, and said 'the library is open' — and it was over for half the cast.
Origin & Usage
Drag/ballroom reading culture seen in Paris Is Burning; cemented in the mainstream by RuPaul's Drag Race, where it cues the 'Reading Is Fundamental' mini-challenge.
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