The public library is a product of modernity that follows in the wake of industrialization, urbanization, and popular movements, while at the same time the public library itself supports the building up and development of the modern. This article will examine the arrival of modernity and the prerequisites for the rise of public libraries, as well as some crucial aspects of the relationship between the public library and modernity. Furthermore, by means of contributions from recent significant sociologists, such as Anthony Giddens, Jean-Francois Lyotard, and Scott Lash, we shall discuss the implications of the development of late modern or postmodern society for the present public library.