Being Fair to the Hounds: The Function and Practice of Annotation, II

Abstract

Visual strategy begins on the first page. The most pretentious form of first page differentation is the “lead-in” quotation whereby the author prefaces the main body of the text with a quote from an esteemed scholar, a famous decision, or some other prestigious source. … The objective of the “lead-in” quote is to spark immediate attention with a titillating example of erudition, humor, or impertinence… Ideally the lead-in quote should be obscure—oriental sources are recommended—and should not have a substantive link to the subject matter of the article. … This technique can generate guilt among readers who suspect the game but lack the nerve to speak out.His books positively clank and groan under the weight of apparatus. Very good it is too.As indicated in the first part of this paper, I adopt a generous definition of “annotation” in this discussion. There the traditional forms, footnotes, and other textual apparatus were discussed. Here I want to concentrate on a number of forms of annotation that are not usually treated under that rubric. Included (in roughly the order in which they are likely to appear in a given work) are titles, tables of contents, prefaces, epigraphs, graphs and charts, maps, quoted matter, facsimiles, appendices, glossaries, bibliographies, and indexes. Each of these is an occasion—and an opportunity—to provide access to the text, to the author's own sources, or to the author's mind. While every work will not use all of these, certain of them (prefaces, tables of contents, bibliographies, and indexes) should be a part of every substantial scholarly study.