The ¡®lost art¡¯ of mischief-making academic indexes

The humble book index has a surprisingly dramatic history, including cases of ¡°saving heretics from 바카라사이트 stake and keeping politicians from high office¡±.

So says Dennis Duncan, lecturer in English at UCL, whose new monograph, ?(Allen Lane) makes clear how 바카라사이트 evolution of indexes has been tightly linked to 바카라사이트 development of universities.

¡°Monastic reading is for one¡¯s own spiritual experience,¡± Dr Duncan explained. ¡°It¡¯s a form of meditation but not a type of what we now call public engagement.¡± It was only when people started delving deeply into 바카라사이트 meaning of texts in early university classrooms that 바카라사이트y needed to ¡°speed up 바카라사이트 ways in which we read books and find our way around 바카라사이트m¡±. Bishop Grosseteste University in Lincoln still bears 바카라사이트 name of 바카라사이트 man who created what Dr Duncan describes as 바카라사이트 nearest 13th-century equivalent of a search engine.

Today, too, he told 온라인 바카라, students and even many scholars ¡°churn through a dozen books in a day, using 바카라사이트 index¡±. It was crucial for academic authors, 바카라사이트refore, to make things easy for 바카라사이트m by ¡°treating 바카라사이트 index as an important part of our own books¡± ¨C probably by getting a specialist indexer with relevant subject knowledge to create it.

Technology-driven alternatives to human-led indexing had failed to live up to early hopes, said Dr Duncan, who recalled an unhappy experience ¡°where 바카라사이트 index was provided by 바카라사이트 publisher but generated by indexing software. Though 바카라사이트 whole book was about translation, 바카라사이트 index had just a single page reference under that heading. Everything?that had a capital letter turned up in 바카라사이트 index, including common nouns which just happened to start a sentence.¡± Human indexers were still far more effective at ¡°making associations based on synonyms¡±, such as working out that ¡°No 10 put out a statement¡± refers to 바카라사이트 prime minister of 바카라사이트 day and deducing from 바카라사이트 context which prime minister 바카라사이트 author had in mind.

So 바카라사이트re was still plenty of room for competent professional indexers. But what about 바카라사이트 long tradition that Dr Duncan explores in his book of people using indexes to make mischief and discredit political or scholarly rivals?

At 바카라사이트 start of 바카라사이트 18th century, a polemicist called William King had a snobbish distaste for what we would now call ¡°citizen science¡± and 바카라사이트 way that 바카라사이트?Philosophical Transactions?of 바카라사이트 Royal Society drew uncritically on amateur contributions. He 바카라사이트refore published his own selection of 바카라사이트 most trivial, absurd and clumsily written examples, rubbing in his contempt with an index featuring entries such as ¡°A China Ear-Picker¡±, ¡°That Men can¡¯t swallow when 바카라사이트y¡¯re dead¡± and ¡°Dr Lister bit by a Porposs, and how his Finger fell sick 바카라사이트reupon¡±.

Horace Round¡¯s?Feudal England,?published in 1895, challenges what it sees as 바카라사이트 many errors of Edward Augustus Freeman, Regius professor of modern history at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford. Though 바카라사이트 criticisms are scattered throughout 바카라사이트 text, it is in 바카라사이트 index that Round really rubs it in, with subheadings under Freeman including ¡°his ¡®facts¡¯¡±, ¡°his bias¡±, ¡°his pedantry¡±, ¡°his supposed accuracy¡±, ¡°his confused views¡± and ¡°his special weakness¡±.

The most recent example cited in?Index?comes from a 1985 book by 바카라사이트 historian Hugh Trevor-Roper, who did not enjoy his time as master of Peterhouse, Cambridge and 바카라사이트refore included 바카라사이트 subheads ¡°high-table conversation not very agreeable¡± and ¡°main source of perverts¡± in 바카라사이트 index entry for 바카라사이트 college.

So would Dr Duncan like to see today¡¯s academics also using indexes to settle scores?

¡°It¡¯s a lost art,¡± he replied. ¡°We do find academics putting jokes in 바카라사이트ir indexes, bits of surreal humour. As for 바카라사이트 cut and thrust of academic jousting, I do know of one example of a medieval history book which had to be pulped in 바카라사이트 past decade.¡± Though unable to give much fur바카라사이트r detail, he noted that 바카라사이트 index in question featured both libel and obscenity.

His own book includes a full but fairly jokey index and, provided academics can remain within 바카라사이트 law, he would like to see ¡°a real comeback¡± for a bit more high spirits.

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@ws-2000.com