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and within each group arranged by order of title, ‘a’ and ‘the’ being ignored. Foreign-
language text is given for most literary quotations, or if it is felt that the quotation is
familiar in the language of origin.
Quotations from diaries, letters, and speeches are given in chronological order and
usually follow the literary or published works quoted, with the form for which the
author is best known taking precedence. Thus in the case of political figures,
speeches appear first, just as poetry quotations precede those in prose for poets,
and poetry quotations come second for an author regarded primarily as a novelist.
Quotations from secondary sources such as biographies and other writer’s works,
to which a date in the author’s lifetime can be assigned, are arranged in sequence
with diary entries, letters and speeches. Other quotations from secondary sources
and attributed quotations which cannot be so dated are arranged in alphabetical
order of quotation text.
Within the alphabetical sequence there are a number of special category entries,
such as Advertising slogans, Catchphrases, Film lines, Misquotations, and
Newspaper headlines and leaders. Quotations in these sections are arranged
alphabetically according to the first word of the quotation (ignoring ‘a’ and ‘the’), and
marked with a diamond symbol (
). The special categories contained in this model
are shown below:
Contextual information regarded as essential to a full appreciation of the quotation
precedes the text in an italicized note; information seen as providing useful
amplification follows in an italicized note. Each quotation is accompanied by a
bibliographical note of the source from which the quotation is taken. Titles of
published volumes (
Don Juan
by Byron and
David Copperfield
by Charles Dickens)
appear in italics; titles of short stories and poems not published as volumes in their
own right, and individual song titles, are given in plain type inside inverted commas
(‘Ode to a Nightingale’ by John Keats and ‘Both Sides Now’ by Joni Mitchell).
All numbers in source references are given in arabic, with the exception of lower-
case roman numerals denoting quotations from prefatory matter, whose page
numbering is separate from the main text. The numbering itself relates to the
beginning of the quotation, whether or not it runs on to another stanza or line in the
original. Where possible, chapter numbers have been offered for prose works.
A date in brackets indicates first publication in volume form of the work cited.
Unless otherwise stated, the dates thus offered are intended as chronological
guides only and do not necessarily indicate the date of the text cited; where the
latter is of significance, this has been stated. Where neither date of publication nor
of composition is known, an approximate date (e.g. ‘
c.1625
’) may indicate the likely
date of composition. Where there is a large discrepancy between date of
composition (or performance) and of publication, in most cases the former only has
been given (e.g. ‘written 1725’, ‘performed 1622’).
Spellings have been Anglicized and modernized except in those cases, such as
Burns or Chaucer, where this would have been inappropriate; capitalization has
been retained only for personifications; with rare exceptions, verse has been
aligned with the left hand margin. Italic type has been used for all foreign-language
originals.
Sub-headings (shown between
braces) have been used as a guide to novel
titles under Dickens, for the names of books under the Bible (arranged canonically,
not alphabetically), and for plays and poems under Shakespeare. Anonymous
quotations are grouped by language.
Cross-references ( ) to specific quotations are used to direct the user to another
related item. In each case a reference is given to an author’s name or to the title of
a special category entry. In some cases, the quotation may exist in two forms, or
Advertising slogans
Borrowed titles
Catchphrases
Closing lines
Epitaphs
Film lines
Film titles
Last words
Military sayings, slogans, and songs
Misquotations
Mottoes
Newspaper headlines and leaders
Official advice
Opening lines
Political slogans and songs
Prayers
Sayings
Songs, spirituals, and shanties
Telegrams
Toasts