Text: Burton R. Pollin, “ Typographical Variants and Errors,” The Collected Writings of Edgar Allan PoeVol. II: The Brevities (1985), pp. xl-xliii (This material is protected by copyright)


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[page xl, continued:]

TYPOGRAPHICAL VARIANTS AND ERRORS

The determination of typographical variants and errors is, in part, a matter of conjecture, not objective fact, since it involves considerations of the usage not only of Poe's day, when differing from that of ours,

but also that of his sources, in some cases classical or medieval or Renaissance, and in other languages, such as Latin, Greek, French, Italian, and Spanish. We ask: Was he always aware of an apparent error or did he preserve it for the sake of a jest or to “look authentic“? To compound the difficulty, he usually quotes source-texts without “exposing” them through quotation marks. Sometimes the early text of the source differs from our own conventions, but we cannot be certain since it may have been altered through the intermediation of a compendium like Disraeli's Curiosities of Literature. Poe sometimes deliberately modifies normative forms for emphasis or for idiosyncratic clarification (e.g., “arm-full” in M 97), producing variants that we cannot call “errors” although they are odd and superficially wrong. Often he dips into foreign tongues and uses incorrect accents or fails to use needed ones, sometimes vital to the meaning of a word. Hence all accents save those in Latin and Greek words are listed below.

Finally, there is the question of what is ascribable to Poe the author and what, to the anonymous compositor, and also, to the mediating editor with his own interventions into the text. It would be impossible to determine the degree of responsibility through the type and nature of the “error” or alteration from the source-texts from which an entry may be derived or from the first printing of Poe's review which he may be excerpting for one of the items of The Brevities. Wherever there is room for doubt about the nature of the “error,” my annotation discusses the matter. Least conjectural are omitted letters or necessary words, corrected throughout the text via a bracketed addition (M 79) and not listed here. A few untenable forms, such as “azula” (M 109) are left with a “sic” for annotation.

In general punctuation “errors” are ignored as “typos,” save when [page xli:] correction is demanded for logic or proper reading of a phrase in Engish [[English]] (as in M 79). No attempt in the text is made to differentiate between a clear author's error and a typesetter's error, although some of the latter can be seen (MM 32-33). The following lists show the “errors” or “irregularities” in the five texts concerned (there were none in the Chapter of Suggestions). The “typos” are printed before the slash, and the editorial corrections made in the text follow the slash. The locus is given (in column 1) in terms of the article in The Brevities, and where several occur in the same article, they are placed in their successive order.

PINAKIDIA

Intro Maniere / Manière

Intro “Bibliotheque / Bibliothèque

Intro Bons / Bonnes

Intro Memoirs” / Memoires”

Intro Sallengré / Sallengre

Intro “Mélanges Literaires” / “Melanges Littéraires”

Intro Pieces / Pieces

Intro Interressantes / Interessantes

Intro Harlicarnassus / Halicarnassus

Intro Castrucio / Castruccio

2 Odiorne / Idiorne

12 De vostri / De’ vostri

12 l’ esperenza / l’ esperienza

12 diretro / di retro

12 sensa / senza

20 fondez vous / fondez-vous

22 Hedelin / Hédelin

22 maniere / manière

28 Abbè / Abbé

30 “Alexandrics” / “Alexandreis”

30 Gualtier / Gaultier [but see the note]

31 Comedien / Comedien

31 traca / traça

31 carriere / carriere

31 maitre / maitre

31 Moliere / Molière

34 “Encyclopedic” / “Encyclopedic”

45 Menard / Menard

45 d‘esperer / d‘esperer

45 J‘attends / j‘attends

45 desirer / desirer

56 Swerhn / Schwerin

56 Rollenbagen / Rollenhagen

56 Froschmauseler / Froschmauseler

60 Syria.) / Syria).

Andre / Andre [2x]

Chenier / Chenier [2x]

pose / pose

l‘email / l‘email

bornee / bornee

paupiere / paupiere

“Bibliotheque / “Bibliotheque

Theatre / Theatre

Francois / Francois

prophecied / prophesied

Ode. 1.) / Ode, 1).

Voila / Voila

Lyttleton / Lyttelton

pere / pere

Menage / Menage

git / git

futlfut poete / poke cents / cent

90 J. D‘Israeli / I. D‘Israeli

94 [Greek text] / [Greek text]

94 [Greek text] / [Greek text]

97 Chimene / Chimene

98 medio / media

102 s‘en era / se n‘era

102 e era/ ed era

103 Maniere / Maniere

104 Trebiam / Trebiam

104 ingentem / ingentem [page xlii:]

105 [The errors in the Italian of Tasso derive from the text of Bouhours, and are left uncorrected save here: a / a; sui / sue; muoino / muoiono; et / ed. This applies also to M 138.]

105 Sulspicius / Sulpicius

105 Egina / Ægina

106 Francois / François

106 Bassompiere / Bassompiere (2x)

106 l‘arriere / l‘arrière

106 Je sors /je sors (2x)

107 naivete / naivete [in Poe's style]

109 Jesus / Jesus

111 regola / regola

111 silentio / silenzio

113 Quintillian / Quintilian

114 e / ed

116 Menippee / Menippee

118 paraitre / paraitre

118 especesl especes

118 d‘echasses / d‘echasses

118 tote / c6t6

119 tEdipuslCFdipus

126 git / g5t

127 bientot / bient6t

129 Crebillon / Crebillon

134 Urban VI./ Urban VI

135 Humphrey / Humphry

145 longas / longos

154 Je passerois /je passerois

154 fit / fit

160 Despreaux / Despreaux (2x)

165 Hebrex / Hebrxx

169 Masore / Masora

MARGINALIA

Intro consequence / consequence

Intro Quintillian / Quintilian

16 Siréne / Sirène

21 Sacred / “Sacred

35 jen / fen

39 Ramaseand / Ramaseana

44 Ænone / Ænone

46 Bolinbroke / Bolingbroke

46 Maniere / Manihe

53 one other / one or other

59 cents / cent

64 Menippée / Ménippée

75 ap-ared /appeared

79 “(Drowne's ... )” / (“Drowne's ... ”)

86 codices; / codices”;

92 Chimene / Chimi‘ne

94 Le Sueur / Le Seur

128 Busching / Busching

128 Cannabitch / Cannabich

128 Gutsmuth / Guts-Muths

138 For the errors in the Italian, see Pin 105 above.

138 Sulspicius / Sulpicius

139A Carry / Cary

153 condem / condemn

159 them?” I them?

162 regles / regles

173 Provencal / Provençal

173 Ayretos / Areytos

175 my monotone / by monotone

202 L‘Abbaté / L‘Abbate

211 Francaise / Française

219 is‘nt / isn‘t

235 Villiany / Villainy

239 so so / so

244 debauchd / d6bauche

250 convenue / convenu

265 [Greek text] / [Greek text]

266 Smirna I Smyrna

271 DeMeyer / De Meyer

273 Truiculo / Trinculo

278 Malapart / Malapart

279 Français / frampis

282 villify / vilify

291 niai-series / niaiseries [page xliii:]

SUPPLEMENTARY PINAKIDIA

2 bizzarrerie / bizarrerie

24 entire / entire.

32 Torquata / Torquato

32 Tasso / Tasso

32 talenta / talento

33 nil. / mil.

LITERARY SMALL TALK

5 la / la

5 MMS. / MS.

7. naivete / naiveté [in Poe's style]

FIFTY SUGGESTIONS

9 statutary / statutory

19 Tomas / Tomas

19 importo / importa

19 poco qui I poco que

22 Deformity of / Deformity or

23 questio / quxstio

28 Greely / Greeley

28 Nouvelle Heloise / Nouvelle Heloise

33 somethat / somewhat

33 vesification / versification

43 Spencer/ Spenser

43 gain point / gain a point

46 er lasst / es lasst

50 Massaccian / Masaccian

SUPPLEMENTARY MARGINALIA

4 Lammormuir / Lammermoor

4 Trelawney / Trelawny

12 parralleled / paralleled

13 naiveté / näiveté [in Poe's style]

19 Sartor-Resartus / Sartor Resartus

 


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Notes:

None.

 

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[S:0 - BRP2B, 1985] - Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore - Editions - The Collected Writings of Edgar Allan Poe (B. R. Pollin) (Typographical Variants and Errors)