Berwick Sayers on Annotation I

A  pamphlet for librarians that is still relevant in the days of the web. People still need to know how to annotate information in catalogues. As Berwick Sayers says, annotation is elucidation - but he is down on the annotator who adds information needlessly. A real offender is a cataloguer who in noting the plot of a novel gives away the whole story.  Internet booksellers  break B-S's rules every day. For example, if the information is obviously there already do not annotate-- we do not need to know that Wood's British Trees is 'a handbook to trees growing in Great Britain' or Harrison's The Boys of Wynport College is a 'a schoolboy story.'

He also points out a fault of which many cataloguer is now guilty - giving irrelevant details about the author: for example, if a man writes a book on The Fertilisation of Soils it is of no consequence to the reader to know that "the author was Chancellor of the Exchequer." There are of course different rules for sellers; a librarian is not trying to get someone to buy the book. B-S's rules however apply to the world of Wikipedia where they are often broken - giving opinions, recommendations, irrelevance, shallow research and, conversely, faults that '..arise from too great a devotion to this work. The introduction into catalogues of fine writing or elaborate language is an abuse greatly to be deprecated.'

In the case of undesirable books B-S notes that drawing attention to them by 'danger notes' is self-defeating - "to say that a book is 'not written for girls' schools' must really be frightfully tantalising to any normally built schoolgirl."  To be continued with info on the life and writings of the great librarian-- a book on card indexes, mountaineering, songs, poems and a history of his borough Croydon..

1.  So rapid is the output of the modern book press, and so swift are the strides that discoveries in all fields of science and art are making, that the current truths of one hour may very well be the exploded theories of the next. Librarians perhaps more than any people are conscious of the fluctuating state of knowledge; and the knowledge that is preserved in books demands constant watching. Moreover, this is a day of specialisation, and he who would read to profit must read in a well-defined area, with a deafly understood object in view. Or again, having no object in view or discerning it only dimly, he must be led to recognise that object, so that he may duly fall into his proper mental area. These are the wider reasons for that part of cataloguing practice which we call annotation. They give rise to systematic catalogues, to classified collections of books, some of which are more or less self-explanatory and prevent the enquirer from wandering into irrelevant fields. But in addition they have produced a race of librarians who hold that title entries in catalogues, however good, are often misleading and require to be explained. And further, that readers may often be induced to read seemingly uninviting books if the nature of their contents is only more clearly defined to them than it is by the two or three often colourless catchwords of the rifle. Our opening premises suggest a large field of work for the annotator, a close acquaintance with current knowledge as revealed in books, and a power of expressing that knowledge in brief descriptions of the books in order to bring them to the notice of the readers they concern.

2.  Before we can decide on what is the legitimate use of annotation, we must obtain a working definition of annotation. There is a great difference of opinion in this country and America as to what are its purposes. Although it is by no means universal, the prevalent American idea of annotation is appraisal, and we have three terms often confused which in their nature are quite distinct–annotation, evaluation, and appraisal. I should be inclined to substitute for annotation another word, elucidation, and say that annotation is a covering name for all three words. In Great Britain, generally speaking, annotation is confined to elucidation, although the guides and handbooks issued by Dr. E. A. Baker form a notable exception in favour of evaluation. First then we may survey the current theories in tabulated order:

(a) "Criticism should be avoided in the writing of annotations ; but the use of appreciative adjectives like 'good,' 'complete,' 'exhaustive,' is not necessarily to be considered a transgression of this rule.”–J. D. Brown.
(b) "To make an accurate and compendious statement as to the subject, scope, manner, qualifications of the author, and general suitability of the book for this or that reader.”–E. A. Baker.
(c) "An abstract of the character and individuality of the book catalogued . . . excluding judgment."–E. A. Savage.
(d) "Annotation deals with matters of fact,not with matters of opinion :the true function of the annotator is elucidationCriticism, either direct or implied, is inadmissible.”–Sayers and Stewart.

3.  The modern publishers use a form of annotation which they call a "blurb," a delightful sobriquet which covers a type of annotation written solely to persuade buyers. The psychology of such notes is crude in the eyes of the librarian, but when his encounters with so many of them almost persuade him that he is living in a world of masterpieces, he may well take note of the fact, since such persuasion is their purpose. If he is moved by them, what may be their effect on readers not case-hardened by use against their blandishments ? This may be used as an argument in favour of annotation which praises or condemns, but the danger of such annotation lies in the natural, simple truth that librarians cannot be universal specialists, and their opinions on most subjects must be worth just nothing. Why express them ? Opinion and safety both seem balanced in annotation, or elucidation. We may therefore define annotation as A descriptive extension of the title-page of a book in which the qualifications of the author, and the scope, purpose and place of the book are indicated.

4.  To commence with the first part of our definition, the extension of the title-page, a single example will be sufficient to exhibit the insufficiency of many rifles to convey information about the character of the book. Ruskin's Unto This Last is a discussion of the elements of political economy and trading : the rifle, however, is a quotation from one of the Gospel parables, and when explained indicates that Ruskin built his system of labour and wages upon the principle laid down in that parable. There is clearly need for a descriptive addition to the title of this book.