History of the Book: Syllabus LIS 658 (Spring 2011) 1-21-11
Palmer School of Library and Information Science, Long Island University Instructor: Dr. Deirdre C. Stam Office hours at Bobst Library NYU: Thursdays.12-4 and after class. Many other times by appointment. Email is best; telephone messages do not get checked every day. Class location: Bobst Library, 2nd floor (Avery Fisher Center), 4:30-6:20 p.m. Office address: Bobst Library Room 707, NYU, 70 Washington Square South, New York NY 10012 Contact information: NYC Tel.: 212-998-2681; FAX 212-995-4072; [email protected] (Note that the main office for the Palmer School is LIU, 720 Northern Blvd., Brookville NY, 11548-1300, Tel. 516-299-2866, [email protected] ).
Course description (from the Palmer School catalog) LIS 658 History of the Book. Students in this course become acquainted with recognized icons of the western book and with theoretical approaches to interpreting “the book” in its broadest sense. They gain first-hand experience with the intellectual tools of the book historian‟s trade including vocabulary, bibliography in its various manifestations, sources, and major collections and related bibliographic institutions. (Technical skill and professional issues pertaining to the curation of rare books and special collections are taught in Rare Book and Special Collections Librarianship, LIS 713.) Prerequisite: LIS 510 or LIS 511. 3 credits.
Objectives and method This course is designed primarily for students who intend to work in special collections that are part of libraries, museums, and historical societies; and in the book trade. While there is a theoretical "book history" component to the course, the emphasis is largely upon the physical book/object itself. Minor emphasis is given to textual transmission and edition history. Class sessions will consist of lectures, individual and group exercises, presentations by visiting experts, and audiovisual materials.
Students will become familiar with recognized icons of the western “book” and with some major theoretical approaches to interpreting “the book” in its broadest sense. They will also become acquainted with the intellectual tools of the book historian‟s trade including vocabulary, bibliography (both enumerative and descriptive), information sources, major collections, and bibliophilic institutions. By the conclusion of the course, students will be able to communicate in professional terms about bookish matters with experts in book history, with users of special collections, and with a public audience.
More specific information on course outcomes can be found below under Assignment, grading, and expectations.
1 Students are encouraged to take advantage of the many book history riches of the New York City area. In addition to work on assignments that require visits to rare book collections, students should expect to visit collections and events on their own, and to share with the class information about their experiences and about future events. The class distribution list is useful for sharing such information.
Meeting times and place Class meetings are on Thursdays, 4:30-6:20 p.m., January 20 through May 5. East Room of Bobst Library, 2nd Floor. Note that classes in the Manhattan program are almost never cancelled on account of weather. The rule of thumb is that when the subways run, our classes meet. All LIU campuses make separate decisions based on weather conditions. C.W. Post cancellations do not affect Palmer‟s Bobst Library classes. Check with the Palmer School, Bobst Library office, at 212-998-2680 if questions arise.
Commitment of students' time The State of New York requires that syllabi indicate an estimate of the time that students should expect to spend on a course. The average is about 120-150 hours. For this course, students will spend 2 hours weekly in class and can expect to spend an average of about 6 hours a week outside class working on assignments for this course and visiting local collections and dealers, attending bookish events, and using libraries and other information sources.
Assignments, grading and expectations Assignments are intended to reinforce material covered in class and to provide the instructor with ongoing feedback regarding progress in student learning. All assignments will require focused, critical thinking, but in almost all cases the actual exercise will be brief. To determine students' initial familiarity with the material, a diagnostic quiz will be given during the first class period. No grade. To encourage interaction with persons in the field and to provide the instructor with a writing sample early in the course, students will turn in a one-page report of their experience at an event related to rare books/special collections. Due on Feb. 3. No grade, but required. To determine students' ability to use bibliography, reference works, and vocabulary, the first part (of three) assignments relating to the "biography of a book [copy]" will be due on Feb. 10. 25% To determine students' ability to apply descriptive bibliography and related techniques to a specific copy of a work, the second part (of three) assignments relating to the "biography of a book [copy-specific data]" will be due on Mar. 24 25% To test students' ability to recognize visual images of iconic printed works, a brief, in-class (matching) quiz will be given on Apr. 7. (The answers will be distributed the session before the quiz.) 8%
2 To test students' familiarity with the descriptive terms of book history, a brief, in-class (matching) quiz will be given on terms from Carter's ABC on Apr. 14. 8% To determine students' understanding of theory, a comparison of the approaches of three theorists will be due on Apr. 21. 8% To determine students' ability to relate a text to its social and intellectual context, the third part (of three) assignments relating to the "biography of a book [copy]" will be due on May 5. 25% To measure progress in student learning, a quiz corresponding to the initial quiz will be given on the last day of class. No grade. 1% for participation. There will be no final examination.
All work should be turned in on time since classroom activity is built upon assignments. When problems arise in meeting deadlines, students should consult with the instructor well before the assignment is due. Students may turn in one late paper/assignment without negatively affecting their grade. Beyond that, points will be deducted for lateness. Students would be well advised not “use up” their late-paper credit early in the semester.
Success in this course will depend upon attending class, participating helpfully in classroom exercises, submitting all work on time, following the directions on assignment sheets, and turning in work that meets scholarly standards. (Yes, presentation matters, just as it would on the job in a special collections unit.)
Required texts Nicole Howard, The Book; The Life Story of a Technology (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 2009). Abbreviated in the schedule as "Howard."
John Carter, ABC of Book Collecting. Any recent edition. Recommended is the 7th edition (New Castle, DE: Oak Knoll Press, 1998, 1995) ISBN: 1884718051. This text is also online as a pdf at www.ilab.org/images/abcforbookcollectors.pdf. Also at www.ilab.org/download.php?object=documentation&id=29
Amazon.com reports the paperback as out of print, but copies can be gotten in the used book market. Also Oak Knoll may still have copies (www.oakknoll.com/). The gigantic Strand Bookstore on Broadway and 12th Street may have copies of the foregoing, either new or used. (In any case, the Strand is a delight to visit.)
Extensive bibliographies/resource lists of printed and electronic sources will be made available during the term in hard copy and in online form.
Some videos seen in class can be viewed individually at NYU. See me about making this arrangement.
Some other books – mostly in paperback -- that you may wish to purchase for general use
3 [Check on abe.com and similar consolidator sites for "gently used" copies.]
Warren Chappell and Robert Bringhurst, A Short History of the Printed Word, 2nd edition revised and updated (Point Roberts WA and Vancouver BC: Hartley & Marks, 1999). (Note: the first edition is not adequate.)
David Finkelstein and Alistaire McCleery, The Book History Reader (London and New York: Routledge, 2002).
David Finkelstein and Alistair McCleery, An Introduction to Book History (New York and London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis, 2005).
Geoffrey Ashall Glaister, Encyclopedia of the Book, 2nd ed. (New Castle DE and London: Oak Knoll Press and The British Library, 1996). One-volume, in paper; highly recommended. Extensive bibliography.
Frederick G. Kilgour, Evolution of the Book (New York, Oxford. University Press, 1998).
H. Steinberg, Five Hundred Years of Printing. Strongly recommended is the new and expanded edition edited by John Trevitt (London & New Castle, Delaware Oak Knoll Press & The British Library, 2001).
William Strunk, Jr., and E. B. White, The Elements of Style. Any edition. (New York and London: Macmillan and Collier MacMillan, 1979 or any later date).
Ronald J. Zboray and Mary Saracino Zboray, A Handbook for the Study of Book History in the United States (Washington DC: Library of Congress Center for the Book, 2000). Although the text lacks specificity, the bibliography is extensive and useful. More reliable on this subject is: G. Thomas Tanselle, Guide to the Study of United States Imprints (Cambridge MA: Harvard Univ. Press, 1971).
Too expensive for private collections but utterly essential to know about:
Bibliography of American Literature, Compiled by Jacob Blanck and completed by Michael Winship and Virginia L. Smyers, the Bibliography of American Literature, 9 vols. (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1955-99). [Available in paper in Bobst's Fales Collection; also available online.]
The Oxford Companion to the Book, eds. M. F. Suarez and H. R. Woudhuysen (Oxford UK: Oxford University Press, c. 2010). 2 Vols.
Guide to Reference published in 2008 as the online successor to Guide to Reference Books, is a selective guide to the best print and online reference sources. 16,000 entries, organized by subject. It is now a subscription database, published by the American Library Association, and is updated on an ongoing basis. Known over the years in print form by its various editors as “Mudge,” “Winchell,” and “Sheehy,” the 11th [print] edition was edited by Robert Balay.
4 [Online comprehensive bibliography of many aspects of book history]: G. Thomas Tanselle, “Introduction to Bibliography; Seminar syllabus” [use the table of contents to navigate this 300+-page document] http://www.rarebookschool.org/tanselle/syl-B- complete.090302.pdf
See also various national "histories of the book" projects. Most have titles such as History of the Book in … [Canada, America, etc.]. Many have been issued in recent years; some are in process. Publishers vary.
And journals/serials: The Book Collector, Gazette of the Grolier Club of New York, Book History, Libraries and Culture (undergoes minor name changes), RBM (has undergone name changes; from the Rare Book and Ms. Section of ACRL), Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America, and Printing History (from the American Printing History Association).
Lists of additional sources, in both paper and electronic forms, will be distributed from time to time through the semester.
Websites with links on the history of the book & related topics Americana Exchange (with auction records, bibliographies, dealers' catalogues) http://www.americanaexchange.com/
Bibliographical Society of America www.bibsocamer.org/links.htm
Book Arts Web www.philobiblon.com/
Cornell University Library – many book history and preservation pages
Digital Scriptorium (medieval and renaissance manuscripts) www.scriptorium.columbia.edu
History of Books and Printing: A Research Guide http://www.nypl.org/research/chss/grd/resguides/bookhist/
International League of Antiquarian Booksellers www.ilab.org/services/links.php
Oak Knoll (book dealer for books about books) www.oakknoll.com
PHILOBIBLON (mainly book arts and bindings; many links) http://www.philobiblon.com/
Rare Book School www.rarebookschool.org/links/
Smithsonian Institutions list of online exhibitions in various SIL locations www.sil.si.edu/SILPublications/online-exhibitions/
5 Other useful online sources of a general nature
Online antiquarian bookselling sites such as www.abe.com, www.alibris.com, www.biblio.com, www.powells.com; Archives Grid (a subscription service from OCLC available from NYU onsite but not LIU online), Auction Records Online (subscription only, available at the Grolier Club by appointment); EEBO (Early English Books Online, available onsite at NYU and other major research libraries; include facsimile images), ESTC (English Short Title Catalog, via the British Library at estc.bl.uk) including over 400,000 records for items published anywhere in Great Britain or its colonies or in English anywhere from printing's beginnings (1473) through the eighteenth century.
Consult catalogs for major research library catalogues such as Harvard University, Yale University, The British Library, and the Library of Congress. Manuscript collections are represented to some extent in these catalogs.
See also the Reading Experience Database 1450-1945 (RED) at http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/RED/. Also Wikipedia and, of course, WorldCat from OCLC.
Harvard Views of Readers, Readership, and Reading: Open Collections Program. http://ocp.hul.harvard.edu/reading
Publishers‟ Bindings, 1815-1930. http://bindings.lib.ua.edu/index.html
[On national history of the book projects] www.bookmansfolly.com/2009/04/hob-nob- histories-of-book-in7.html
For fun – movies and mysteries on bookish subculture Movies: www.movieretriever.com/videohound_lists/4550/Books-&-Bookstores Biblio-mysteries: www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/bibliomysteries
National organizations AAS (American Antiquarian Society, Worcester MA), APHA (American Printing History Association – has a NYC chapter), BSA (Bibliographical Society of America – also "The" Bib. Soc. for UK and the Bib. Soc. of Virginia – all independent of one another but somewhat similar in focus), RBMS (Rare Book and Manuscript Section of ACRL/ALA – its annual conference in June is a "must attend" for curators), RBS (Rare Book School, with a home at the Univ. of Va. and loose affiliates in London, Lyon, UCLA and elsewhere), SHARP (Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing [with affiliates worldwide – good conferences]). Also see IRLA libraries (Independent Research Libraries Association – see their website for links to members' sites).
Local organizations You might join New York City chapters of The American Printing History Association (APHA) at http://www.printinghistory.org/chapters/new-york.php and Archivist Round Table of Metropolitan New York (ARMA) at http://www.nycarchivists.org/.
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Listserves EXLIBRIS, SHARP, and subject specific lists
Local book history lecture series Grolier Club of New York (47 E. 60th St. at Park Ave., NYC) – many free public events. www.grolierclub.org Columbia Univ. Library – Special Collections (116th St. and Broadway) book history seminar series, free and open to all; see website. To get on the mailing lists for these book history seminars, contact Matt Hampel at [email protected] or 212-854-4746.
Center for Book Arts (28 W. 27th St., 3rd fl.) – free and low-fee lectures, panels, receptions, and exhibitions. www.centerforbookarts.org/events
Bookish exhibitions in Manhattan Grolier Club (47 E. 60 St.), New York Public Library at 42nd St. and Fifth Ave. (large and small exhibition halls), NYPL for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center (66th St. and Broadway), Bobst Library's Fales Collection NYU (3rd floor), Dieu Donnée Paper Mill (315 W. 36th St.), and Center for Book Arts (28 W. 27th St., 3rd fl.). Always call before visiting to be sure that the website information is still correct. Auction houses have exhibitions a few days before auctions (see websites for schedules, addresses, and topics): Christie's, Sotheby's, Bloomsbury's and Swann Auction Galleries.
Plagiarism The following guidelines on plagiarism is from the syllabus by Joel Silver at Indiana University (www.slis.indiana.edu/syllabi/fall_2003/L585_silver.html). The guideline applies to all forms of information, including material on web pages. Plagiarism is an extremely serious offence in academic circles and transgressions can involve serious penalties. “A student must not adopt or reproduce ideas, words, or statements of another person without appropriate acknowledgment. A student must give credit to the originality of others and acknowledge an indebtedness whenever he or she does any of the following: a. Quotes another person's actual words, either oral or written; b. Paraphrases another person's words, either oral or written; c. Uses another person's idea, opinion, or theory; or d. Borrows facts, statistics, or other illustrative material, unless the information is common knowledge....As a rule of thumb, when in doubt, cite the source!”
Format for bibliographies, citations, etc. MLA (Modern Language Association). Use in-text citation approach. You‟ll find examples at http://www.cwpost.liunet.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citmla.htm and the OWL website from Purdue Univ.
Attendance It is expected that students will attend all class sessions. In the case of unavoidable absences, the student should communicate with the instructor well before the affected class and must ordinarily complete the make-up work within two weeks of the class.
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Some famous theorists of the book and book history Group A: W. W. Greg, F. Bowers, P. Gaskell, R. B. McKerrow
Group B: L. Febvre (and H.-J. Martin), Pierre Bourdieu, Walter Ong, Roger Chartier, Donald McKenzie, Walter Benjamin, G. Thomas Tanselle, R. Altick, Jonathan Rose, Robert Darnton, Anthony Grafton, Adrian Johns, Elizabeth Eisenstein.
Readings Readings should be done before class. Students should read, and reread, Carter's ABC throughout the course. The password for LIU-CWPost‟s e-reserves is "stam." Not all material will be available on the LIU e-reserve at the beginning of the semester.
Schedule
I. (Jan. 20) Introduction. Definitions: the book, book history, bibliography, terminology, thinking historically. Resources (including Bibliography Week events). Darnton's diagram (LIU e-reserve). Describing books. Diagnostic quiz.
II. (Jan. 27) Ancient world, the alphabet, material culture of "the book," applying Darnton's model. Sources: Howard, pp. 1-25. Howard Lionel Casson, Libraries in the Ancient World (New Haven CT and London: Yale Univ., 2001), Chapter 3 ("Library at Alexandria," pp. 32- 47) and Chapter 8 ("From Role to Codex, "pp. 124-135). Also view YouTube: "How to Make Papyrus Paper." See also: “Books as Material Culture: An Object Analysis”at http://individual.utoronto.ca/klinauskas/method.html
III. (Feb. 3) Medieval manuscripts and bindings, medieval handwriting, paper Sources: rmc.library.cornell.edu/medievalbook. Also Howard, pp. 26-46.
IV. (Feb. 10) Gutenberg's achievement. Resources: YouTube – Stephen Fry, 6 installments. Also Howard, pp. 26-46. Due: Biography of a Book, part 1.
V. (Feb. 17) Spread of printing, 16th c. Italy, England, and France; Aldines; Book structures and bindings. Sources: Howard, pp. 46-79.
VI. (Feb. 24) Descriptive bibliography. Sources: Belanger, "Descriptive Bibliography, in Book Collecting; A Modern Guide, ed. Jean Peters (New York and London: R. R. Bowker, 1977. Pp. 97-115. Essential session! Sources: Howard, pp. 79-86.
VII. (Mar. 3) Catch up day.
8 (Spring Break: March 14-20. No class this week.)
VIII. (Mar. 24) Early modern books, 1600-1800; the "book beautiful," authorship, copyright, sales and distribution methods, piracy, American-British-Irish publishers' relations, rise of public libraries, scientific publishing. Sources: Howard, 87-111. Warren Chappell, A Short History of the Printed Word (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1970), from Chapt. VI ("Seventeenth Century"), pp. 111-136. LIU e-reserves. Due: Biography of a Book," part 2.
IX. (Mar. 31) The early book in the Americas; Newspapers; Subscription and membership libraries. Sources: Howard, pp. 79-86. Also: Illustration processes. Sources: YouTube: See "Printmaking Processes: Relief" (source: artsmia); also "Printmaking Processes: Intaglio;" and "Printmaking Processes: Lithography."
X. (April 7) Nineteenth-century, radically new power-machine-based printing technologies; structures and bindings; machine-made paper; new illustration techniques (steel engraving and wood engraving); serials, tracts; maps; music; commercial (case) bindings, gift books; the novel. Sources: YouTube: The Paper Mill Store. Howard, pp. 114-137. Also: www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/tech1.html. Quiz: Visual images of iconic publications.
Nov. 25 – NO CLASS (Thanksgiving)
XI. (April 14) Fin-de-siècle (late 19th c.) revivals and romanticism: William Morris and others. Sources: Howard, pp. 138-158. Quiz: Terms from Carter's ABC.
XII. (Apr. 21) Early 20th c. popularization; book clubs, paperbacks; trade publishers; ephemera; fine printing; comic books; textbooks; function of illustration. Source: americanbookcovers.blogspot.com. Due: "book report" on three theorists.
XIII. (Apr. 28) Theoretical aspects of the History of the Book: national book history projects, the book as material culture, the “science” of book history, cultural theory, Darnton revisited. (Illustration examples for quiz distributed.)
XIII. (May 5) Latter 20th c.: new media, microfilm, artists' books, „zines, bookstore chains, electronic reference tools, desktop and on-demand publishing, vanity books, graphic novels, reformatting text to electronic form, born-digital "books," blogs and tweets, censorship, rights, preservation. Sources: YouTube: Combat Paper Making. Suggested ancillary reading: Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, or Walter Miller, Jr.'s Canticle for Liebowitz, or Jorge Luis Borges's Tower of Babel. Due: third "biography of a book" assignment (and discussion).
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