From our margins to yours…
Welcome to SEL’s Marginalia, a partner publication by the Hobby editorial assistants and staff of SEL Studies in English Literature 1500–1900, published by Rice University. The term marginalia was first coined by an anonymous author “G. J.” in a letter to the editor of Blackwood’s Magazine (1819). The author was writing about the “Character of Sir Thomas Brown as a Writer,” but they began by referencing Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s penchant for scribbling in the margins:
“Mr. Editor,
It is well known to those who are in the habits of intercourse with Mr Coleridge, that not the smallest, and, in the opinion of many, not the least valuable part of his manuscripts exists in the blank leaves and margins of books; whether his own, or those of friends, or even in those that have come in his way casually, seems to have been a matter altogether indifferent. The following is transcribed from the blank leaf of a copy of Sir T. Brown’s Works in folio, and is a fair specimen of the Marginalia; and much more nearly than any of his printed works, gives the style of Coleridge’s conversation.
G. J.”
We hope to explore what emerges in the “blank leaves and margins of books.” Our aim with this partner publication is to craft public-facing, somewhat informal meditations on the work of studying literature writ large, not just capital L literature (poetry, prose, drama) but the literatures of other disciplines, languages, histories, and people. We hope to address what studying literature looks like broadly, what it entails: all the mess, all the enthusiasm, all the rabbit holes, all the red herrings. We also want to think about marginalized voices, spaces, communities, and forms in ways that extend beyond the historic confines of SEL’s focus on English literature 1500–1900.
Taking its name from the practice of writing in the margins, Marginalia also borrows from the Medieval Latin adjective marginalis (“marginal”) and ultimately from the noun margo, meaning “border.” How does the study of literature(s) help us to bring ideas, identities, and lived experiences from the margins or borders to the center of the page? How might conversations that begin as tangents, scribbles next to the primary text, or meandering conversations become the actual focus of interest? In what ways do some types of work with and about the literatures of many disciplines fall outside the notice brought by publication?
Post subjects will range depending on the author. We might feature, for instance, interviews with faculty about the literature of their field, the deliberations for one of the SEL essay prizes, recent archival obsessions and discussions occurring in our offices, research discoveries, questions we cannot stop thinking about, tips for serving as a generous reader of scholarly articles, editors in conversation with editors from other publications, and more. We plan to post to the partner publication on a regular schedule, bi-monthly. Stay tuned for updates and do follow us to join the conversation on Instagram, Facebook, and Bluesky. We are so glad you found us and invite you to indulge with us in the fun and fascination of Marginalia.
Cover image: Inside back cover marginalia of Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy: What It is. With all the Kindes, Causes, Symptomes, Prognosticks, and Severall Cures of it. In Three Maine Partitions, with Their Severall Sections, Members, and Subsections. Philosophically, Medicinally, Historically Opened and Cut Up. With a Satyricall Preface, Conducing to the Following Discourse. 2d edn. (Oxford: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, 1624). Image credit and permission Peter Harringon.