Understanding (Through) Annotations: Introductory Remarks.

Connotation (Linguistics); Linguistics; Meaning (Psychology); Semantics; Hermeneutics

This article introduces the special issue on "Understanding (Through) Annotations" and addresses the two topics that are fused into one by means of the brackets in its title, namely (1) the understanding of annotations, of what kind they are and how they are attached to texts, and (2) the understanding through or by means of annotations, their specific hermeneutic function. It assumes that the reflection on annotations furthers our insight into methods and functions of close reading, while, at the same time, also considering the functions of annotations in teaching. One of its major claims concerns the relevance of annotations to a text as a whole as well as the passage it immediately refers to. By positing a number of provocative examples and hypotheses it invites the critical debate on all matters related to annotations and their connotations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]