One thing to remember is that scribes, a compositors, and a
printinghouse correctors may stand between you and the writer you are
studying.
There was a degree of standardization among the English printers in
the E. M. period, but compositors had their individual quirks which
allow us to speak of different compositors setting different parts of
the same text. At the same time, I don't know of anyone who has
analyzed the various meanings of, say, a comma. I'd ask Peter
Blayney, Eric Rasmussen, or Paul Werstine.
Bill
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W. L. Godshalk *
Department of English *
University of Cincinnati Stellar disorder *
Cincinnati OH 45221-0069 *
513-281-5927
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