In his introduction to this edition of Coleridge's Marginalia, the late George Whalley wrote, "There is no body of marginalia--in English, or perhaps in any other language--comparable with Coleridge's in range and variety and in the sensitiveness, scope, and depth of his reaction to what he was reading." The edition of the Marginalia, of which this is the fourth volume, will bring together over eight thousand notes, many never before printed, varying from a single word to substantial essays. In alphabetical order of authors, the notes are presented literatim from the original manuscripts whenever the annotated volumes can be found. Each note is preceded by the passage of the original text that appears to have provoked Coleridge's comment. Texts in foreign languages are followed by translations.
The fourth volume of the Marginalia comprises annotations on almost one hundred books (from "Pamphlets" to Shakespeare), including well-known works by Pepys, Petrarch, Plato, Rabelais, and Ralegh. There are extensive notes on seven philosophical texts by Schelling and two by Schleiermacher, and also on plays by Shakespeare and novels by Walter Scott. The subjects addressed range from philosophy and literature through religion, politics, history, biography, and travel-writing to science and medicine.
