Paratextual features in 18th-century medical writing. Framing contents and expanding the text

This study focusses on the paratextual apparatus of 18th-century medical writing, with specific reference to tables of contents, indexes, appendices and glossaries in handbooks and compendia published in the second half of the century. The analysis, carried out on a sample of relevant works of the period, investigates both the layout (structural organisation on the page), and language issues (use of English to convey meaning). In particular, the relationship between the type and function of the paratext, along with the systematisation of contents through language are at the core of the discussion. The results of the analysis highlight the relevance of basic and complex paratextual patterns in medical writing. The interaction of layout and language frames medical contents for the reader (front matter), whereas back matter expands the main text by mapping connections and dependencies (indexes), adding lists of medicines and remedies (appendices), and explanatory terminology (glossaries).