Footnotes are used within a writing to provide further information, citations, parenthetical information, outside sources, copyright permissions, background information, and any other useful information the writer can use to strengthen the text. There are numbers as subscripts or superscripts within the text, these numbers correspond with numbers placed at the bottom of the page and that is where you find the information about the text. Footnotes are used so that the reader does not have to read through long definitions or explanations and the writer can make the text read smoother (Scribendi). We will be covering the types of footnotes in Texaco, how to use footnotes, and the history of footnotes.
History of Footnotes
Footnotes have been used for as long as humans have written their thoughts on paper. According to Anthony Grafton: “Annotation of documents – X writing commentary on Y – began in the ancient world and has flourished in every culture that possessed a formal, written canon” (Grafton 27). By using footnotes, experts have been able to fill gaps in from history or unveil some of the greatest scientific discoveries. Writers can use footnotes to add deeper thoughts, credit other sources, or just used for extra notes. Some experts will read writings and correct or add different views on a subject.
How to use footnotes
When you are reading the text but find yourself uncertain about what you have read, look to see if there are any number subscripts or superscripts in the area you are uncertain about. If there are number subscripts, match the number of the subscript to the number on the bottom of the page. We will practice using footnotes here,1 where you will find the correct footnote for a fun fact about footnotes. If there is a subscript but no footnote at the bottom of the page then what you are looking for is not a footnote, it is an endnote. Endnotes are very similar to footnotes except they are found at the very end of all the text or chapter, unlike footers which are on every page.
Texaco footnotes
In the book Texaco by Patrick Chamoiseau there are two different types of footnotes. The first set of footnotes shows Patrick Chamoiseau’s original footnotes. According to Jonathan Russell Clark: “We’ve seen how footnotes can be used to comment on a narrative or to create a new one, to overlap separate narratives, to evoke character in new ways, and to dig into difficult parts of who we are” (Clark). Chamoiseau used his footnotes to elaborate on the story to show the deeper meanings of what the characters are feeling or what is happening in the time period. I think that Chamoiseau uses his footnotes to bridge both Marie-Sophie’s point of view along with his point of view to the reader. The original footnotes that Chamoiseau wrote look like this2. In this footnote Chamoiseau is filling in a detail that is relevant to the story that was not mentioned in Marie Sophie’s journals. He does this so the reader understands the significance of what is happening. The second set of footnotes are written by the translators, Rose Myriam Rejouis and Val Vinokurov. These footnotes help the readers understand translations better. These footnotes give alternate definitions or reword phrases that may be understood in English better than in French. The translator footnotes have brackets around them and look like this3. While reading Texaco it is important to pay attention to the different types of footnotes and how they are used. Using the footnotes will unlock a deeper understanding of how the story is set and how the characters truly feel.
- Footnotes are called footnotes because they are in the footer of the page.
- “How did he confide this to me? With a lump of sorrow in the bottom of his throat? With an eyelid blinking with panic over a repressed tear? With a song with nothing to say but pain? How did he confide this to me?” (Chamoiseau 77)
- “[The food’s gone, you damn fools!]” (Chamoiseau 166)
Works Cited
Chamoiseau, Patrick. Texaco. Vintage International, 1998.
Clark, Jonathan Russell. “On the Fine Art of the Footnote.” Literary Hub, 20 Mar. 2019, https://lithub.com/the-fine-art-of-the-footnote/.
Grafton, Anthony. The Footnote: A Curious History. Faber and Faber Ltd., 1997.
Scribendi. “What Are Footnotes and How Do You Use Them?” Scribendi, Scribendi Inc, https://www.scribendi.com/academy/articles/what_are_footnotes.en.html
Editorial Collective
Nikolai Careaga, Sage Biggers, Kayla Doerr
