During winter break 2022 Douglas Meeker ’24 and Tim Raylor, Professor of English, did research for the upcoming Oxford edition of Milton’s On Education. Douglas shared his experience as a student research partner with the Humanities Center.
“During my SRP with Timothy Raylor, I completed a variety of tasks in relation to the upcoming Oxford edition of Milton’s On Education–which Tim is editing. First, I read a selection of texts in the disciplines of bibliographic and editorial theory to familiarize myself with current (and historical) practices. Next, I did extensive work with the Oxford English Dictionary, checking Tim’s citations and discovering new references to Milton’s text that Tim could include. I also took various notes on Tim’s General and Textual Introductions that spanned from minor conventional errors to larger theoretical questions. Additionally, I read many other annotated editions of On Education to suggest further references and notes for Tim’s edition, as well as other sources often cited in the introductions (to ensure referential integrity). Overall, I learned a great deal about editorial theory, textual comparison, 17th century pedagogical theory, and various biographical details about Milton and his contemporaries. I also learned about the process of developing updated textual editions. This SRP was an enriching, valuable experience, and I’m thankful to Tim for taking on this project with me.”