The Letter "o," Exercise 1, a short survey
Melville’s handwriting has challenged editors for more than a century. As with all writing, his letters of the alphabet are obvious when they are written well. Those that are less obvious must be read, inferred, or guessed within the context of the word.
This exercise is designed to train your eye to read the letter “o." This set addresses some examples of "o" as an initial letter.
For the most part, Melville's initial “o” is usually quite clear.
Examples
The “o” is often nicely formed with a curved leftward line or loop to close it at the top.
polygon #65, 22395191_rot_p_3.jpg
circa 1884*-1891
The "o" can be angular, the first part of it looking like an "i" or it is highly compressed with no middle.
polygon #67, 22395219_rot_p_2.jpg
circa 1884*-1891
Sometimes the letter is not closed. It looks somewhat like a "c" or a leading stroke to the next letter.
polygon #69, 22395157_rot_p_3.jpg
circa 1884*-1891
Other times, the letter seems to merge or may trick the eyes when paired with some full-height letters or ascenders.
polygon #70, 22395199_rot_p_7.jpg
circa 1884*-1891
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