Radiance Harris
Ah, the table of contents. At times glossed over, the table of contents is a key element of book design that has persisted over centuries. We are all pretty familiar with its basic design, at least on printed work: chapter and/or segment divisions with their corresponding page numbers. Though simple and straightforward, it is safe to say that we would be lost without it. Especially when it comes to maneuvering hefty texts, *ahem* any English literature anthology *ahem*. The table of contents is essentially a roadmap that provides a visual for maneuvering the text. It allows the text to be broken down into its components, which helps the reader navigate and draw connections, without becoming too overwhelmed with text. Since the table of contents lays out the sections of subject matter that make up the text, it is easier for the reader to see how all the sections work together and relate to the bigger idea. Also, by breaking down the text into chunks, the reader is less overwhelmed and can choose exactly where they want to go for certain information. An important distinction to make is that the table of contents is not a search tool but a navigational tool. Its purpose is not to provide the reader with a list of terms and concepts that are significant (like an index would) but rather to provide a path that the reader can follow to certain parts of the text. Though sometimes we do not give the table of contents the praise it deserves, it is an essential part of the reading process.

Figure 1: A Kindle E-Reader. Courtesy: Radiance Harris, 2020.
However, with the rise of the internet and new technological developments seemingly appearing overnight, virtually all aspects of life as we know it have been changed, including the table of contents. With immense technological waves have come the ability to reimagine what the table of contents can do and reinvent it accordingly, especially through digital mediums like e-readers. In his article, “The future of books in an electronic era,” Philip Barker writes that printed texts have “significant inflexibility…in terms of: how information can be stored within them; when, where and how they can be accessed; and the ways in which their contents can be displayed” (194).
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