Build a Simple Concordance

This exercise uses this Recipe to build a simple concordance.

It applies a recipe to real textual example which is freely available on the Internet so you can do the steps yourself and see the results.

This recipe and exercise is available as a PDF download.

Exercise Steps

1. This exercise uses Volume 2 of Thomas Macaulay's History of England which can be downloaded from Project Gutenberg. 1 Choose a key word of interest that you would like to build a concordance for.
2. Using the TAPoR Find Words - Concordance Tool and input the keyword Time to find places in the text that this word appears.
   
3. This search returns a list of these key words and the five words on either side of the word Time:
   
   

75 entries found.
for the first and last  
 time,   
  ruled  by  the sword,  the  
a  singular  state.  A  short    
 time  
  
before  the  commencement  of  the  
which  has,  in  our  own    
 time,   
  induced  the  legislature  to  interfere  
day.  Christmas  had  been,  from    
 time   
  
immemorial,  the  season  of  joy 
No  public  act  of  that    
 time   
  seems  to  have  irritated  the  
had  been,  ever  since the    
 time   
  
of  Elizabeth,  favourite  subjects  with  
public  estimation.  But  at  the 
 
time   
  of  the Restoration  the  Quakers  
much  worse.  In  no  long    
 
time   
  all  those  signs  which  were  
restored  King  was  at  this    
 time   
  
more  loved  by  the  people  
assisting  him  to  kill  the    
 time,   
  
and  who,  even  when  the  
on  whom  devolved  at  this    
 time   
  
the  greatest  part  of  the 
land,  and was  for  a    
 
time   
  supposed  to  be  allpowerful.  In  
expenses of  the  government  in    
 
time   
  of  peace.  Nothing  was  allowed  
to
 election  at  the  proper    
 time,   
  
even  without  the  royal  writ,  
was  now,  for  the  first    
 time,   
  made  an  indispensable qualification  for  
of  wrongs  suffered  in  the    
 time   
  
of  the commonwealth.  The  gaols  
in prayer,  looked  for  a    
 time   
  with  complacency  on  the  softer  
Thus  the  clergy,  for  a    
 time,  
  
made  war  on  schism  with  
by scores,  exposed  at  one    
 time   
  to  the  license  of  soldiers  
from
 England,  abandoned  at  another    
 
time   
  to  the  mercy  of  troops  
a meal. At  the  same    
 time   
  a  sudden  fall  of  rents  
men  asked,  at  such  a    
 time,   
  to  make  any  addition  to  
armies  of  Cromwell  at  the    
 time   
  when his  power  was  the  
was  heard,  for  the  first    
 time,  
  by  the  citizens  of  London.  
so  short  a  space of    
 time,   
  befel  one  city.  A  pestilence,  
unable  to  perceive  that  the    
 time   
  was  fast  approaching  when that  
of  the  signs  of  that    
 time  
  proposed,  for  the  purpose  of  
He  did  not  at  this    
 time  
  profess  the  austere  devotion  which,  
progress  of  France.  For  a    
 time  
  his  suggestions  had  been  slighted;  
promised  large  aid.  He  from 
 time   
  to  time  doled  out  such  
aid.  He  from  time  to    
 time   
  doled  out  such  aid  as 
Bourbon:  but  in  a  short    
 time   
  fresh  assurances  of undiminished  good  
the  royal  chapel.  About  this    
 time   
  died  the  Duchess  of  York,  
of  the  crown  at  this    
 time   
  were  men  whose names  have  
it  has  never  since  their    
 time   
  been used  except  as  a  
to  every party.  At  one    
 
time   
  he  had  ranked  among  the  
among  the  Cavaliers.  At  another   
 time   
  warrants  had  been  out  against  
vehement  Clifford  in  no long    
 time   
  manfully  avowed,  but  which  the  
Cabal,  holding  power  at  a    
 time   
  when  our  government  was  in  
to  support  the  government  in   
 time   
  of  peace.  The  eight  hundred  
was torn  at  the  same    
 time   
  
by  internal  dissensions. The  government  
were  left  for  a  short    
 time   
  without  a  head;  and  the 
impeaching Arlington.  In  a  short    
 time   
  the  Cabal  was  no  more.  
to  reflect  that,  in  our    
 time,  
  a  public  man  would  be  
Catholic,  and  had  passed  some 
 time   
  on the  Continent  in  English  
army  was  at  the  same    
 time   
  to  land  in  Ireland.  All  
Lords  were  for  the  first    
 time   
  excluded  from  their  seats. Strong  
by  the pamphleteers  of  that    
 
time   
  as  something  extraordinary  that  horses 
madness, should  retire  for  a    
 time   
  to  Brussels:  but  this  concession  
millions  who  had,  at  the    
 time   
  of  the  Restoration,  leaned  towards  
that  he  was  at this    
 time   
  honestly  desirous  to  effect,  on  
he  was  what,  in  our    
 time,   
  is  called a  Conservative:  in  
him  to side  for  a    
 time   
  with  the  defenders  of  arbitrary  
to  be  at  the same    
 time   
  admired  for  despising  them. Sunderland  
and  had been,  during  some    
 time,   
  minister  in  France.  Every  calling  
most  momentous  events  of  his    
 time.   
  More than  one  important  movement  
the  royal  assent.  From  the    
 time   
  of  the  Great  Charter  the 
England  became  for  a  short    
 time  
  
free.  In  old  times  printers  
king's  evil.  At  the  same    
 time   
  he neglected  no  art  of  
on business.  At  the  same    
 time   
  
the  Duke  of  York,  who  

1. Several themes and paths for further exploration emerge from this process:
   
   

   the word Time occurs frequently. Does this suggests a focus on time passing or the importance of time to the story being related? Note the frequent use of the words ‘long’, ‘years’, ‘old’, ‘good’, ‘passed’, ‘life’, ‘day’, ‘make’, ‘passed’, ‘did’, ‘soon’ in relation to the word time.

   
   

   Is there a theme of Power in this text? – Note the focus on titles, ‘King’, ‘Parliament’, ‘Government’, ‘Charles, ‘Power’, ‘State’, ‘Man’, ‘Nation, ‘General’, ‘Crown, ‘Duke’, ‘Royal’, ‘Head’, ‘Monarchy’, ‘Chief’, ‘High’, ‘Lord’, ‘Prince’.

   
   
   
2. Thus, even building a simple concordance based on one word allows you to ask a variety of additional question sof the text and appreciate the themes evident in Macaulay's History of England.

Next Steps/Further Information

• List of All Recipes
• Recipe to Identify Simple Themes within a Text
• Help with Particular Tools
• Background on Text Analysis

-- ShawnDay - 5 November 2006