# Candide, OR, Optimism: and similar titles

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [January 13, 2013, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021 "2013-01-13T02:53:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021/1 "2013-01-13T02:53:19Z")

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There are tons of books with alternate titles with the template "Primary Title, or Alternate Title "since the 18th century perhaps earlier. Would anyone know what the origin of this sort of title is and if it has a name?

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021/2 "2013-01-13T03:39:14Z")

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Moved to Cafe Society.

Colibri  
General Questions Moderator

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**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021/3 "2013-01-13T03:57:21Z")

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Can you be a little more specific? Is it the “or” that you are looking for or the symmetry on either side? Subtitles have been around as long as printed books. For awhile there in the 18th century the subtitles were super long. I’ve heard those called descriptive subtitles or advertising subtitles. The “or” convention has been around forever too. I do wonder if anyone could track down the first printed example of an “or” subtitle.

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**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\
**Post date:** [January 13, 2013, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/candide-or-optimism-and-similar-titles/647021/4 "2013-01-13T04:20:13Z")

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The first book I can find printed in English with that convention is “The dictes or sayengis of the philosophres”, by Earl Rivers, 1476. It was one of the first books printed in English by Caxton, but like most early English books it was a translation from an existing work. I don’t know if the original had the subtitle.