Dedication ( publishing ) - wikipedia Dedication ( publishing ) Book dedication to a group of people. A dedication is the expression of friendly connection or thanks by the author towards another person. The dedication has its own place on the dedication page and is part of the front matter. Contents 1 Position and function of the dedication 2 History 3 Themes 4 Handwritten dedication 5 See also 6 Notes 7 External links Position and function of the dedication In newer books, the dedication is located on a dedication page on its own, usually on the recto page after the main title page inside the front matter. It can occupy one or multiple lines depending on its importance. It can also be `` in a longer version as a dedication letter or dedication preface at the book 's beginning ''. Nowadays, the dedication 's function is mainly part of the self - portrayal of the author in front of his or her readers. History The dedication of Orfeo by Monteverdi, 1609 Evidence of dedications is provided back into the Classical antiquity. Besides the wish to express their gratitude towards a certain person, the authors often had also other reasons to dedicate their work to a particular person. Well into the 18th century, it was not usual for publishers to remunerate the authors ; authors tended to be paid or remunerated as one element of a patron - client relationship, in which the author - client paid tribute, in the dedication, to his or her patron. A typical writer dedicated `` their book to a high standing personality -- to Fürsts or bishops -- or to a city and tried to gain some money through this practice ''. In many cases the petitioner was lucky and received a gift from the patron. In some cases, the writer groveled before the patron and a formal dedication `` contained often a very elaborate and submissive affection ''. In some cases not only the authors tried to get some money, but also the printers tried through dedications to cover a part of their costs. Themes A book dedication can provide a fascinating glimpse into the life and times of the author. For example, Lord Byron ( 1788 -- 1824 ) engaged in a famous feud with Robert Southey, who was then England 's Poet Laureate. Byron wrote a mocking 17 - verse dedication to his epic poem Don Juan in which he savagely pilloried Southey as a dull, reactionary `` warbler '' who had abandoned his political principles for favor and financial reward. Throughout time, book dedications were used to make political statements or to condemn war and inequality. Author Toni Morrison dedicated Beloved, her 1987 Pulitzer Prize - winning novel about a fugitive slave who killed her daughter, to `` Sixty Million and more. '' Furthermore, book dedications reflect the tastes and mores of society. Whereas many Elizabethan dedications were erudite and witty, some modern authors have abandoned literary pretense, sometimes using profanity to shock or amuse their audiences. Handwritten dedication The dedication is not to be confounded with the handwritten dedication of a single copy : the presentation copy. See also Homage Front matter Prologue Paratext Notes Jump up ^ Ursula Rautenberger ( ed. ) : Reclams Sachlexikon des Buches, p. 148. ^ Jump up to : Citation after Helmut Hiller, Stephan Füssel : Wörterbuch des Buches. 6. Auflage. Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main, 2002. ISBN 3 - 465 - 032209, p. 82. Jump up ^ Barnes, Patricia ( 2015 ). Tender, Tawdry & Timeless Book Dedications. ASIN B00VZ2YRM4. ISBN 0989870839. Jump up ^ Barnes ( 2015 ). Tender, Tawdry & Timeless Book Dedications. pp. 281 -- 288. Jump up ^ Barnes ( 2015 ). Tender, Tawdry & Timeless Book Dedications. p. 173. Jump up ^ Barnes ( 2015 ). Tender, Tawdry & Timeless Book Dedications. p. 13. Jost Hochuli : Buchgestaltung in der Schweiz. 2. Auflage. Pro Helvetia, Schweizer Kulturstiftung. Zürich 1998. ISBN 3 - 908102 - 10 - 3 ( German ) Reclams Sachlexikon des Buches. Hrsg. von U. Rautenberg. Reclam Verlag, Stuttgart 2003. ISBN 3 - 15 - 010542 - 0 ( German ) Diana Stört : Form - und Funktionswandel der Widmung. Zur historischen Entwicklung und Typologisierung eines Paratextes. In : `` Aus meiner Hand dies Buch. '' Zum Phänomen der Widmung. Hrsg. von Volker Kaukoreit, Marcel Atze und Michael Hansel. Wien : Turia + Kant 2007 ( = Sichtungen. Archiv, Bibliothek, Literaturwissenschaft 8. / 9. Jg., 2005 / 2006 ), S. 79 - 112. ISBN 3 - 85132 - 476 - 5 ( German ) External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dedication pages. The dictionary definition of dedication at Wiktionary Book design General page layout and typography choices Fonts Front and back covers Buckram Leather Anthropodermic bibliopegy Treasure binding Endpapers Marbled Front matter Half - title bastard title Frontispiece Title page Edition notice Dedication Epigraph Table of contents List of figures List of tables Foreword Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Prologue Printer 's mark Body matter, which may include : Body text Chapters Parts Sections Tipped - in pages Back matter Afterword Conclusion Epilogue Outro Postscript Appendix / Addendum Glossary Bibliography Index Errata Colophon Postface Other elements Bookplate ex-librīs Catchword Die - cutting Fore - edge painting Pop - ups Thumb index GND : 4148981 - 0 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dedication_(publishing)&oldid=848293909 '' Categories : Book design Book terminology Literature Publishing Dedication Hidden categories : Articles containing Latin - language text Wikipedia articles with GND identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Brezhoneg Deutsch Ελληνικά Español Français עברית Lëtzebuergesch 日本 語 Русский Svenska اردو Walon 4 more Edit links This page was last edited on 1 July 2018, at 01 : 31 ( UTC ). 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Question: where does the dedication page go in a book
Answer: usually on the recto page after the main title page inside the front matter