Chapter 4 Summary

Chapter four is all about legibility.  Being able to read type is the main purpose for typography.  This chapter claims that those most legible typefaces are those that are characterized by contrast, simplicity, and proportion.  Letters can be put into four groups: vertical, curved, vertical and curved, and oblique.  These four groups produce many similarities between letterforms, but they also produce many significant differences.  For the legibility of letters, there are two important factors: word shape and internal pattern.  Words are first identified by their word shapes and then factors such as the weight of letters is an internal pattern and is vital to recognizing letters.  Having letters capital and lowercase also significantly aids to legibility of words.  Text that is in all capitals is harder to read because it uses a greater amount of space, and is often created with an even word line. Text that is set in all lowercase is easier to read because each letter is different with different word lines.  Interletter and interword spacing is also very key in the legibility of type.  Space is used to create beautiful and legible letterforms.  Designers must use space to make the type flow and read easily.  Too much or too little space can make text extremely difficult to read.  Type that is too big or too little can also make it more difficult to read letterforms.  Also if the interline spacing is too tight, that can make type look too jumbled and messy.  Great line length allows a certain rhythm to reading type.  Weight, character width, Italics and obliques, and color are also very significant factors to legibility.   A typeface that is too light or too heavy, too skinny or too wide, and italics can really make it difficult for readers to read it.   Color is also a major factor when it comes to reading type.  Colors that are way to bright can really impair legibility. The chapter goes on to talk about indentations, and how type is displayed.  These are all major factors when it comes to reading type.  Legibility is key when creating a typeface, and those who are skilled and crafted in this really succeed in creating great type.