Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf
I never said anything about indenting text.
|
In this case, "indent" means margin (left margin, in particular). You are probably assuming it's only the first-line indent (or the text-indent property). From dictionary.com:
2. to set in or back from the margin, as the first line of a paragraph.
(note: "
as the first line", not that it's only used for the first line)
Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf
Why use a blockquote if it's not going to actually be a blockquote? A blockquote is meant to offset text by having a margin around block of tex.
|
Not so. First, a blockquote could be marked up only for archival purporses, for automatic processing, for indexing, etc. without any special typesetting. Second, if it is desired to set a blockquote apart from the surrounding text, having wider margins (indent) is only one of the options (the default in most browsers), but not the only one. I have seen real printed books with blockquotes in a smaller font (and normal margins), or with blockquotes with only a small top and bottom margin, or with no difference at all. I could also imagine someone wanting blockquotes to have just a grey background, or a border, or in a script font...
A blockquote is a block-level quotation, nothing should be assumed about its formatting.