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“Ein galanter mensch muß in allem seinen thun natürlich seyn”

Zur Natürlichkeit als epistolarem Stilprinzip vor und bei Gellert

“A Gallant Man Must Be Natural in All He Does”

On Naturalness as an Epistolary Principle of Style before and in Gellert
In: Daphnis
Author:
Yulia Mevissen University of Massachusetts Boston Boston USA

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Abstract

Tracing the history of ‘natural’ style from late 17th century letter writing manuals to Gellert’s reform, this article shows how the ideal of ‘naturalness’ is being derived from the topos of letters as conversations among absentees (sermo absentis ad absentem). The article argues that semantic shifts within the concept of ‘naturalness’ go along with changes in the relationship between letters and publicity. Unlike gallant letters, Gellert’s letters generate their quality of ‘naturalness’ by emphasizing that they were allegedly not intended for an outside audience.

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