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When talking, there is usually so little spirit that one has to stick to what is printed.

Caroline Schelling

Although already formulated in the 18th century, this insight remains virulent to this day. The writer, translator, politically engaged and clever salonnière must have known it. As is well known, all women of the time were denied access to libraries, studies and a profession. Therefore, she gathers around her, logically mostly male, writers (including Schlegel, Novalis, Ludwig Tieck), philosophers (e.g. Friedrich Schlegel and Schelling), natural scientists (e.g. Henrik Steffens and Johann Wilhelm Ritter) and visual artists (such as Tischbein and Christian Friedrich Tieck). Thus, her home becomes a center of early Romantic discourse. Obviously, she prefers the writings of her famous contemporaries to their talking. Whether she also includes the people of her community in this criticism may be left open. In any case, we can state that they were probably almost exclusively male chatterers.

 

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