G4 Doctoral dissertation (monograph)
Kanssakirjoittaminen Posttidningarissa ja Inrikes Tidningarissa 1729–1791 (2023)
Kyläkoski, K. (2023). Kanssakirjoittaminen Posttidningarissa ja Inrikes Tidningarissa 1729–1791 [Doctoral dissertation]. Jyväskylän yliopisto. JYU dissertations, 705. https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-951-39-9770-0
JYU authors or editors
Publication details
All authors or editors: Kyläkoski, Kaisa
eISBN: 978-951-39-9770-0
Journal or series: JYU dissertations
eISSN: 2489-9003
Publication year: 2023
Number in series: 705
Number of pages in the book: 287 sivua
Publisher: Jyväskylän yliopisto
Publication country: Finland
Publication language: Finnish
Persistent website address: https://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-951-39-9770-0
Publication open access: Openly available
Publication channel open access: Open Access channel
Abstract
A newspaper in the 18th century was not a description of society created by the editor, but a place for written interaction between equals, which formed a part of the sociability that was characteristic for the century. This study examines the nature of the collective writing of readers, its boundary conditions and its impact. The collective writing is studied in the newspapers Posttidningar and Inrikes Tidningar, which were read across Sweden. The original contribution to knowledge of this dissertation is a detailed case study of mediatization in the early modern period. In order to examine the collective nature of writing, the reader contributions are approached with the concept of rhetorical genre, i.e. focusing on repeated writing situations that the writers have learned to recognise. Contrary to the mainstream of earlier research, newspapers are not viewed as precursors of later newspapers, nor primarily as potential shapers of public opinion. Using the criterion of repetition, significant forms of collective writing are identified as narration, discussion and philanthropy. The development of writing styles was influenced by the newspaper itself, i.e. its shape, materiality and editorial guidelines, society's customs, values, culture and laws, as well as the skills of the writers. It was easiest to write using the same forms that the author was used to reading, which means the threshold for change and freer discussion was high. The distinct consequence of collective writing was that the readers were offered a previously unattainable and quite coherent image of life in the Swedish realm in the 18th century. It is likely that the readers also gained a feeling of belonging to a community of readers, i.e. a group of people that they had never met in person.
Keywords: journalistic writing; newspapers; writing; social interaction; collective action; mediasation; doctoral dissertations
Free keywords: Posttidningar; Inrikes Tidningar; 18th century; Sweden
Contributing organizations
Ministry reporting: Yes
VIRTA submission year: 2023