‚Franckreichs Geist’ (1689) - Two books available on a remarkable pamphlet of Early Enlightenment

Each and every era has its very own ‚discourses' or public dialogs. In these the characteristic forms of argumentation and thinking of that time or era becomes perceptible. Such a ‚discourse‘ started end of the 1680s confronted with French political and military expansion. French king Lewis XIV. (Louis XIV.) reinforced in these times again his attempt to dominate Europe. This called all sorts of publicists, pamphletists, writers, printers and publishers on the scene. They came in droves to make use of the situation, be that personal, political or economical.

This way a widespread disourse developed, dealing with the french hegemonial ambitions The pamphlet ‚Franckreichs Geist‘, published 1689, together with its manifold German versions and other editions in all major European languages can be considered as a particularly concise example how such a ‚discourse‘ was displayed in mass media. The herewith presented analysis shows - by taking the example of ‚Franckreichs Geist‘  - exemplarily patterns of reasoning and argumentative acting at the end of the 17th century.