Beseelte Töne

Abstract

Klopstock's mythological skating odes are an especially graphic instance of his role as a key poet in the literary revolution that took place in the 18th century. In their rhythmic complexion they reflect both contemporary tendencies, such as Jean Georges Noverre's theory of dance, and the reception accorded to the Old Saxon -Heliand- or the rhetorical traditions of antiquity. The semantics of rhythm advances to the status of the central element in the readability of the language of the moving body. With these odes Klopstock revolutionized the relationship between physical dynamics and poetic dynamics for generations to come.