Niveau der Textgestaltung : Dreistillehre bzw. genera dicendi

In ancient rhetoric, style was not only considered as a process of optimization (cf. art. 85 this vol.), but also of differentiation into categorizing style registers, in which the virtues could shape in various form. When considering an overview of the history of the theory, then Theophrasts four stylistic virtues remain dominant, but have undergone further differentiation processes. This process finally merged into Hermogenes theory of forms, that distinguishes between a multitude of style qualities. Obviously, the guiding intention was to create a complex range of instruments for imitating and criticizing style. For the modern reader of these works, it will not always be evident what aim such allocation of predicates pursued.(VLID)467033