

Ask HN: Are these forums modern letter writing ala Jefferson? - lifeisstillgood

http:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.m.wikiquote.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;Thomas_Jefferson<p>For no particular reason I was browsing Jefferson quotes and realised - who talks like that?  These are not the letters and writings of private person to private  person in any sense I understand - but seem more like workings out of personal philosophy on a semi public arena - written as if expected to be read my more than the recipient.<p>And it struck me that is little more than what I do here.<p>Just a Sunday thought.
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bdunn
Jefferson was a part of what was known as "The Republic of Letters".

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Letters](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Letters)

Being that most of the leading members of the Enlightenment were
geographically dispersed (except for cells like the Lunar Society) this sort
of letter writing was pretty typical — letters would be shared, forwarded on,
etc. Also, many of these men knew they'd be memorialized by history, and knew
their letters would be preserved — hence the style of their writing. (e.g.
Jefferson destroyed all of his correspondence with Martha.)

~~~
a_bonobo
Many letters were also (probably) written with the intention to publish them
later - Seneca's letters to Lucilius, for example.

