Reimagining the Open Letter: A Genre Study
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Author/Creator ORCID
Date
2022-01-01
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Department
English
Program
Texts, Technologies, and Literature
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Access limited to the UMBC community. Item may possibly be obtained via Interlibrary Loan through a local library, pending author/copyright holder's permission.
This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by UMBC for non-commercial research and education. For permission to publish or reproduce, please see http://aok.lib.umbc.edu/specoll/repro.php or contact Special Collections at speccoll(at)umbc.edu
This item may be protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. It is made available by UMBC for non-commercial research and education. For permission to publish or reproduce, please see http://aok.lib.umbc.edu/specoll/repro.php or contact Special Collections at speccoll(at)umbc.edu
Abstract
In this paper, I discuss the generic typifications of the open letter. The absence of a genre study of the open letter is a gap I attempt to close in current literature regarding epistolary writing. Through this examination, I endeavor to show that the open letter is typified by its specific use of multiple audiences, everyday language, affect, and its uncommonly flexible circulation, all of which function uniquely in this genre. I explore the degree to which these typifications are utilized in two major protest movements which have utilized this genre, demonstrating that the genre lends itself particularly to protest movements, both historical and contemporary.