Memory in Letters: The Epistolary Practice and Letter Collection of Lupus of Ferrières

Abstract:This study seeks to uncover the letter writing—and letter collecting—practices of both the ninth-century abbot Lupus of Ferrières and the creators of the principal surviving manuscript of his letters (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Latin 2858). I will do so through a close analysis of the letters and their manuscript context. My central contention is that letters, as well as the activities of letter writing and collecting, must be studied alongside the context of their preservation—despite the trend that has become common among historians and editors to dissociate them. Many modern editions of Lupus's letters, for instance, eschew manuscript presentation and seek to restore the "original" letter chronology. I propose that the relationship between letters and their preservation is closely tied to individual and social memory. A preservative intent is, naturally, discernible in letter collecting, but I will argue that the desire to remember and be remembered was also a significant factor in motivating Lupus's letter writing: the letter itself serves an important memorative social function. Indeed, the letter fulfils a broader preservative function, conserving and recontextualizing information. Furthermore, both letter and collection draw upon a vocabulary of memory to communicate with their audiences. In this respect, the commemorative value of Lupus's letters within an epistolary memorial, such as the Paris manuscript, derive from the social contexts of their composition, transmission, and receipt.