Joachim Günther — eine Schlüsselfigur in der Geschichte des Aphorismus im 20. Jahrhundert

Joachim Günther (1905—1990) became a key figure in the history of aphorism in the early Bundesrepublik: as an editor, critic, and author, as someone who stimulated and supported others. Nevertheless, he has largely been neglected in literature studies. This is the first article to follow his intellectual biography under the aspect of aphorism. From the early 1920s, he worked in a triangle of philosophy, theology, and literature. This article rediscovers several sources, especially from the time of the Third Reich and from the Nietzsche context. It shows the personal context of the author at the beginning of the Neue Deutsche Hefte (1954—1990)—Paul Fechter, Heinrich Scholz, Martin Kessel, Hans Kudszus, Ernst Wilhelm Eschmann, Werner Helwig and others—and investigates the editor's ideological guidelines. It deduces Günthers understanding of the genre from his choice of authors, his own reviews, and his aphoristic work. Thus a differentiated and well-balanced assessment of his contribution to the history of the genre is formed.