The Epistolary Gift, the Editorial Third-Party, Counter-Epistolaria: Rethinking the Epistolarium

Rather than absence and loss as the basis of epistolarity, such exchanges mainly come about because of the ongoing social and relational bonds of relationship and connection between the writer/signatory and the addressee: in this context letters can be helpfully thought about around 'the system of the epistolary gift'.This argument is developed around examples, particularly the letters of South African feminist writer and social theorist Olive Schreiner (1855 1920).The editorial 'third-party' role in transcribing and transmuting manuscript or typescript letters into a (digital or paper) published form in 'an edition' of the letters of X or Y, is related to the epistolary gift in interesting and ontologically complex ways.These are explored generally as well as concerning the Schreiner letters.Counter-epistolaria, as forms of epistolarity that trouble one or more aspects of definitional characteristics of letters, are explored in relation to their gift dimensions.Examples of three such forms, open letters, draft letters and last letters, are explored, and their 'counter' dimensions used to interrogate some 'ordinary letters' by Schreiner, thereby pointing out that these, too, routinely trouble and 'counter', but do not overturn definitional aspects of the letter.Taking recognition of the epistolary gift, the editorial third-party, counterepistolaria and 'ordinary letters' adds significantly to theorisation of the epistolarium in ways explored in the conclusion.