Andreas Gryphius, poet between epochs

It is the purpose of the present study to point out principles at work in Gryphius' poetry that allow the reader to think in terms of two basic main themes: that of Gryphius as a meditative poet involved with the arrangement of sequences of sonnets, and that of Gryphius as a poet attempting to work by analogy. The conclusion suggests that this poet may be seen as a transitional figure who holds in quasi-equipoise those forces of change that within a few years bring about the transformation from the medieval and Renaissance modes of thinking into that of the modern world.