Theodor Fontane was a passionate visitor of historical monuments, and his text Wanderungen durch die Mark Brandenburg entail many references to sculptures, obelisks, churches, and museums. Fontane's description of monuments represents a specific view on history, which undermines a teleological perspective on the past. The article shows that Fontane's monuments embody eschatological, allegorical, and arabesque interpretations of the past, which in turn poetizes and de-historizes history.

Theodor Fontane war ein passionierter Besucher und Kenner historischer Denkmäler. Auch seine Texte weisen seine Begeisterung für das Historische auf, wie sein Werk Wanderungen durch die Mark Brandenburg mit seinen enthalten zahlreiche Referenzen auf Skulpturen, Obelisken, Kirchen und Museen besonders gut demonstriert. In diesem Artikel soll gezeigt werden, dass Fontanes Beschreibungen der dortigen Monumente eine spezifische Sicht auf historische Erinnerungsstätten aufweisen, die eine teleologische und nationale Sichtweise auf die Geschichte zum Teil unterwandern. Fontanes Denkmäler repräsentieren vielmehr einen mehrdimensionalen Geschichtsperspektivismus, in dem eschatologische, allegorische und arabeske Geschichtsmodelle gegeneinander konkurrieren.

O presente artigo investiga a função e realidade da linguagem na teoria dos sistemas de Niklas Luhmann. Como se pode interpretar a suposição sistêmico-teórica de que a linguagem é baseada na comunicação? Luhmann descreve a linguagem como uma relação dinâmica entre meio e forma, a qual é capaz de ligar o sistema social e psicológico. Essa conexão estrutural, que constroi a consciência e a linguagem como dois sistemas autônomos, gera problemas quando se define a linguagem do ponto de vista cognitivo. Este artigo discute tais problemas e pretende desenvolver suposições e questões a partir da própria abordagem sistêmico-teórica.

This article investigates the function and reality of language in Niklas Luhmann's systems theory. How can one interpret the systems-theoretical assumption that language is based on communication? Luhmann describes language as a dynamic media/form relationship, which is able to couple the social and psychological system. This structural coupling, which constructs consciousness and language as two autonomous systems, raises problems if one defines language from a cognitive point of view. This article discusses these problems and aims to develop assumptions and questions within the systems-theoretical approach.