| Summary: | <p>This thesis suggests a new methodological approach towards medieval mystical texts associated with a female author figure. Instead of a historical-critical method, it proposes adopting a perspective rooted in the individual manifestation that places the text within its cultural context within and outside the manuscript. The 'Liber specialis gratiae' by Mechthild of Hackeborn provides a case study due to its large transmission and its textual instability, resulting in a variety of functional usages. The distribution of manuscripts across a wide area offers insights into the way in which different monastic orders, monasteries, or even individual recipients read the text. Compared to texts transmitted only in a small number of manuscripts, the 'Liber specialis gratiae' therefore allows an examination of the different layers of reception. Passages of the text can be presented as prayer books, didactic manuals, hagiographic manuscripts as well as textual witnesses transmitting the 'Liber' as its only text. By rearranging different sections or just individual phrases, alternative ways of reading are offered. Simultaneously, the context of reception acquires significance, for example the way in which the manuscripts were produced, distributed, and kept within monasteries. The change from manuscript to print and its effect can also be observed, leading to differing manifestations. Moreover, the material offers insights into the fact that reception does not stop at the end of the manuscript era but continues into the period of printed editions and academic engagement with the text. Considering how Mechthild and the 'Liber' were perceived across time is therefore an integral part of this study.</p>
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