Ein Vade Mecum für den Herrn Samuel Gotthold Lange

polemic by Lessing

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July 14, 2026

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Ein Vade Mecum für den Herrn Samuel Gotthold Lange was a polemical essay written by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing in 1754. This work was a sharp critique directed at Samuel Gotthold Lange, an arrogant scholar whose translations of the Roman poet Horace were considered careless and corrupt. Lessing's essay effectively dismantled Lange's literary reputation, showcasing Lessing's mastery of style as a formidable weapon in literary disputes. Lessing was a prominent German dramatist, critic, and writer on philosophy and aesthetics, known for freeing German drama from classical and French influences and advocating for religious and intellectual tolerance.1

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Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Rising reputation as dramatist and critic.
His scintillating and biting polemic Ein Vade Mecum für den Herrn Samuel Gotthold Lange (1754) was directed against the carelessly corrupt translations of the poetry of Horace by the arrogant scholar S.G. Lange, whose literary reputation was demolished by Lessing’s attack. From this point on, Lessing was justly feared as…
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His scintillating and biting polemic Ein Vade Mecum für den Herrn Samuel Gotthold Lange (1754) was directed against the carelessly corrupt translations of the poetry of Horace by the arrogant scholar S.G. Lange, whose literary reputation was demolished by Lessing’s attack. From this point on, Lessing was justly feared as…
Read More