Lack of the accent at the beginning of bar 17 in GC (→GE1) at the beginning of bar 17 is most probably Chopin's oversight, who would add accents in these bars in GC. The sign is present in EE, whose base text was also probably completed by Chopin in this way. The accent was added in GE2 (→GE3) too. In FE there are no accents of dynamic character in bars 15-20.
In GE all accents were interpreted as shorts, contrary to the compatible, distinct notation of GC and EE (cf. the short accent in bar 20).
Compare the passage in the sources»
category imprint: Differences between sources; Corrections & alterations
issues: Long accents, Inaccuracies in GE, Authentic corrections in GC
notation: Articulation, Accents, Hairpins