The Anatomy of Melancholy Volume I: Text

by Burton, Robert; Faulkner, Thomas C.; Kiessling, Nicholas K.; Bamborough, J. B.

• ISBN13: 9780198124481
• ISBN10: 0198124481
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1989-12-07
• Publisher: Clarendon Press

Summary

Robert Burton's The Anatomy of Melancholy is one of the last great works of English prose to have remained unedited. The present volume inaugurates an authoritative edition of the work, which is being prepared by scholars on both sides of the Atlantic. It will be followed by two furthervolumes of text with textual apparatus, and two volumes of commentary.Burton concentrated a lifetime of inquiry into the Anatomy, describing and analysing melancholy and its causes - devoting especial attention to love and religion - and recording possible cures. Primarily a scholarly study of morbid psychology, it is also a compendium of curious facts and anecdotes,and combines seriousness of purpose with a marked satirical vein. First published in 1621, it was a great success: four more editions were published in Burton's lifetime, in each of which new material was added, and a sixth, containing his final revisions, was published in in 1651, eleven years after his death. The textual complexity and Burton's extraordinaryrange of reference have hitherto deterred editors: this is the first scholarly edition to appear. The text is based on a complete collation of all six authoritative editions.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. xi
Introduction	p. xiii
Textual Introduction	p. xxxvii
The Anatomy of Melancholy
The Argument of the Frontispeice	p. lxii
Frontispiece	p. lxiii
Dedication	p. lxv
Democritus Junior ad Librum suum	p. lxvi
The Authors Abstract of Melancholy	p. lxix
Democritus Junior to the Reader	p. 1
Lectori male feriato	p. 114
Heraclite fleas, misero sic convenit aevo	p. 115
The Synopsis of the First Partition	p. 117
The First Partition
Mans Excellency, Fall, Miseries, Infirmities, The causes of them	p. 121
The Definition, Number, Division of Diseases	p. 129
Division of the Diseases of the Head	p. 130
Dotage, Phrensie, Madnesse, Hydrophobia, Lycanthropia; Chorus sancti Viti, Extasis	p. 132
Melancholy in disposition, improperly so called, AEquivocations	p. 136
Digression of Anatomy	p. 139
Division of the Body. Humours, Spirits	p. 140
Similar Parts	p. 142
Dissimilar Parts	p. 143
Of the Soule and her Faculties	p. 147
Of the Sensible Soule	p. 150
Of the Inward Senses	p. 152
Of the Moving Faculty	p. 153
Of the Rationall Soule	p. 155
Of the Understanding	p. 158
Of the Will	p. 159
Definition of Melancholy, Name, Difference	p. 162
Of the part affected. Affection. Parties affected	p. 163
Of the Matter of Melancholy	p. 166
Of the Species or Kindes of Melancholy	p. 168
Causes of Melancholy. GOD a Cause	p. 171
A Digression of the Nature of Spirits, bad Angels or Divels, and how they cause Melancholy	p. 174
Of Witches and Magitians, how they cause Melancholy	p. 195
Starres a Cause. Signes from Physiognomy, Metoposcopy, Chiromancy	p. 199
Old Age a Cause	p. 203
Parents a Cause by Propagation	p. 205
Bad Diet a Cause. Substance. Quality of Meats	p. 211
Quantity of Diet a Cause	p. 220
Custome of Diet, Delight, Appetite, Necessity, how they cause or hinder	p. 225
Retention and Evacuation a Cause, and how	p. 229
Bad Aire a Cause of Melancholy	p. 233
Immoderate Exercise a Cause, and how. Solitarinesse, Idlenesse	p. 238
Sleeping and Waking Causes	p. 245
Passions and Perturbations of the Minde, how they cause Melancholy	p. 246
Of the Force of Imagination	p. 250
Division of Perturbations	p. 255
Sorrow a Cause of Melancholy	p. 256
Feare a Cause	p. 259
Shame and Disgrace Causes	p. 261
Envy, Malice, Hatred, Causes	p. 263
AEmulation, Hatred, Faction, Desire of Revenge Causes	p. 265
Anger a Cause	p. 268
Discontents, Cares, Miseries, &c. Causes	p. 270
Concupiscible Appetite, as Desires, Ambition, Causes	p. 280
[characters not reproducible]. Covetousnesse a Cause	p. 283
Love of Gaming, &c. and Pleasures, immoderate: Causes	p. 288
Philautia, or Selfe-love, Vaine-glory, Praise, Honour, Immoderate Applause, Pride, over-much Joy, &c. Causes	p. 293
Love of Learning, or overmuch Study. With a Digression of the Misery of Schollers, and why the Muses are Melancholy	p. 302
Non-necessary, remote, outward, adventitious, or accidentall Causes: as first from the Nurse	p. 327
Education a Cause of Melancholy	p. 330
Terrors and Affrights Causes of Melancholy	p. 333
Scoffs, Calumnies, bitter Jests, how they cause Melancholy	p. 337
Losse of Liberty, Servitude, Imprisonment, how they cause Melancholy	p. 341
Poverty and Want, Causes of Melancholy	p. 344
An Heape of other Accidents causing Melancholy. Death of Friends, Losses, &c.	p. 356
Continent, inward, antecedent, next Causes, and how the Body workes on the Minde	p. 372
Distemperature of particular Parts, Causes	p. 374
Causes of Head Melancholy	p. 376
Causes of Hypocondriacall or Windie Melancholy	p. 378
Causes of Melancholy from the whole Body	p. 380
Symptomes, or Signes of Melancholy in the Body	p. 381
Symptomes or Signes in the Minde	p. 384
Particular Symptomes from the Influence of Starres. Parts of the Body, and Humours	p. 396
Symptomes from Education, Custome, Continuance of Time, our Condition, mixt with other Diseases, by Fits, Inclination, &c.	p. 403
Symptomes of Head Melancholy	p. 408
Symptomes of windy Hypocondriacall Melancholy	p. 410
Symptomes of Melancholy abounding in the whole Body	p. 413
Symptomes of Maides, Nunnes, and Widowes Melancholy	p. 414
Immediate Cause of these precedent Symptomes	p. 418
Prognosticks of Melancholy	p. 428
Textual Notes	p. 439
Democritus Junior to the Reader	p. 440
The First Partition	p. 505
Index of Persons	p. 649
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