The anatomy of melancholy. : What it is, with all the kinds causes, symptomes, prognostickes & seuerall cures of it. : In three partitions, with their severall sections, members & subsections, philosophically, medicinally, historically opened & cut-vp

The anatomy of melancholy. : What it is, with all the kinds causes, symptomes, prognostickes & seuerall cures of it. : In three partitions, with their severall sections, members & subsections, philosophically, medicinally, historically opened & cut-vp

Melancholy

The following image was taken from Robert Burton’s The Anatomy of Melancholy. Burton’s book is fixed on the symptoms of a man’s jealousy; it introduces jealousy as one of the most powerful passions that one can have and specifically describes men as bearing a higher intensity of it than women. His description of jealousy involves the obsession of a man to keep a close eye on his spouse for actions that hint toward adultery or fornication, often interpreting what he sees or hears out of context and becoming unnecessarily frustrated or hostile. The cure for such jealousy Burton exclaims, is patience, as adultery though common shouldn’t be a primary means of prosecution just based on a hunch.

Burton’s observation of jealousy can be applied to the character Othello in his obsession over Desdemona’s supposed affair with Cassio. After first hearing of Desdemona’s betrayal from Iago, Othello gradually loses all sense of reasoning and peace of mind, having to constantly deal with his inner conflict over whether to accept Iago’s news or not. Othello’s distress eventually turns to sadness, and out of such sadness he becomes easily irritable and frustrated throughout the remainder of the play (a result similar to that which Burton proposed). In contrast to how Burton claims one can cure their jealousy (with patience), Othello turns to accusations and rash decisions (such as his plan with Iago to kill Desdemona) in order to silence his internal struggles. The path that Othello takes towards dealing with his jealousy and the end result of his story is forewarned by Burton to future men that experience such emotions to find a better way to remove the burdens it bears.

Robert Burton 1577-1640

01EMORY ALMA

Oxford : Printed for Henry Cripps

1638

This edition was printed by R. Young at Edinburgh, L. Litchfield at Oxford, and W. Turner at Oxford, with cancels by M. Flesher at London"--Smith, P.J.- Bib. Burtoniana, p. 88

With permission from the Rose Library

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14 unnumbered pages, 78, 2 unnumbered pages, 218, 4 unnumbered pages, 219-723, that is, 731 pages, 11 unnumbered pages ; 29 cm (folio)

English

Book

PR2223 .A1 1638A

17th Century

Paper

[no text]