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Diotimos Library · Journals, Notebooks & Fragments Collection · Parallel Edition

Robert Burton

The Anatomy of Melancholy

1651 English with a close modern English rendering

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The Anatomy of MelancholyContextual Lexicon

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English Introduction · Branch 1140 of 1495

Contextual Lexicon

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Contextual Lexicon

p. 1140

The places. Hippocrates admires Democritus’s favourable circumstances and leisure. (p. 24; DJR-008-11.) Halcyonian times figure an elusive security and contentment. (p. 107; DJR-042-19.)

In this edition. “happinesse and leasure” → “good fortune and leisure” (DJR-008-11); “Halcyonian times” → “halcyon days” (DJR-042-19). Good fortune emphasizes the circumstances that make inquiry possible. Halcyon days retains the familiar image, while the following clause states its sense.

See also. Constancy; Hope; Mediocrity.

Heart and cordolium

Source forms: Cordolium

The word. Cordolium is literally heart-pain or heartache. In this passage it names grief that ordinary comforts cannot remove, rather than supplying an anatomical diagnosis.

In Burton. Menedemus’s servants attend to his clothes, bed and supper, but these acts cannot reach his distress over his absent son. The list of practical comforts makes the persistence of the heartache more forceful.

The places. The father’s grief survives his servants’ efforts to comfort him. (p. 184; DJR-059-08.)

In this edition. “Cordolium” → “heartache” (DJR-059-08). Heartache preserves both the bodily image and the emotional sense. The surrounding lost his son means that the son has gone away; it does not report his death.

See also. Sorrow.

Helleborism

Source forms: Helleborismum

The word. Helleborism here means treatment with hellebore. The Latin Helleborismum occurs in a marginal remedy, naming treatment rather than a separate disease.

In Burton. Burton closes this part of the discussion of young women’s illnesses by directing readers to medical authorities on diet, bloodletting and other remedies. The margin singles out enemas and Mattioli’s treatment with hellebore for praise. Keeping the margin distinct from the body prevents its term from becoming an extra diagnosis in the catalogue.

The places. The treatment survey carries a marginal reference to hellebore. (p. 203–204; DJR-063-06.)

In this edition. “Helleborismum” → “treatment with hellebore” (DJR-063:B03; margin). The equivalent comes from the translated marginal note. Helleborism is the article heading; the book’s note explains the treatment directly.

See also. Purging; Calenture and ague.

Herbal

Source forms: Herbal

The word. An herbal is a book describing plants and their properties. A well-cut herbal is well engraved; the adjective concerns the making of its illustrations, not the cutting of herbs.

In Burton. Burton includes illustrated plant books among the pleasures of study and looking. His list culminates in Besler’s large herbal, praised for natural colours and plants depicted at their own size. The book serves as an example of absorbing visual recreation.

The places. Illustrated herbals provide pleasure through accurate-looking plant images. (p. 280; DJR-081-06.)

In this edition. “a well cut Herbal” → “a well-engraved herbal” (DJR-081-06). Well-engraved clarifies the workmanship. Herbal remains the book’s historical genre, explained here and in the local note.

See also. Art; Pine apple.

Heroical love

Source forms: Knight melancholy; heroical; Ilishi; Elishi

The word. Heroical love is a historical category of erotic love associated with melancholy. The name does not by itself praise courage or nobility. Knight’s melancholy belongs to the same vocabulary, while Ilishi and Elishi are printed forms in Burton’s citations of Avicenna.

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About This Reading Edition

Robert Burton’s Anatomy ranges across medicine, philosophy, poetry, religion, and everyday life in its inquiry into melancholy. This complete parallel edition pairs the 1651 English text with a close modern English rendering, preserving the three Partitions, Democritus Junior’s address to the reader, verse, and the historical index.

Historical Text and Translation

The historical text follows the sixth edition, printed at Oxford for Henry Cripps in 1651, using the McGill University Library copy. The supplied edition documents missing printed pages 98–99 supplied from another 1651 copy at the Bavarian State Library. Historical folio labels and their irregularities remain visible; web reader numbers identify reflowed passages and do not claim to reproduce PDF pagination.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared the close modern English rendering and editorial matter. All 8,755 original and modern passage pairs remain aligned, with verse breaks, italics, continuations, and linked annotations preserved. Burton’s 6,781 historical notes retain their attribution; 6,895 editorial notes remain distinct. The introduction, Note on the Text, contextual lexicon, indexes, source documentation, and bibliography are included. The engraved frontispiece remains available in the original downloads.

Rights

Burton’s historical text is in the public domain. The modern English rendering, introduction, notes, and editorial matter are © 2026 Diotimos Editions and appear with the site owner’s permission. The complete supplied PDF, EPUB, Word, and Markdown files remain available unchanged. The PDF and Word edition preserve the original parallel page layout.