The Anatomy of Melancholy

Name: The Anatomy of Melancholy
Author: Robert Burton

1651 English with a close modern English rendering

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The Anatomy of MelancholyMember 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

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1651 English Page · Branch 575 of 1495

Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

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1651 English

338

Eutrapilus when he would hurt a knave, Gave him gay clothes and wealth to make him brave: Because now rich he would quite change his minde, Keep whores, fly out, set honesty behinde.

On the other side, in adversity many mutter and repine, despair, &c. both bad I confess,

—— ut calceus olim Si pede major erit, subvertet: si minor, uret.

As a shoo too big or too little, one pincheth, the other sets the foot awry, sed è malis minimum. If Adversity hath killed his thousand, prosperity hath killed his ten thousand: therefore Adversity is to be preferred; hæc fræno indiget, illa solatio: illa fallit, hæc instruit: The one deceives, the other instructs; the one miserably happy, the other happily miserable: and therefore many Philosophers have voluntarily sought adversity, and so much commend it in their precepts.

Demetrius in Seneca esteemed it a great infelicity, that in his life time he had no misfortune, miserum cui nihil unquam accidisset adversi. Adversity then is not so heavily to be taken, & we ought not in such cases so much to macerate our selves: there is no such odds in poverty and riches.

To conclude in Hieroms words, I will ask our magnificoes that build with marble, and bestow a whole Manor on a thred, what difference betwixt them and Paul the Ermite, that bare old man: they drink in jewels, he in his hand: he is poor and goes to heaven, they are rich and go to hell.

6957.BurtonPrinted page 338, g: “Hor.” Horace; Epistles 1.10.42–43.

6959.BurtonPrinted page 338, h: “Boeth. 2.” Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy, book 2.

6962.BurtonPrinted page 338, i: “Epist. lib. 3. vit. Paul. Eremit. Libet eos nunc interrogare qui domus marmoribus vestiunt, qui uno filo villarum ponunt precia, huic seni modo quid unquam defuit? vos gemma bibitis, ille concavis manibus naturæ satisfecit; ille pauper paradisum capit, vos avaros gehenna suscipiet.” “Letters, book 3, Life of Paul the Hermit. I wish now to ask those who clothe their houses in marble and put the price of estates into a single thread: what did this old man ever lack? You drink from a jewel; he satisfied nature with his cupped hands. That poor man gains paradise; hell will receive you greedy people.”

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Member 3 Against Poverty and Want and Other Such Adversities

p. 575

When Eutrapelus wished to harm a rogue, He gave him fine clothes and wealth to make him grand. For, rich now, he would change his mind completely, Keep prostitutes, run wild and put honesty last.

On the other hand, in adversity many grumble, complain and despair, and so on. Both conditions are bad, I admit:

As with a shoe: If it is too big for the foot, it trips you; if too small, it chafes.

Like a shoe too big or too small: one pinches, the other turns the foot awry. “But choose the least of evils.” If adversity has killed its thousand, prosperity has killed its ten thousand. Adversity is therefore to be preferred. “The one needs a bridle, the other consolation; the one deceives, the other instructs.” One is miserably happy, the other happily miserable. Many philosophers have therefore sought adversity of their own accord and praise it so highly in their teachings.

Demetrius, in Seneca, thought it a great misfortune that he had met no misfortune in his lifetime: “Unhappy is the man to whom nothing adverse has ever happened.” Adversity, then, should not be taken so heavily; in such circumstances we ought not to wear ourselves away so much. There is no such great difference between poverty and riches.

To conclude in Jerome’s words: I will ask our grandees, who build with marble and spend an entire estate on a thread, what difference there is between them and Paul the Hermit, that destitute old man. They drink from jewelled cups; he drinks from his hand. He is poor and goes to heaven; they are rich and go to hell.

6958.Horace, Epistles 1.10.42–43. A person whose circumstances do not fit is compared to someone wearing the wrong size of shoe.

6960.Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy 2, prose 8, argues that prosperous fortune deceives while adversity teaches. The preceding “bridle/consolation” phrase is not located in that passage; its wording is retained without assigning both pronouns a fixed antecedent. The thousand and ten thousand adapt the song about Saul and David in 1 Samuel 18:7.

6961.Seneca, On Providence 3.3, attributes to Demetrius a general judgement that the person who never suffers adversity is unfortunate. Burton recasts this as a statement about Demetrius’s own life. His wording is preserved here. “Macerate” means wear down or torment; “odds” means difference or disparity.

6963.Jerome, Life of Paul the First Hermit 17, attacks luxury by contrasting costly homes and clothes with the hermit’s few needs. The marginal Latin condemns the avaricious; Burton’s English more broadly says “rich.” The thread represents expensive clothing. His wording and emphasis are preserved.

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.