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Robert Burton

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 MelancholyPersistence and Opportunity of Time and Place; Meetings, Conversation…

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Persistence and Opportunity of Time and Place; Meetings, Conversation…

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1651 English

495–496

to say they are younger then they are. Carmides in the said Lucian loved Philematium, an old maid of 45. years, she swore to him she was but 32. next December. But to dissemble in this kind, is familiar of all sides, and often it takes.

Fallere credentem res est operosa puellam,

’tis soon done, no such great mastery,

Egregiam verò laudem, & spolia ampla, ——

And nothing so frequent as to bely their estates, to prefer their suites, and to advance themselves. Many men to fetch over a young woman, widdows, or whom they love, will not stick to crack, forge and fain any thing comes next, bid his boy fetch his cloak, rapier, gloves, jewels, &c. in such a chest, scarlet-golden-tissue breeches, &c. when there is no such matter;

or make any scruple to give out, as he did in Petronius, that he was master of a ship, kept so many servants, and to personate their part the better, take upon them to be gentlemen of good houses, well descended and allied, hire apparell at brokers, some Scavinger or pricklouse Tailors to attend upon them for the time, swear they have great possessions, bribe, lye, cog, and foist how dearly they love, how bravely they will maintain her, like any Lady, Countess, Dutchess, or Queen; they shall have gowns, tiers, jewels, coaches, and caroches, choice diet,

The heads of Parrats, tongues of Nightingals. The brains of Peacocks, and of Estriches, Their bath shall be the juyce of Gilliflowres, Spirit of Roses, and of Violets, The milk of Unicorns, &c.

as old Vulpone courted Cælia in the Comœdy, when as they are no such men, not worth a groat, but meer sharkers, to make a fortune, to get their desire, or else pretend love to spend their idle hours, to be more welcome, and for better entertainment. The conclusion is, they mean nothing less,

Nil metuunt jurare, nihil promittere curant: Sed simulac cupidæ mentis satiata libido est, Dicta nihil metuere, nihil perjuria curant.Oathes, vows, promises, are much protested; But when their minde and lust is satisfied, Oathes, vows, promises, are quite neglected.

though he solemnly swear by the Genius of Cæsar, by Venus shrine, Hymens deity, by Jupiter, and all the other gods, give no credit to his words. For when Lovers swear, Venus laughs, Venus hæc perjuria ridet, Jupiter himself smiles, and pardons it withall, as grave Plato gives out, of all perjury, that alone for love matters is forgiven by the gods.

9632.BurtonPrinted page 495, c: “Dejeravit illa secundum supra trigesimum ad proximum Decembrem completuram se esse.” “She swore that she would complete her thirty-second year next December.”

9634.BurtonPrinted page 495, dagger: “Ovid.” Ovid.

9638.BurtonPrinted page 495, d: “Nam donis vincitur omnis amor. Catullus 1. el. 5.” “For every love is conquered by gifts.” Catullus, book 1, elegy 5, as printed; the line is Tibullus 1.5.60.

9641.BurtonPrinted page 495, e: “Fox. act. 3. sc. 3.” Ben Jonson, The Fox, act 3, scene 3, as cited by Burton.

9642.BurtonPrinted page 496, p: “Catullus.” Catullus.

9644.BurtonPrinted page 496, q: “Perjuria ridet amantum Jupiter, & ventos irrita ferre jubet, Tibul. lib. 3. & 6.” “Jupiter laughs at lovers’ perjury and bids the winds carry their idle oaths away.” Tibullus, book 3 and 6, as printed; compare 3.6.49–50.

9645.BurtonPrinted page 496, e: “In Philebo. pejerantibus his dii soli ignoscunt.” In the Philebus. “The gods pardon these perjurers alone.” The attribution to this dialogue is retained; compare the Symposium.

The Anatomy of Melancholy: Persistence and Opportunity of Time and Place; Meetings, Conversation…

p. 774

They say they are younger than they are. Charmides, in the same Lucian, loved Philematium, an unmarried woman of forty-five; she swore to him that she would be only thirty-two next December. But such deception is common on all sides, and often succeeds.

To deceive a trusting girl is a laborious business.

It is soon done, no great feat:

Splendid praise indeed, and rich spoils!

Nothing is more common than lying about their wealth to further their courtship and improve their standing. To take in a young woman, a widow, or whoever they love, many men will not hesitate to boast, fabricate and invent whatever comes to mind: telling the servant boy to fetch his cloak, rapier, gloves, jewels and so on from such-and-such a chest, his scarlet breeches of cloth of gold, and so forth, when none of these things exists.

Nor will they scruple to announce, like the fellow in Petronius, that they own a ship and keep so many servants. To play their part better, they pretend to be gentlemen of good families, well born and well connected; hire clothes from secondhand dealers and some street cleaner or louse-stabbing tailors to attend them for the occasion; swear they have great estates; bribe, lie, cheat and pass off their stories of how dearly they love her and how magnificently they will keep her, like any lady, countess, duchess or queen. She shall have gowns, headdresses, jewels, coaches and carriages, and the finest food:

The heads of parrots, tongues of nightingales, The brains of peacocks and of ostriches; Their bath shall be the juice of gillyflowers, Essence of roses and of violets, The milk of unicorns, and so on.

So old Volpone courted Celia in the comedy. In reality these men are nothing of the sort, not worth a groat, merely swindlers seeking a fortune or the fulfilment of their desires. Or they pretend to be in love to fill their idle hours, make themselves more welcome and secure better hospitality. The upshot is that they have no intention of keeping their promises:

They fear no oath, take no care over what they promise; But once the lust of their eager mind is satisfied, They fear nothing for their words and care nothing for perjury.

Oaths, vows and promises are loudly declared; But once their mind and lust are satisfied, Oaths, vows and promises are quite forgotten.

Though he solemnly swears by Caesar’s guardian spirit, by Venus’s shrine, by Hymen’s divinity, by Jupiter and all the other gods, put no trust in his words. For when lovers swear, Venus laughs: “Venus laughs at these false oaths.” Jupiter himself smiles and pardons them too, as the solemn Plato declares: of all perjury, only that committed in matters of love is forgiven by the gods.

9633.Lucian, Dialogues of Courtesans 11: Charmides and Tryphaena discuss Philematium. The consulted text gives her claim as twenty-two on her next birthday, against an alleged actual age of forty-five. Burton’s thirty-two and next December, supported by his Latin margin, are retained.

9635.The 1651 text prints res est operosa, “is a laborious business,” but Burton’s immediate English says the opposite. Ovid, Heroides 2.63–64, reads non est operosa … gloria: deceiving a trusting girl is no difficult glory. The original column preserves Burton’s printed words; their literal translation is followed by his contradictory English gloss.

9636.Virgil, Aeneid 4.93: Juno sarcastically congratulates Venus on overcoming one woman, Dido. The fragment is similarly ironic here.

9637.Fetch over means trick or take in; crack, boast; estate, wealth or property. Tissue is a rich fabric woven with gold or silver thread. Burton shifts loosely between singular and plural in the feigned instructions to a servant.

9639.Pricklouse derides a tailor’s needle as piercing lice. Cog and foist mean cheat and pass off falsehoods; tiers are headdresses, caroches large carriages. Compare Petronius, Satyricon 117: Eumolpus and his companions stage a wealthy master and servants to exploit legacy-hunters at Croton, inventing African estates and losses in a shipwreck. This is a close parallel for pretended wealth, not a verified match for Burton’s shipowner detail. The gifts line is Tibullus 1.5.60, despite Catullus in the margin.

9640.Ben Jonson, Volpone, act 3, in the scene with Celia. Burton combines portions of the speech, changes the pronouns and omits intervening lines; scene divisions differ from his citation. Gillyflowers are fragrant cultivated flowers, especially carnations or pinks. The extravagant unicorn milk is part of the fictional seducer’s promised luxury.

9643.Catullus 64.146–148, from Ariadne’s lament. The checked Latin reads parcunt, “they refrain,” rather than Burton’s curant, “they care,” in the first line, and has other minor verbal differences. The translation follows Burton’s wording and context: they take no care over the promises they make. His separate English triplet follows.

9646.Genius is a guardian spirit; Hymen is the marriage god. The lovers’ exemption from ordinary oaths appears in Plato’s Symposium 183b, in Pausanias’s account, rather than the Philebus named in Burton’s margin. The Jupiter couplet is in the Tibullan collection, 3.6.49–50; Burton’s “lib. 3. & 6.” is retained as printed.

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.