Robert Burton

Obra desmesurada cuya enorme extensión ha hecho sumamente azarosa su trayectoria editorial, la "Anatomía de la melancolía" (1621) es un minucioso examen de un rasgo propio de numerosos temperamentos humanos que, vinculado a veces al genio y otras a la locura, ha hallado forma de manifestarse desde la antigua hipocondria al moderno "spleen" o los actuales trastornos psiquicos. Contemporaneo de John Donne y en buena medida de Shakespeare, Robert Burton (1577-1640) -hombre de carrera silenciosa, sedentaria, solitaria, intima en el Christ Church College de Oxford- incluyo en su magna obra su vasto caudal de conocimientos sobre los mas diversos autores y materias en forma de resumenes historicos, consideraciones filosoficas, anecdotas literarias, mitos y leyendas, citas poeticas, informaciones cientificas, meditaciones teologicas, juicios medicos y entretenidas digresiones. Alberto Manguel nos guia por esta intrincada selva seleccionando los pasajes mas curiosos y cercanos al lector actual, a la vez que proporciona una inmejorable posibilidad de asomarse a una obra mucho mas citada que conocida y que constituye un hito de la cultura occidental.

El sueño utópico de Robert Burton (1577-1640), el desmedido autor de Anatomía de la melancolía, maestro de la prosa barroca inglesa y uno de los raros por excelencia de la literatura europea.

Not simply an investigation into melancholy, these unique essays form part of a panoramic celebration of human behaviour from the time of the ancients to the Renaissance. God, devils, old age, diet, drunkenness, love and beauty are each given equal consideration in this all-encompassing examination of the human condition. Throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves - and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. They have enlightened, outraged, provoked and comforted. They have enriched lives - and destroyed them. Now Penguin brings you the works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.

This edition of The Anatomy of Melancholy is based on a nineteenth-century edition that modernized Burtons spelling and typographic conventions. In preparing this electronic version, it became evident that the editor had made a variety of mistakes in this modernization: some words were left in their original spelling (unusual words were a particular problem), portions of book titles were mistaken for proper names, proper names were mistaken for book titles or Latin words, etc. A certain number of misprints were also introduced into the Latin. As a result, I have re-edited the text, checking it against images of the 1638 edition, and correcting all errors not present in the earlier edition. I have continued to follow the general editorial practice of the base text for quotation marks, italics, etc. Rare words have been normalized according to their primary spelling in the Oxford English Dictionary. When Burton spells a persons name in several ways, I have normalized the names to the most common spelling, or to modern practice if well-known. In a few cases, mistakes present in both the 1683 edition and the base text have been corrected. These are always minor reference errors (e.g., an incorrect or missing section number in the synopses, or misnumbered footnotes). Incorrect citations to other texts (Burton seems to quote by memory and sometimes gets it wrong) have not been changed if they are wrong in both editions. To display some symbols (astrological signs, etc.) the HTML version requires a browser with unicode support. Most recent browsers should be OK.KTH

One of the major documents of modern European civilization, Robert Burton's astounding compendium, a survey of melancholy in all its myriad forms, has invited nothing but superlatives since its publication in the seventeenth century. Lewellyn Powys called it "the greatest work of prose of the greatest period of English prose-writing," while the celebrated surgeon William Osler declared it the greatest of medical treatises. And Dr. Johnson, Boswell reports, said it was the only book that he rose early in the morning to read with pleasure. In this surprisingly compact and elegant new edition, Burton's spectacular verbal labyrinth is sure to delight, instruct, and divert today's readers as much as it has those of the past four centuries.

One of the richest, most inexhaustible books in the English language, "The Anatomy of Melancholy" is an elaborately systematized medical treatise dealing with various morbid mental states -- their causes, symptoms, and cures -- as well as a compendium of memorable utterances on the human condition in general, compiled from classical, scholastic, and contemporary sources.

Although presented as a medical text, The Anatomy of Melancholy is as much a sui generis work of literature as it is a scientific or philosophical text, and Robert Burton addresses far more than his stated subject. In fact, the Anatomy uses melancholy as the lens through which all human emotion and thought may be scrutinized, and virtually the entire contents of a 17th-century library are marshalled into service of this goal.

In "The Anatomy of Melancholy," Robert Burton provides an unparalleled exploration of the human psyche, delving into the causes, symptoms, and remedies of melancholya term that encompasses what we might now refer to as depression. Written in a unique blend of prose and verse, Burtons work is characterized by a rich tapestry of classical references, philosophical musings, and the latest medical knowledge of the 17th century. Its encyclopedic structure invites readers to meander through intricate arguments and digressions, reflecting the authors profound engagement with both human emotion and the intellectual currents of the Renaissance. Robert Burton was not only a scholar but also a clergyman who grappled with his own battles against melancholy, infusing his work with both scholarly rigor and heartfelt experience. His education at Oxford and deep engagement with a variety of texts and fields, including astrology, philosophy, and literature, informed his comprehensive approach to a subject that resonated with many of his contemporaries. Burtons personal struggles add a poignant layer to his examination, bridging the gap between intellectual inquiry and lived experience. This seminal work is essential for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of human emotion, making it a must-read for students of psychology, literature, and the humanities. Burtons insights remain remarkably relevant today, inviting readers to reflect upon their own emotional landscapes while offering a profound commentary on the universality of melancholy.In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience:- A succinct Introduction situates the works timeless appeal and themes.- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the eras events and influences that shaped the writing.- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the works messages, connecting them to modern life.- Handpicked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.

Obra desmesurada, cuya enorme extensión ha hecho sumamente azarosa su trayectoria editorial desde que se publicara por vez primera en 1621, la ANATOMÍA DE LA MELANCOLÍA es un minucioso examen de un rasgo propio de numerosos temperamentos humanos que, vinculado a veces al genio y otras a la locura, ha hallado forma de manifestarse desde la antigua hipocondria al moderno spleen o los contemporaneos trastornos psiquicos. Contemporaneo de John Donne y en buena medida de Shakespeare, ROBERT BURTON (1577-1640), hombre de carrera silenciosa, sedentaria, solitaria, intima en el Christ Church College de Oxford, del que llego a ser bibliotecario en 1626, incluyo en su magna obra el vasto caudal de sus conocimientos sobre los mas diversos autores y materias en forma de resumenes historicos, consideraciones filosoficas, anecdotas literarias, mitos y leyendas, citas poeticas, informaciones cientificas, meditaciones teologicas, juicios medicos y entretenidas digresiones. Prologuista y antologo de este volumen, Alberto Manguel hace de guia por esta intrincada selva, seleccionando los pasajes mas curiosos y cercanos al lector actual, y proporciona una inmejorable posibilidad de asomarse a una obra mucho mas citada que conocida y que constituye una obra fundamental de la cultura.

Robert Burton's The Anatomy of Melancholy (1621) has cast a long, shimmering shadow, on Milton (L'Allegro and Il Penseroso in particular), on the wits of Queen Anne's reign and the beginning of George I's, and on Swift. Doctor Johnson praised it vehemently. Sterne is its most comprehensive beneficiary in Tristram Shandy. He was a favourite with Coleridge, Lamb and Southey. Keats owes 'Lamia' and much else to Robert Burton. Byron praised it as the most entertaining of literary miscellanies. The Anatomy is either the first major text in the history of Western cognitive science, or a satire on human learning and striving. Burton is not original, but he is comprehensive, and he writes with a wry brilliance. He was familiar with nearly all the medical, astrological, and magical books then extant. He introduces several key terms which remain dominant in models of cognition through to the Victorian era, among them Phantasy or Imagination, Reflection, the Senses and Understanding. Locke in 1690 was to adopt much of Burton's model and terminology. Anthony a Wood gives the following character of Robert Burton (1577-1640): 'As he was by many accounted a severe student, a devourer of authors, a melancholy and humorous person, so by others who knew him well a person of great honesty, plain dealing and charity. I have heard some of the ancients of Christ Church often say that his company was very merry...' This new selection draws on The Anatomy and other key writings.

Journey through the subject of melancholia in this easily accessible volume, touching on topics from love and sex to religion and geography. A new volume to add to Hesperuss unique and bestselling On

First published in 1621 under the persona "Democritus Junior," The Anatomy of Melancholy is an encyclopedic inquiry into sadness that ranges across medicine, philosophy, theology, and poetry. Organized into learned partitions on causes, symptoms, and cures, it surveys humoral physiology, lovesickness, religious despair, and civic malaise, proposing regimens of diet, exercise, music, friendship, and physic. Burtons baroque, digressive prose, thick with classical citations and sly satire, embodies the early modern commonplace tradition, turning marginalia into method and making the book a polyphonic laboratory of the mind. Robert Burton, an Oxford scholar and cleric, lived amid the libraries and debates of early Stuart England, where scholarship, medicine, and theology interpenetrated. Afflicted, by his own account, with recurring melancholy, he read voraciously and revised the work through multiple expanded editions. His erudition, pastoral experience, and self-experimentation converge to produce a study that is at once clinical, moral, and comic. Readers of intellectual history, literature, or psychology will find in Burton a companionable guide whose wit and compassion remain startlingly modern. Approach this book for its learned consolations, its taxonomy of sorrow, and its exuberant style; stay for the sense that, across centuries, the anatomy it dissects is recognizably our own.Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the authors voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readabledistilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.

Robert Burtons "The Anatomy of Melancholy," first published in 1621, is a pioneering exploration of the human psyche, presenting a profound inquiry into the nature of melancholy, or what we might now call depression. Written in an encyclopedic and digressive style, the work interweaves classical philosophy, medical knowledge, and literary references to dissect the melancholic condition and its societal implications. This ambitious text transcends mere psychology, delving into themes of love, religion, and existential sorrow, thus situating itself in the early modern literary context that began to grapple with the complexities of human emotion and its interplay with reason. Burton, an English cleric and scholar, drew upon his own experiences with melancholy and extensive scholarly pursuits to create this monumental work. Influenced by the scientific advancements of the Renaissance and classical authors such as Aristotle and Galen, Burtons vast knowledge shaped his unique approach to writing. His introspective and often humorous commentary reflects not only personal anguish but also the academic spirit of the period, challenging societal norms around mental health. Readers seeking a rich, multifaceted analysis of melancholy will find "The Anatomy of Melancholy" both enlightening and literary. Its timeless exploration of human emotion invites reflection, making it essential for anyone interested in psychology, literature, or the historical context of mental health. This work remains a keystone in understanding the Renaissances complex relationship with sorrow and the human condition.In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience:- A succinct Introduction situates the works timeless appeal and themes.- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the eras events and influences that shaped the writing.- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the works messages, connecting them to modern life.- Handpicked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.