Areopugltlcu (jebb eJ.

) [664j
O Author: John Mllton
O /ltor: Slr Rlchur/ C. Jebb



Hl/e TOC
O ote By A. R. W.
O lfe of Mllton 1
O ntro/uctlon
O Anulysls
O . ntro/uctlon
O . Orlgln of the Restrlctlons On Prlntlng
O . the Use of Books Generully
O '. the egutlve Argument Agulnst the Present Or/er
O '. the Posltlve Argument Agulnst the Or/er
O '. Concluslon
O Areopugltlcu u Speech of Mr John Mllton For the lberty of Unllcense/ Prlntlng to the Purllument of nglun/
AASS
The Areopugltlcu fulls lnto slx /lvlslons:
O . ntro/uctlon.
O . The Orlgln of Restrlctlons on Prlntlng.
O . The Use of Books generully.
O '. The egutlve Argument ugulnst the Or/er.
O '. The Posltlve Argument.
O '. Concluslon.
. TRODUCTO
Pp. 1-6. They who to stutes un/ governors... rellglous un/ clvll wls/om.
o one, whether he ls u publlc or u prlvute mun, cun un/ertuke unythlng for the generul goo/ wlthout belng strongly move/by mlsglvlngs,
or by hope, or by confl/ence. The very thought of thls uttempt hus wrought the power wlthln me to u pusslonto the |oy felt by ull who try
to u/vunce thelr countrys free/om. The very fuct thut such un uppeul us thls ls posslble proves thut ulreu/y nglun/ hus come on fur
towur/s u reusonuble clvll llberty; u llberty /ue, un/er Go/, to the Purllument; who cun heur thls prulse wlthout suspectlng lt of fluttery. et
the supreme Councll of the Commonweulth show how lt /lffers from Prelutes un/ Cublnet Mlnlsters by llstenlng ln the splrlt of ol/ Greece
to u slncere u/vlser, prlvute mun though he ls, who hus worke/ un/ thought. The new Or/er for regulutlng Prlntlng ls retrogru/e. wlll
/lscuss (1) the orlgln of the llcenslng-system: (2) the use of books generully: (3) the uselessness of the present Or/er: (4) lts posltlve
hurmfulness.
. ORG OF TH RSTRCTOS O PRTG
Pp. 6-15. /eny not, but thut lt ls of greutest concernment... the hurm thut thence procee/s.
grunt thut the behuvlour of books, llke thut of men, must be wutche/. Books ure not ubsolutely /eu/ thlngs; they huve u potency of llfe ln
them to be us uctlve us thut soul wus whose progeny they ure. But then they ure more thun llvlng; u goo/ book ls the preclous llfe-bloo/ of u
muster-splrlt, embulme/ un/ treusure/ up on purpose to u llfe beyon/ llfe. The /estructlon of u goo/ book en/s not ln the sluylng of un
elementul llfe, but strlkes ut thut ethereul un/ flfth essence, the breuth of reuson ltself,sluys un lmmortullty ruther thun u llfe.
n ol/ Athens un/ Rome, two kln/s of wrltlngs only were kept /own: (1) the blusphemous un/ uthelstlcul: (2) the llbellous:whlle
phllosophy, though sceptlcul, un/ generul sutlre hu/ free scope. After the mperors becume Chrlstlun, heretlcul books, con/emne/ by
Generul Counclls, were sometlmes burne/ by thelr uuthorlty. Agulnst other books no lnter/lct ls heur/ of tlll ubout 400 AD, when the
Councll of Curthuge forbu/ Blshops themselves to reu/ the works of heuthens. But, us u rule, the eurly Blshops un/ Counclls only
recommen/e/ or censure/ booksthey /l/ not prohlblt. About 800 AD the Popes begun to clulm the power of burnlng or forbl//lng books.
Murtln ' [1417-1431 AD] wus the flrst Pope who punlshe/ wlth excommunlcutlon the reu/lng of heretlcul books, huvlng been /rlven to u
strlcter pollcy by Wlcllff un/ Huss. eo X [1513-1521 AD] followe/ thls pollcy. Then the Councll of Trent un/ the Spunlsh nqulsltlon
perfecte/ the system by estubllshlng the n/ex xpurgutorlus un/ llke cutulogues. ustly, they forbu/ the prlntlng of uny book whlch hu/ not
recelve/ the lmprlmutur of severul censors." A book by the Florentlne Duvunzutl beurs four such lmprlmuturs. Thls system wus borrowe/ by
the ngllsh Prelutesnot from uny unclent Stute, nor from the mo/ern pructlce of uny reforme/ Church or Clty, but from the Councll of
Trent un/ the nqulsltlon. Un/er thls system u book ls ln u worse pllght thun the souls who ufter /euth come before Rhu/umunthus: lt ls
|u/ge/ before lts blrth, un/ hus to puss the ferry buckwur/ lnto llght. t muy be sul/The orlgln of llcenslng ls bu/; the thlng ltself muy be
goo/. But the contrlvunce ls so obvlous thut, lf lt hu/ been goo/, lt woul/ not huve been overlooke/ by the best un/ wlsest Commonweulths
ln ull uges.
. TH US OF BOOKS GRA
Pp. 15-25. ot to lnslst upon the exumples... whlle thus much huth been explulnlng.
Moses un/ Dunlel un/ Puul were skllle/ ln ull munner of heuthen leurnlng; yet the luwfulness, or u/vuntuge, of such leurnlng wus ut leust
/ebute/ by the Futhers of the eurly Church; though u greut mu|orlty of them were ln fuvour of ullowlng lt. At lust Jullun the Apostute forbu/
Chrlstluns to stu/y heuthen leurnlng, un/ then lt wus felt thut thls wus u greuter blow to the Church thun the persecutlons of Declus or
Dlocletlun. Jerome, ln u feverlsh /reum, funcle/ hlmself chustlse/ for reu/lng Clcero. On the other hun/ Dlonyslus of Alexun/rlu, u Futher
of the Church ln the thlr/ century, wus bl//en to reu/ ull books thut cume to hls hun/s, un/ to |u/ge for hlmself. The commun/8Rlse,
Peter, klll un/ eut"ls for the foo/ of the mln/ us well us the bo/y. The knowle/ge of error, us John Sel/en hus tuught, helps the knowlng
of truth. Temperunce ln muterlul thlngs ls of the greutest moment to humun llfe; un/ yet Go/ hus entruste/ thls temperunce to every muns
own |u/gment. Goo/ un/ evll grow together ln thls worl/ ulmost lnsepurubly; un/, us Psyche hu/ the tusk of sortlng the see/s, mun hus the
tusk of sun/erlng the goo/ from the evll. Untrle/ vlrtue ls not pure, lt ls only blunk. Spenser, u better teucher thun even Scotus or Thomus
Aqulnus, mukes Gulon puss through the Cuve of Mummon. Three ob|ectlons ure mu/e to unrestrlcte/ reu/lng. (1) Flrst, the /unger of
lnfectlon. To thls lt muy be unswere/ thut some of the best books ure the frunkest, un/ some of the worst the most pluuslble. A wlse mun
cun get gol/ out of /ross; why shoul/ he lose the guln of hls wls/om, ln or/er to glve the foollsh u sufeguur/ whlch wlll not hln/er hls folly?
(2) t ls sul/We must not lncur nee/less temptutlon; un/ (3) We must not employ ourselves wlth vunltles. One unswer wlll serve for both
ob|ectlons: to wlse men hurtful books ure not temptutlons nor vunltles, but /rugs whlch temper wholesome me/lclnes.
'. TH GAT' ARGUMT AGAST TH PRST ORDR
Pp. 25-33. See the lngenulty of Truth...whereof lt beurs the lntentlon.
t hus been shown thut there ls no goo/ prece/ent for llcenslng; un/ lf lt ls sul/ thut lt ls u newly lnvente/ precuutlon, the unswer ls thut lt ls
so obvlous un one thut lt cun huve been neglecte/ only becuuse lt wus /lsupprove/. Pluto, ln/ee/, wus for restrlctlng reu/lng ln hls l/eul
Commonweulth. But ln pructlce he /l/ not keep hls own precept: he suw thut thls purtlculur restrlctlon woul/ be useless wlthout ull the other
restrlctlons of hls lmuglnury Clty. t ls vuln to shut one gute whlle others stun/ open. f reu/lng ls regulute/, then muslc, conversutlon, every
lncl/ent of soclul llfe must be regulute/ too. The reul urt of government, elsewhere thun ln un Utoplu or un Atluntls, ls to /lscern where
coerclon un/ where persuuslon shoul/ be use/. Pusslons huve been lmplunte/ ln humun nuture becuuse, rlghtly tempere/, they ure
lngre/lents of vlrtue; un/ lt ls vuln for humun government to uffect u rlgour contrury to the munner of Provl/ence un/ of uture.
verythlng we heur or /o ls our book. But, supposlng thut the restrlctlon of prlnte/ books were enough ln ltself to keep out evll, the Or/er of
Purllument cunnot even /o thls. Wrltlngs whlch lt ulms ut represslng ure stlll clrculute/. f the Or/er ls to be effectuul, u complete llst must
be mu/e of unllcense/ books ulreu/y ln clrculutlon, un ln/ex on the mo/el of Trent un/ Sevllle. et even then the Or/er woul/ be frultless.
t coul/ not prevent sects or schlsms; hu/ not Chrlstlunlty spreu/ ltself over Aslu before u wrltten Gospel or plstle wus seen? t cunnot
men/ munners; for whut ure the munners of tuly un/ of Spuln? ustly, there ls thls pructlcul /lfflculty:o mun, stu/lous, leurne/,
|u/lclous enough to be u competent llcenser wlll en/ure the /ru/gery. The present lcensers muke no secret of thelr weurlness. Future
lcensers wlll be elther lgnorunt, lmperlous un/ remlss, or venul.
'. TH POST' ARGUMT AGAST TH ORDR
Pp. 33-50. lustly procee/ from the no goo/ lt cun /o...col/, un/ neutrul, un/ lnwur/ly /lvl/e/ mln/s.
u. eurnlng ls /lscouruge/.When Prelucy wus threutene/ ut flrst, lts frlen/s urge/ thut, wlth lt, leurnlng woul/ full. But thls Or/er ls the
reul /ownfull of leurnlng. o reully leurne/ mun, wlth uny splrlt, coul/ brook belng mu/e u schoolboy uguln un/ put un/er the ferule of u
tutor. When u mun wrltes for the worl/, he puts forth hls strength un/ strlves to muster hls sub|ect: ls he, ln splte of yeurs, ln/ustry, prove/
knowle/ge un/ ublllty, to be buffle/, unless he upproves hlmself to the husty glunce of u llcenser wlthout lelsure un/ perhups wlthout
knowle/ge? Or lf, ufter hls book hus been llcense/, u new thought strlkes hlmus huppens to ull wrltersshull he be /eburre/ from
lmprovlng hls own work, unless he muke u new trlp to the llcenser? o one woul/ reu/ these llcense/ books, whlch woul/ necessurlly be
mu/e up of huckneye/ commonpluces. Then, lf the work of u /eceuse/ uuthor ls to be reprlnte/, must thls too be revlse/? Woul/ John
Knoxs works, for lnstunce, huve to puss the llcenser?
b. ext, the whole nutlon ls lnsulte/.Are twenty men enough to estlmute ull the genlus un/ the goo/ sense of nglun/? s there to be u
monopoly of knowle/ge; ure the pro/ucts of ull ngllsh brulns to be stumpe/ llke brou/cloth un/ woolpucks? The uffront ls not to the
e/ucute/ ulone: the common people ure |ust us much wronge/ by the notlon thut they ure too gl//y to be truste/ wlth u fllghty truct.
c. The Mlnlstry ls /lscre/lte/.s lt the result of ull thelr lubours thut the people for whom they work ure so unprlnclple/ thut the whlff of
every new pumphlet cun stugger them out of thelr cutechlsm? Are the Mlnlsters ufrul/ to fuce u slngle u/verse truct, unless they ure
entrenche/ ln the stronghol/, the St Angelo, of un lmprlmutur?
(Thls plcture of the /lscourugement whlch leurne/ men wlll suffer ls not funclful. n tuly leurnlng ls oppresse/ ln the sume wuy: ln tuly
suw Gullleo grown ol/, u prlsoner to the nqulsltlon; un/ heur/ tulluns lumentlng the servlle stute of letters, un/ congrutulutlng me for
llvlng ln u lun/ of phllosophlc free/om|ust when nglun/ wus grounlng most un/er the prelutlcul yoke: but these congrutulutlons seeme/
omens. An/ when the /ellverunce /l/ begln, men of letters here culle/ to me, us the Slcllluns lnvoke/ the uprlght quuestor ugulnst 'erres,
to stun/ up for them ugulnst thls tyrunny. An/ now thut the yoke ls belng put on uguln, lt ls the common tulk thut the Presbyters ure golng to
become new Prelutes. The evlls of Prelucy huve been tuken off the lun/ ut lurge only to be heupe/ upon lts llteruture; for now the lcenser
ls Archblshop over u greut Provlnce of books. So lt seems now thut the press wus to be free only tlll the Blshops hu/ been overthrown; thut
/one, lt ls to be ln bon/uge uguln. or cun the Presbyters suy thut thls Or/er keeps /own sects; on the contrury, by stlrrlng up opposltlon, lt
becomes u nurslng mother of sects.)
/. The Or/er ls hostlle to truth:(l) Flrst, us ten/lng to effuce knowle/ge ulreu/y gulne/. The wuters of truth huve been llkene/ to u
fountuln; but they wlll stugnute now lnto u mu//y pool of conformlty un/ tru/ltlon. The mun of buslness, chlefly unxlous to keep up
uppeurunces, un/ the mun of pleusure, unxlous to be suve/ trouble, wlll glve up the uttempt to thlnk ln rellglon un/ wlll become the merest
formullsts. The clergy wlll slnk lnto ln/olence, secure/ by the lcenser from uny ussuult upon recelve/ oplnlons. But men wlth u goo/
consclence un/ u reul love of truth ought to wlsh for open /lscusslon. (ll) Secon/lythe Or/er ls hostlle to truth us preventlng uny u//ltlon
to knowle/ge. Truth wus once lncurnute on eurth; but lt hus been hewn ln pleces by Fulsehoo/, un/ the pleces huve been cust to the four
wln/s; un/ us sls sought for the llmbs of Oslrls, sluln un/ mungle/ by Typhon, so the frlen/s of truth ure even now looklng for the scuttere/
members. Do not be hln/erers of the seurch. We boust of our llght: but the sun keeps the sturs from belng seen: un/ there ls /unger lest we
huve looke/ so long on the splen/our of Zulngllus un/ Culvln thut we ure blln/e/ to other llghts of truth. The gol/en rule ln Theology, us ln
other sclences, ls to look for whut we know not by the llght of whut we know.
'. COCUSO
Pp. 50-65. or/s un/ Commons of nglun/...whereof none cun purtlclpute but greutest un/ wlsest men.
u. The churucter un/ present splrlt of the ngllsh nutlon.et the or/s un/ Commons of nglun/ consl/er whut u nutlon lt ls whereof they
ure the governors; u nutlon of hlgh genlus un/ greut energy. From fur-buck tlmes untll now the people of thls lslun/ huve been honoure/ by
other peoples. An/ whut ls ubove thls, the fuvour un/ love of Heuven seem to huve been wlth nglun/. The Reformutlon wus begun ln
urope by un ngllshmun; un/ lf the Prelutes hu/ not put /own Wlcllff us u schlsmutlc, perhups nelther Huss nor Jerome of Prugue, no, nor
uther or Culvln woul/ ever huve been known. ow u secon/ epoch of reformutlon ls beglnnlng, un/ uguln the opportunlty of leu/lng lt ls
offere/ to ngllshmen. For behol/ thls greut clty; the forges of the urmourers ure not busler ln lt thun the brulns of the tollers for truth. et
us not glve the numes of sect un/ schlsm to thls new, munlfol/ eugerness for llght. Whlle the temple ls ln bull/lng, the stones must be hewn
ln muny shupes. The nemy wutches, un/ hopes thut our /lvlslons un/ sub/lvlslons wlll un/o us. He knows not thut these ure but brunches
sprlnglng from one strong root. When see thls clty, beset wlth the perlls of wur, full wlthln of men quletly followlng greut thoughts, feel
how thoroughly they trust thelr rulers, un/ recognlse un omen of vlctory un/ of renewe/ youth for thls greut nutlon.
b. A pleu for tolerutlon.f you woul/ crush the knowle/ge thus /ully sprlnglng up, you must flrst suppress yourselves. t ls your free
government whlch hus mu/e thls free splrlt. f you woul/ huve us sluves, you must be tyrunts. An/ then,who wlll stun/ by you? ot the
men who ure now flghtlng ugulnst un|ust tuxutlon. Remember the u/vlceruther, the /ylng churgeof one who /le/ for the Church un/
the Commonweulth. or/ Brook bl/s us to beur wlth ull men who woul/ llve purely, however much they ure spoken ugulnst un/ how wl/ely
soever they /lffer from us. An/ thls ls the very tlme when the buttle between Truth un/ Fulsehoo/ must be fought out: the temple of Junus
ls open. euve Truth free to flght, un/ /o not /oubt the lssue. Whut meuns the free/om glven by Chrlstlunlty but u /ellverunce from sluvlsh
cure for forms? Some schlsms muy be too llghtly mu/e; some /octrlnes ure not to be tolerute/; but there ure other /lfferences whlch nee/
not hln/er the unlty of splrlt lf only the bon/ of peuce were foun/. A system of suppresslon ls ulwuys upt to put /own truth. When u
klng/om ls shuken to lts foun/utlons, then fulse teuchers, lt ls true, ure buslest; but greut teuchers ulso ure rulse/ up. f, ensluve/ to u rlgl/
system, we stop the mouths of these, we shull prove ourselves not /efen/ers but persecutors of truth. Slnce thls Purllument met, muny
unllcense/ books huve been publlshe/some by Presbyterluns. f uny uuthors of such books ure umong those who seek to re-estubllsh the
llcenslng system, these suppressors ought flrst to be suppresse/ themselves.
c. The Or/er of the House ln 1643 compure/ wlth lts former Or/er ln 1642.The Or/er of 1642 provl/e/ merely thut no book shoul/ be
prlnte/ unless the nume of the prlnter un/ of the uuthor, or ut leust the prlnters, were reglstere/. othlng coul/ be fulrer thun thls. f u book
comes out ln breuch of thls rule, let lt be burne/ by the hungmun. But the new Or/er ls ln the very lmuge of the Stur-Chumber /ecreeone
of the worst tyrunnles of the lute court. As to the meuns by whlch thls Or/er wus mu/e to superse/e the former, those who ought to know
hlnt thut tru/e-lnterests were ut work. Booksellers who wlshe/ to keep up u monopoly mlsle/ the House by u pretence of securlng copyrlght
to poor members of thelr gull/. n these trlcks, however, um not skllle/; only know thut u goo/ government ls hur/ly more sufe from
mlstukes thun u bu/ one; but u goo/ government wlll be sooner move/ to re/ress u wrong by u pluln wurnlng thun u bu/ government by u
brlbe; un/ to glve such re/ress, ls u vlrtue ln whlch none cun shure but the greutest un/ wlsest men.






PlsLory of Llcenslng
1hough MllLon hlmself declared LhaL Lhe requlremenL for book llcenslng was an lnvenLlon of Lhe Councll of 1renL and
Lhe Spanlsh lnqulslLlon engendrlng LogeLher and denounced Lhe llcenslng order of 1643 as Lhe lmmedlaLe lmage of
a SLarchamber decree and oLherwlse aLLempLs Lo glve Lhe lmpresslon LhaL llcenslng ls Lhoroughly unLngllsh
someLhlng lmporLed by Lhe blshops ln 1637 (Lhe daLe of Lhe SLar Chamber decree) Lhls ls noL enLlrely Lrue 1hough Lhe
enforcemenL of llcenslng ln Lngland had been uneven aL besL and Lhere had been long perlods durlng whlch Lhe pollcy
of llcenslng was noL enforced aL all Lhe pollcy was far from new ln 1408 Archblshop Arundels ConsLlLuLlons
(conflrmed by arllamenL ln 1414) order LhaL no book be from henceforLh read wlLhln our provlnce of
CanLerbury aforesald excepL Lhe same be flrsL examlned by Lhe unlverslLy of Cxford or Cambrldge and
expressly approved and allowed by us or our successors and ln Lhe name and auLhorlLy of Lhe unlverslLy dellvered
unLo Lhe sLaLloners Lo be copled ouL
Penry vlll ln 1330 forbade Lhe prlnLlng of any book or books ln Lngllsh Longue concernlng holy scrlpLure noL before
Lhls Llme prlnLed wlLhln Lhls hls realm unLll such Llme as Lhe same book or books be examlned and approved by Lhe
ordlnary of Lhe dlocese Pe also requlred approved books Lo carry Lhe name of Lhe Lxamlner as well as LhaL of Lhe
prlnLer ln 1338 Penry exLended llcenslng Lo books of all klnds Lransferred Lhe llcenslng auLhorlLy from Lhe church
offlces Lo Lhe rlvy Councll and prescrlbed Lhe form of Lhe lmprlmaLur LaLer monarchs such as Ldward (ln 1331)
Mary (ln 1333 and 1338) and LllzabeLh (1339 1366 1386) lssued decrees whlch conLlnued Lhls sysLem klng !ames
conflrmed Lhls sysLem ln 1611 and 1613 and durlng Lhe relgn of Charles l Lhe SLar Chamber lssued lLs nowlnfamous
decree on !uly 11 1637 1hls decree made lL a general offense Lo prlnL lmporL or sell any sedlLlous sclsmaLlcall or
offenslve 8ookes or amphleLs lL also forbade forbade anyLhlng Lo be prlnLed whlch had noL flrsL been llcensed and
enLered ln Lhe SLaLloners 8eglsLer noLhlng could be reprlnLed wlLhouL belng rellcensed ln all cases Lhe full slgned
lmprlmaLur was Lo be prlnLed Lhe names of Lhe prlnLer and Lhe auLhor were Lo be prlnLed as well 1he decree also
llmlLed Lhe number of masLer prlnLers Lo LwenLy whlle speclfylng Lhe number of presses [ourneymen and
apprenLlces each could have 1he decree made lL an offense Lo work for an unllcensed prlnLer or Lo operaLe an
unllcensed press
1he SLar Chamber was abollshed on !uly 3 1641 1hls lefL Lhe press vlrLually free from regulaLlon Cn !anuary 29 1642
Lhe Pouse of Commons ordered LhaL prlnLers should nelLher prlnL nor reprlnL anyLhlng wlLhouL Lhe name and consenL
of Lhe auLhor 1hls order someLlmes referred Lo as Lhe SlgnaLure Crder ls Laken by MllLon ln Ateopoqltlco as
arllamenLs orlglnal pollcy concernlng llcenslng of Lhe press 1he arllamenLary llcenslng order of !une 14 1643 ls
Lherefore Laken by MllLon as a reversal of Lhls orlglnal poslLlon
1hls order was deslgned for suppresslng Lhe greaL laLe abuses and frequenL dlsorders ln rlnLlng many false forged
scandalous sedlLlous llbellous and unllcensed apers amphleLs and 8ooks Lo Lhe greaL defamaLlon of 8ellglon and
governmenL lL ordered LhaL no Crder or ueclaraLlon of boLh or elLher Pouse of arllamenL shall be prlnLed by any
buL by order of one or boLh Lhe sald houses nor oLher 8ook amphleL paper nor parL of any such 8ook amphleL or
paper shall from henceforLh be prlnLed bound sLlLched or puL Lo sale by any person or persons whaLsoever unless
Lhe same be flrsL approved of and llcensed under Lhe hands of such person or persons as boLh or elLher of Lhe sald
Pouses shall appolnL for Lhe llcenslng of Lhe same
MllLons aLLack on Lhe Llcenslng Crder had no effecL on arllamenLs pollcy ln facL arllamenL reasserLed lLs poslLlon
ln separaLe Crders on SepLember 30 1647 March 13 1648 and SepLember 20 1649 MllLon hlmself served as
llcenser of Metcotlos lolltlcos ln 1631 lor a brlef perlod of 13 monLhs beLween 1631 and 1633 Lhe CommonwealLh
governmenL experlmenLed wlLh an unllcensed press however Lhe 8ump arllamenL revlved llcenslng ln an order of
!anuary 7 1633
M||tons kesponse to the L|cens|ng Crder of Iune 14 16434reopoqitico

ntroduct|on
1 lL can'L be expecLed LhaL no dlspuLes wlll ever arlse ln a commonwealLh 1he besL Lhlng ls for complalnLs Lo be
freely heard deeply consldered and speedlly reformed 1haL ls Lhe uLmosL bound of clvll llberLy LhaL
wlse men look for
2 Pe who freely magnlfles whaL haLh been nobly done and fears noL Lo declare as freely whaL mlghL be done
beLLer glves ye Lhe besL covenanL of hls fldellLy
3 rlvaLe learned lndlvlduals have been respecLfully heard by governmenLs before lsocraLes wroLe Lo
persuade ALhens Lo change lLs currenL form of governmenL
4 1he arllamenL of Lngland wlll only make lLself seem all Lhe wlser by respecLfully hearlng MllLon's argumenL
3 by [udglng over agaln LhaL Crder whlch ye have ordalned Lo regulaLe rlnLlng LhaL no book pamphleL or
paper shall be henceforLh prlnLed unless Lhe same be flrsL approved and llcensed by such or aL leasL one of
such as shall be LhereLo appolnLed


@he Iour Ma[or Arguments
1 Jho are Lhe lnvenLors of llcenslng? 1he CaLhollc church
2 JhaL ls Lo be LhoughL of readlng? lL ls a necessary acqulslLlon of knowledge of good and evll ln a fallen world
3 1hls Crder ls lneffecLual ln suppresslng scandalous sedlLlous and llbelous books
4 1hls Crder wlll dlscourage learnlng and Lhe pursulL of LruLh

Argument #1
1 ln ALhens only Lwo Lypes of wrlLlngs were suppressed by Lhe clvll powers blasphemous/aLhelsLlc wrlLlngs and
llbelous wrlLlngs
A roLagoras was banlshed and hls books were burned for a dlscourse confesslng noL Lo know
wheLher Lhere were gods or wheLher Lhere were noL
8 agalnsL defamlng lL was decreed LhaL none should be Lraduced by name as was Lhe manner of
veLus Comedla Cld ComedyArlsLophanes eL alLhls law endured only from 44039 Lo 43837
and ArlsLophanes was famous for Lraduclng by name he was especlally fond of Lraduclng fellow
playwrlghL Lurlpldes and Lhe pollLlclan Cleon by name
2 1he same holds Lrue for 8ome (before lLs descenL lnLo Lyranny)
A naso (Cvld) was banlshed by AugusLus noL for lndecenL poems buL for an lnLrlgue wlLh AugusLus'
granddaughLer !ulla
8 naevlus was qulckly casL lnLo prlson for hls unbrldled pen because he had aLLacked Sclplo and Lhe
arlsLocraLlc parLy ln hls plays
3 Lven Lhe earllesL ChrlsLlan emperors dld noL deparL from Lhls relaLlvely LoleranL poslLlon
A 8ooks of Lhose accused of heresy were noL prohlblLed unLll and unless Lhose accused were examlned
refuLed and condemned ln Lhe general counclls
8 8ooks by heaLhen auLhors were noL forbldden ln any way unLll 400 Au when blshops were
resLrlcLed from readlng heaLhen wrlLers (Lhough Lhey mlghL sLlll readfor Lhe purpose of laLer
refuLlnghereLlcal works)
C Larly counclls and blshops only declared cerLaln books noL commendable raLher Lhan forbldden unLll
800 Au AfLer Lhls Lhe opes began prohlblLlng cerLaln works Mart|n V(14171431) lssued a bull ln
1418 calllng for Lhe excommunlcaLlon of any who read hereLlcal works lndexes of forbldden works
followed au| V lssued Lhe flrsL ln 1339
4 1he CaLhollc church ls Lhe lnvenLor of Lhe llcenslng of prlnLlng Lhelr lasL lnvenLlon was Lo ordaln LhaL no book
pamphleL or paper should be prlnLed unless lL were approved and llcensed Lhus ye have Lhe lnvenLors
and Lhe orlglnal of bookllcenslng from Lhe mosL anLlchrlsLlan councll and Lhe mosL Lyrannous lnqulslLlon
LhaL ever lnqulred
Argument #2
1 Moses uanlel and aul were sklllful ln all Lhe learnlng of Lhe LgypLlans Chaldeans and Creeks respecLlvely
1hls can only have been Lhrough prodlglous readlng
2 Iu||an the Apostate (emperor from 361363) forbade ChrlsLlans Lhe readlng of heaLhen wrlLers (Seems a weak
polnL buL Lhe conLenLlon ls LhaL lf an aposLaLe forblds readlng classlcal llLeraLure Lhen lL musL be good for
falLhful ChrlsLlans Lo read)
3 ulnoyslus Alexandrlnusa plous and learned early ChrlsLlanread hereLlcal books ln order Lo be able Lo
refuLe Lhe argumenLs Lhereln Jhen challenged by a cerLaln presbyLer he was ln a quandary unLll he
recelved a vlslon 8ead any books whaLever come Lo Lhy hands for Lhou arL suflclenL boLh Lo [udge arlghL and
Lo examlne each maLLer
4 8ad books may serve a dlscreeL and [udlclous reader Lo dlscover Lo confuLe Lo forewarn and Lo lllusLraLe
3 Solomon wrlLes LhaL much readlng ls a wearlness Lo Lhe flesh buL lL ls noL Lherefore unlawful
6 1he burnlng of books aL AcLs 1919 was a volunLary acLnoL mandaLed by any maglsLraLe
7 Cood and evll are almosL lnseparable ln Lhls worldln Lhls world how can one have wlsdom Lo choose good
wlLhouL Lhe knowledge of evll? Slnce Lherefore Lhe knowledge and survey of vlce ls ln Lhls world so
necessary Lo Lhe consLlLuLlng of human vlrLue and Lhe scannlng of error Lo Lhe conflrmaLlon of LruLh how can
we more safely and wlLh less danger scouL lnLo Lhe reglons of sln and falslLy Lhan by readlng all manner of
LracLaLes and hearlng all manner of reason? And Lhls ls Lhe beneflL whlch may be had of books promlscuously
read
8 ConLroverslal books (of rellglon) are more a danger Lo Lhe learned Lhan Lo Lhe lgnoranL lL wlll be hard Lo
lnsLance where any lgnoranL man haLh been ever seduced by paplsLlcal book ln Lngllsh unless lL were
commended and expounded Lo hlm by some of LhaL clergy
9 Llcenslng ls a valn and lmposslble aLLempL llke Lhe explolL of a gallanL man who LhoughL Lo pound up Lhe
crows by shuLLlng hls park gaLe
Argument #3
1 no wellconsLlLuLed naLlon or sLaLe ever used Lhls way of llcenslng
2 laLo ln hls ows spells ouL such a sysLem buL for an lmoqlooty sLaLe laLoln reallLywas a Lransgressor of
hls own (lmaglned) laws a wrlLer of dlalogues and a reader of ArlsLophanes (whom he supposedly
recommended Lo ulonyslus Lhe 1yranL of Syracuse 367336 8C)
3 lf prlnLlng musL be regulaLed so musL all oLher Lrades and arLs
4 Jho shall declde? Jho shall seL Lhe absoluLe sLandards?
3 lL ls no good Lo sequesLer ouL of Lhe world lnLo ALlanLlc Iranc|s 8acon and uLoplan @homas More pollLles
raLher we musL ordaln wlsely as ln Lhls world of evll ln Lhe mldsL whereof Cod haLh placed us unavoldably
6 1he greaL arL of a commonwealLh lles ln knowlng whaL Lo resLraln and forbld and whaL Lo leave Lo prlvaLe
consclence unlshmenL and persuaslon musL be correcLly balanced
7 Cod gave man reason and freedom Lo choose CLherwlse Adam would have been a mere arLlflclal Adam
Cod creaLed passlons wlLhln us so LhaL we need Lo Lemper Lhem ln and Lhrough vlrLue (Lemperlng Lhe
passlons ls vlrLue) 8y removlng Lhe causes/ob[ecLs of sln we remove Lhe opporLunlLles for Lhe acqulslLlon
generaLlon and pracLlce of vlrLue how much we Lhus expel of sln so much we expel of vlrLue
Argument #4
1 1o dlsLrusL Lhe honesLy and [udgmenL of a free and knowlng splrlL Lo Lhe polnL of noL counLlng hlm flL Lo
prlnL hls mlnd wlLhouL a LuLor and examlner ls a greaL lndlgnlLy
2 lf no years of experlence learnlng and lndusLry can brlng a man Lo LhaL sLaLe of maLurlLy as noL Lo be sLlll
mlsLrusLed and suspecLed lL ls a dlshonor and derogaLlon Lo Lhe auLhor Lo Lhe book Lo Lhe prlvllege and
dlgnlLy of learnlng
3 Pow can a man Leach wlLh auLhorlLy lf all he Leaches ls under Lhe auLhorlLy of a llcenser?
4 lrancls 8acon AuLhorlzed books are buL Lhe language of Lhe Llmes Lven lf a llcenser ls especlally [udlclous
and percepLlve Lhe funcLlon of hls offlce requlres LhaL he llcense noLhlng buL whaL ls vulgarly recelved
already
3 1hls dlsLrusL ls an undervalulng and vlllfylng of Lhe whole naLlon
A lL ls a reproach Lo Lhe people lf we dare noL LrusL Lhem wlLh an Lngllsh pamphleL whaL do we buL
censure Lhem for a glddy vlclous and ungrounded people ?
8 lL ls a reproach Lo mlnlsLers 1haL afLer all Lhls llghL of Lhe Cospel Lhey should sLlll be frequenLed
wlLh such an unedlfled and lalc rabble
6 uescrlpLlon of meeLlng Callleo a prlsoner Lo Lhe lnqulslLlon for Lhlnklng ln asLronomy oLherwlse Lhan Lhe
lranclscan and uomlnlcan llcensers LhoughL
7 1he complalnLs of Lhe learned agalnsL Lhe lnqulslLlon are now belng made by Lhe learned agalnsL Lhe
arllamenL's order of llcenslng
8 1he general murmur lf we are so susplclous of men as Lo fear each book before we know whaL Lhe
conLenLs are Lhen we are faclng a second Lyranny over learnlng 1hls wlll soon show LhaL Lhe currenL
presbyLers (who had only recenLly been sllenced by Lhe LhendomlnanL Angllcan hlerarchy) are [usL Lhe same
(name and Lhlng) as Lhe old blshops MeeL Lhe new 8oss Same as Lhe Cld 8oss
9 Jhen Lhe blshops were belng foughL agalnsL freedom of publlshlng was a good Lhlng (accordlng Lo Lhe
presbyLers) buL now LhaL Lhe blshops have been defeaLed suddenly publlshlng musL be llcensed Pow
convenlenL
onc|us|on
1 Lngland ls Lhe new chosen naLlon of Cod
A Jhy else was Lhls naLlon chosen before any oLher LhaL ouL of her as ouL of Slon should be
proclalmed and sounded forLh Lhe flrsL Lldlngs and LrumpeL of reformaLlon Lo all Lurope?
8 Cod ls decreelng Lo begln some new and greaL perlod ln hls Church even Lo Lhe reformlng of
reformaLlon lLself JhaL does he Lhen buL reveal hlmself Lo hls servanLs and as hls maner ls flrsL Lo
hls Lngllshmen?
2 Lngland ls an earLhly Lype of Lhe ClLy of Cod
A 8ehold now Lhls vasL clLy a clLy of refuge Lhe manslon house of llberLy encompassed and
surrounded wlLh hls proLecLlon
3 1he Lngllsh people are poLenLlally a naLlon of propheLs of sages and of worLhles Cnly wlse and falLhful
laborers are needed Lo acLuallze Lhls poLenLlal
4 Jhere Lhere ls much deslre Lo learn Lhere of necesslLy wlll be much argulng much wrlLlng many oplnlons
for oplnlon ln good men ls buL knowledge ln Lhe maklng
3 Analogy Lo Lhe bulldlng of Lhe Lemple ln Solomon's day when every sLone ls lald arLfully LogeLher lL cannoL
be unlLed lnLo a conLlnulLy lL can buL be conLlguous ln Lhls world
6 1he sLrengLh of Lhe church lles ln Lhe unlLy of dlverse (buL noL Loo dlverse) elemenLs Lhe perfecLlon conslsLs
ln Lhls LhaL ouL of many moderaLe varleLles and broLherly dlsslmlllLudes LhaL are noL vasLly dlsproporLlonal
arlses Lhe goodly and graceful symmeLry LhaL commends Lhe whole plle and sLrucLure
7 1he Llme seems come when all Lhe Lord's people are become propheLs
8 1he carrylng on of Lhese lnLellecLual dlspuLes even durlng a Llme of clvll war when Lhe forces of Charles l
LhreaLen ls a slgn of falLh ln Lhe good governmenL of arllamenL (1hus commences Lhe klssarllamenL'sass
secLlon)
9 1he people became free Lo wrlLe and speak because of Lhe llberLy LhaL Lhe valorous and happy counsels of
arllamenL have purchased 1he people cannoL grow less learned and less lncllned Lo wrlLe and speak unless
arllamenL reverL Lo Lyrannous ways as Lhey were from whom ye have freed us'
10 LeL 1ruLh and lalsehood grapple ln Lhe open 1ruLh wlll wln
11 uocLrlne of (llmlLed) Lolerance lf all cannoL be of one mlndas who looks Lhey should be?Lhls doubLless ls
more wholesome more prudenL and more ChrlsLlan LhaL many be LoleraLed raLher Lhan all compelled
12 1hls many does noL lnclude CaLhollcs (or nonChrlsLlans) l mean noL LoleraLed popery and open supersLlLlon
whlch as lL exLlrpaLes all rellglons and clvll supremacles so lLself should be exLlrpaLe buL Lhose nelghborlng
dlfferences or raLher lndlfferences are whaL l speak of wheLher ln some polnL of docLrlne or of dlsclpllne
13 lf Lhe men who appear Lo be schlsmaLlcs are lndeed wrong why noL debaLe Lhem openly? lf Lhey are noL
wrong and are dolng Lhe work of Cod (Lhe Camallel argumenL) no less Lhan woe Lo us whlle Lhlnklng Lhus
Lo defend Lhe Cospel we are found Lhe persecuLors
14 lf noLhlng else wlll work lL would be no unequal dlsLrlbuLlon Lo supress Lhe supressors Lhemselves
13 1o seL rlghL Lhe wrong LhaL has been done ls Lhe hlghesL and wlsesL Lhlng LhaL arllamenL can do

4reopoqiticore|terates the t|t|e of an orat|on de||vered to the Athen|an assemb|y by socrates (436338 8% @he
Greek patr|ot and teacher of rhetor|c who rare|y spoke pub||c|y h|mse|f p|eaded for the re|nst|tut|on of the anc|ent
court of the Areopagus named for Ares god of war and essent|a||y a counc|| of nob|es 8ut Iohn M||ton (160874%
wou|d a|so expect h|s readers to have |n m|nd St au| s address to the ounc|| of the Areopagus (|n Acts 172223%
@here the God of hr|st|an|ty |s proc|a|med as the true ob[ect of the pagan a|tar to an unknown god
M||ton s tract pub||shed rather than de||vered |ceron|an |n sty|e and redo|ent w|th the cadences of spoken
ng||sh |s a p|ea to the ng||sh ar||ament for the w|thdrawa| of a new order for the ||cens|ng of book pub||cat|on
ar||amentary reforms |n the ear|y 1640s had abo||shed Archb|shop Lauds e|aborate and repress|ve ||cens|ng
measures and the courts of the Star hamber and the n|gh omm|ss|on that enforced them Now M||ton saw the
new ||cens|ng measure brought |n as resbyter|an d|sc|p||ne and author|ty preva||ed |n ar||ament over
ongregat|ona| as dangerous|y retrograde M||ton s target was not accountab|||ty for the pr|nted word (|n wh|ch he
staunch|y be||eved% |et a|one for obscene or pornograph|c mater|a|s but frontend censorsh|p of re||g|ous |deas h|s
ownoctrineondiscip/ineofivorce(August 1643% be|ng an egreg|ous target of the new measures (n|s v|s|on was
not however w|de enough to |nc|ude to|erat|on of atho||c wr|t|ng wh|ch he regarded as rad|ca||y destruct|ve of
true re||g|on and of the state |tse|f%
4reopoqiticofo||ows c|ose|y much of the standard rhetor|ca| prescr|pt|on for c|ass|ca| orat|on (narrat|on
propos|t|on proof etc% t a|so runs through a cons|derab|e range of tones of address f|rst assum|ng the rat|ona||ty
honor and goodw||| of |ts par||amentary aud|ence and p|ead|ng for sober attent|on to the vo|ce of reason @hen |t
turns b||ster|ng|y po|em|ca| and at the same t|me staunch|y patr|ot|c |n |ts mock|ng attack on censorsh|p as
ta||anate and atho||c rem|n|scent of nqu|s|t|on |nappropr|ate to a nat|on not s|ow and du|| but of a qu|ck
|ngen|ous and p|erc|ng sp|r|t not beneath the reach of the h|ghest that human capac|ty can soar to
ragmat|sm ra|ses the prob|em of the censor be|eaguered by ted|um and contam|nat|on dea||st|ca||y the concept
of the ||fe of the read|ng |nte||ect as a mora| pur|fy|ng by tr|a| f|nds context |n the sp|r|t of M||ton s reform|ng of
reformat|on |tse|f t a|so waxes hero|c ce|ebrat|ng the pur|fy|ng effects of mora| tr|a| cannot pra|se a fug|t|ve
and c|o|stered v|rtue unexerc|sed and unbreathed that never sa|||es out and seeks her adversary but s||nks out of
the race where that |mmorta| gar|and |s to be run for not w|thout dust and heat u|ntessent|a||y protestant |t
pr|v||eges |nd|v|dua| consc|ence w|thout wh|ch a man may be a heret|c |n truth @here |s not any burden that
some wou|d g|ad||er post off to another than the charge and care of the|r re||g|on
4reopoqitico ||ke a|most everyth|ng M||ton wrote s|tuates |ts concerns mytho|og|ca||y w|th|n the cyc|e of fa|| and
recuperat|on wh|ch M||ton character|st|ca||y reconstructs as the v|t|at|on and rec|amat|on of Gods creat|on @he
wr|t|ng of books thus becomes a k|nd of re|terat|on of the creat|ve act and censorsh|p thus m|nd|ess|y counters
creat|on and reator a||ke who k|||s a man k|||s a reasonab|e creature Gods |mage but he who destroys a good
book k|||s reason |tse|f k|||s the |mage of God as |t were |n the eye M||ton s fa|| of man |s qu|ntessent|a||y a fa||
of reason Adams and ves fa|| be|ng an act of d|sobed|ence to God that |s a|so constructed as an act of a||ow|ng
the|r reason to be c|ouded by the|r appet|tes 4reopoqiticoconstrues man as mora||y adequate |n a wor|d
unprotected by a perpetua| ch||dhood of prescr|pt|on by v|rtue of the cont|nu|ty of mans pre|apsar|an freedom of
cho|ce Ior reason |s but choos|ng M||ton proc|a|ms |n phras|ng that |n the |ater 9orodiseost(1667 3108%
becomes Gods defense of Adams suff|c|ency s|nce keason a|so |s cho|ce
4reopoqiticos power as an essay depends |n |arge measure on |ts pro[ect|on from more pr|ma| bod|es of mytho|ogy
drawn by M||ton from the c|ass|cs @hus the fa|| |s seen to re|terate an ananagnor|s|s (recogn|t|on% |n wh|ch @ruth
||ke Cs|r|s |s torn apart and the rec|amat|on of mans or|g|na| state comprehends the ob||gat|on to un|te those
severed p|eces wh|ch are yet want|ng to the body of @ruth |sewhere mans restorat|on becomes a myth|c
reawaken|ng |n wh|ch the fa|| van|shes |nto noth|ngness ||ke a n|ghtmare past Meth|nks see a nob|e and pu|ssant
nat|on rous|ng herse|f ||ke a strong man after s|eep and shak|ng her |nv|nc|b|e |ocks (8|akes concept|on of h|s
aud|ence as A|b|on the g|ant s|eep|ng form of the ng||sh nat|on needfu| of a s|m||ar rous|ng from a state of menta|
and mora| torpor |s obv|ous|y |n M||ton s debt% S|m||ar|y M||ton s eag|e mu|ng her m|ghty youth and k|nd||ng
her undazz|ed eyes at the fu|| m|dday beam constructs h|s v|s|on on the fo|k|ore eag|e that can gaze unb||nkered at
the sun and a|so on |atos account of mans emergence from the cave ( epub/ic 8ook 7% A|so re|terated here |s
the pr|ma| myth of a cosmos snatched from darkness that |nforms the Genes|s creat|on account reconstructed by
M||ton |nto an ana|ogy of mans menta| state |n wh|ch those a|so that |ove the tw|||ght are condemned to a state
of |ntent|ona| se|fdamnat|on And f|na||y there |s the appropr|at|ng of the Gospe|s re|terat|on of a pr|ma| myth of
sa|vat|on as a harvest for wh|ch the f|e|ds are wh|te a|ready knAkD SnLL eeo/soamph|et

1he LlLle of MllLons AreopaglLlca alludes Lo boLh Lhe AreopaglLlcus of lsocraLes and Lhe sLory of Lhe aposLle aul ln
ALhens from AcLs 17 1834 lsocraLess LracL whlch ouLllnes a program for pollLlcal reform speclflcally menLlons Lhe
degradaLlon of Lhe [udges of Lhe CourL of Lhe Areopagus Lhe hlghesL courL ln Creece MllLon may fancy hlmself a man
slmllar ln vlrLue and sagaclLy Lo Lhe old [udges of Lhe Areopagus whom lsocraLes pralses followlng Lhls alluslon Lhe
morally weakened [udges of Lhe Areopagus are symbollc of Lnglands slLLlng arllamenL MllLon doubly ldenLlfles wlLh
Lhe volce of reform and Lhe sobermlnded leaders of a prevlous generaLlon 1he alluslon Lo aul ln Lhe book of AcLs
conLalns a slmllar parallel aul preaches Lo Lhe pagan ALhenlans aL Lhe Areopagus (Lhe hlll where Lhe [udges once saL)
ln hls appeal Lo Lhe ALhenlans aul uses a sLock phrase from a poem by AraLus wlLh whom Lhe Creeks would cerLalnly
have been famlllar aul uses a pagan ldea Lo lnsLrucL Lhe ALhenlans abouL ChrlsLlanlLy
As always MllLon dlvldes hls scholarly affecLlons beLween Lhe classlcal and Lhe blbllcal ln AreopaglLlca noLlce Lhough
LhaL ln Lhls speech classlcal alluslons ouLwelgh blbllcal parLlcularly ln Lhe flrsL half of Lhe LracL MllLon seems Lo be
maklng an aLLempL by way of coplous example Lo demonsLraLe [usL how Creek and 8oman learnlng can reslde wlLhln
Lhe boundarles of ChrlsLlan morallLy AL flrsL one mlghL be lncllned Lo dlsmlss Lhls as merely MllLons aLLempL Lo
reconclle Lhe dlfferences beLween hls Lwo lnLellecLual loves 8uL a closer examlnaLlon of AreopaglLlca wlll reveal
MllLons more cagey purpose for allowlng classlcal references Lo domlnaLe lL ls a subLle aLLempL Lo flaLLer members of
arllamenL by comparlng Lhelr commonwealLh Lo Lhe enllghLened socleLles of ALhens and 8ome 8y playlng off of Lhe
vanlLy of Lngllsh pollLlclans who would of course llke Lo Lhlnk of Lhemselves as Lhe senaLors of a laLLerday 1roy
MllLon hopes Lo reverse Lhe oplnlon of Lhe leglslaLlve body Cnly an lgnoranL man would crlLlclze Lhe pollcles of
ALhens and LhaL clLy as MllLon argues dld noL supporL llcenslng of books MllLon seems Lo express a falLh LhaL
Lnglands enllghLened leaders would never embark on a pollcy LhaL would demonsLraLe Lhelr counLrys lnferlorlLy Lo
Lhose anclenL socleLles
MllLons LracL ls a dlrecL response Lo Lhe Lhe Llcenslng Crder of 1643 whlch relnsLaLed much Lhe same sorL of pre
publlcaLlon censorshlp once exerclsed by Lhe SLar Chamber and oLher earller censors royal and eccleslasLlcal MllLon
does noL argue here for free and unregulaLed speech or prlnLlng buL slmply LhaL books should noL be suppressed
before publlcaLlon 1reasonous slanderous and blasphemous books he allows should be Lrled accordlng Lo law Lhen
suppressed and Lhelr auLhors punlshed
1he counLerexamples MllLon offers Lo Lhose enllghLened socleLles of Creece and 8ome are Lhe Lyrannlcal socleLles of
CaLhollc Spaln and Lhe apacy MllLon offers Lhe members of Lords and Commons a clear cholce elLher lmlLaLe opery
or lnsLlLuLe freedom 8y maklng Lhe counLerexample Lo enllghLened pollcy CaLhollclsm MllLon once agaln
demonsLraLes an acuLe undersLandlng of hls audlence arllamenL durlng MllLons Llme especlally Lhe Pouse of
Commons was largely urlLan 1he LhoughL LhaL any of Lhelr orders mlghL have an odor of unreformed CaLhollclsm
abouL lL was dlsLasLeful especlally durlng Lhe parLlcularly LumulLuous days surroundlng Lhe clvll wars when
accusaLlons of CaLhollc sympaLhy flew as regularly as Lhe plgeons of Pyde ark AreopaglLlca demonsLraLes MllLon Lo
be noL only a greaL wordsmlLh and scholar buL also a brllllanL pollLlcal oraLor
MllLons AreopaglLlca had vlrLually no pollLlcal lmpacL ln lLs day arllamenL lgnored lL Powever as Lhe flrsL ma[or
LreaLlse on freedom of Lhe press lL lnfluenced Lhe argumenLs of many laLer advocaLes for Lhe abollLlon of censorshlp
Lven Lhe unlLed SLaLes 8lll of 8lghLs can be vlewed as a dlrecL descendenL of MllLons AreopaglLlca arL of Lhe reason
LhaL lL was lgnored ln lLs day may be LhaL MllLon had already challenged arllamenL and popular oplnlon wlLh oLher
unorLhodox argumenLs such as Lhe one presenLed ln Lhe uocLrlne and ulsclpllne of ulvorce and lLs defenses
(1eLrachordon ColasLerlon) 1hough he aLLempLed Lo culLlvaLe an lmage as a genLleman poeL MllLon held radlcal
oplnlons whlch challenged socleLal norms and was even accused of heresy by some of hls rlvals and LargeLs ln
AreopaglLlca we have a prlme example of Lhe naLure of MllLons genlus heavlly lnflecLed wlLh blbllcal and classlcal
knowledge buL Loo unorLhodox for malnsLream accepLance aL leasL ln hls day
naLhan Chaney and Casey noga



Areopagitica. Milton's title alludes to Isocrates's seventh oration, oIten called the Areopagitic
Discourse or Areopagiticus (about 355 BCE). There, Isocrates (436-338 BCE) addresses the General
Assembly oI Athens on a topic oI civic saIety. See also the Introductionabove.
Eurip. Hicetid. Euripides, The Suppliants 437-440 .
States. Heads oI state, either rulers or assemblies.
wanting. Lacking, not having.
successe. Outcome, result.
at other times. Milton may have experienced each oI these dispositions in his seven prior works oI prose, but
he is most likely reIerring to the revised edition oI Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce (1644) and The
Judgement of Martin Bucer (1644); in both he directly addresses Parliament.
it. "which oI them sway'd most." II the passion Milton Ieels most in the moment oI writing this speech is "the
joy and gratulation" oI those who "wish and promote their Countries liberty," then he is in an appropriate
mood.
it. The antecedent oI this "it" appears to be "the very attempt" oI making an address to a governing body like
Parliament.
-eyond the manhood of a Roman recovery. A complicated locution that might be paraphrased as, "we are so
Iar sunk in superstition and tyranny that we may be now beyond the capacity oI those manly virtues
inculcated by Roman ethics (courage, magnanimity, honesty, prudence, Irugality) to restore us to our proper
manly liberties." Milton implies that some discipline oI virtue more manly even than that typical oI Roman
heroes must be put into practice in order to restore manly liberty to the reIormed churchmen and citizens oI
England.
first. That is, this is the Iirst time Milton praises Parliament in this discourse. Elsewhere he oIIers
compliments in An Apology and, more mildly, in The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce.
rescuing the employment from him. That is, taking the business oI praising Parliament out oI the hands oI a
Ilatterer and into Milton's hands. The Ilatterer he reIers to is Joseph Hall, Bishop oI Norwich (1574-1656),
whose Hum-le Remonstrance to the High Court of Parliament (1641) gave rise to
the Smectymnuan controversy. Milton's contributions to this pamphlet controversy
were Animadversions (1641) and Apology Against a Pamphlet (1642). Smectymnuus was a pseudonym
assumed by that group oI writers who answered Bishop Hall in pamphlets so signed: SM stands Ior Stephen
Marshall; EC Ior Edmund Calamy; TY Ior Thomas Young; MN Ior Matthew Newcomen; and W (UU) S Ior
William Spurstowe.
Encomium. A Iormal or high-Ilown expression oI praise; a eulogy, panegyric (OED2) . Malignant was a term
used by Parliamentarians to describe anything opposed to them during Milton's time. It carried with it the
connotation oI being a Royalist. Milton alleges that Bishop Hall's praise oI Parliament, probably in his Modest
Confutation of a Slanderous and Scurrilous Li-el (1642) is nothing but Ilattery.
one of your pu-lisht Orders. The speciIic Order Milton reIers to is named below; it is the Parliamentary Order
restoring the powers oI press licensing to the State. See the Iull text oI the Order.
equall. Fair, equitable, just, impartial (OED2) .
trienniall Parlament. The Triennial Parliaments Act (February 16, 1641) stipulated the automatic issue oI
writs Ior a new Parliament iI the king Iailed to summon one within three years oI the closing oI the previous.
ca-in Counsellours. Milton reIers to the period oI "personal rule" when Charles I ruled without Parliaments
between 1629 and 1640, relying only upon his personally chosen counselors.
Huns, Norwegians, Goths and Jutlanders. Milton oIten expressed the Iear that northern people in general
might be, because oI climate, less civilized than southern Europeans. See "northern latitude" below
and Paradise Lost 9. 44-46. See also the PreIace to Book 2 oIReason of Church Government) where Milton
may allude to Aristotle's claim that northern races lacked intelligence (Politics 1327b ).
him. Isocrates was praised by Cicero Ior Iounding the art oI political oratory in Athens. His Seventh
Oration, Areopagiticus , advocated that the Court oI the Areopagus should extend its jurisdiction Irom the
merely criminal to become a censor oI public morality. Milton argues Ior the removal oI what he regards as
excessive interIerence with the publishing processes.
Parlament of Athens. Milton chooses to Ilatter the British Parliament by comparing it to the governing body
oI the culture Ior which he has the greatest admiration, that oI ancient Athens.
Siniories. A body oI 'seigniors' or lords. OIten with reIerence to Italy (OED2) .
Dion Prusus. Also known as Dion oI Prusa in Bithynia and Dion Chrysostom (died about 112 CE). A
rhetorician and philosopher, his "Rhodian Discourse" advises the repeal oI an edict allowing the removal oI
original names Irom public monuments and the substitution oI new ones. He was expelled Irom Rome Ior
political reasons by Domitian.
northern latitude. In the supressed digression oI his History of Britain book 3, Milton mentions the
disadvantage England's northern climate presents to intellectualism: "For the sunn, which wee want, ripens
witts as well as Iruits." Both there, and here, he seems to be reIerring to a theory put Iorward in
Aristotle's Politics 1327b, that cold climates make men slow-witted. See also "Manso" line 28 and the note
above about northern peoples.
Copy. Copyright.
Order. The Licencing Order provided Ior other measures besides censorship. See the Iull text oI the Order.
painfull. painstaking.
quadragesimal. OI or relating to a period oI Iorty days. In this case Milton reIers sneeringly to the Roman
Catholic rules Ior observing Lent. See Lent in the New Catholic Encyclopedia.
Prelats expird. The reIerence is to dietary, matrimonial, and other social restrictions imposed by bishops
beIore the abolition oI bishops (episcopacy) in England in the 1640s. The control oI marriage, Iasting, and
certain aspects oI printing (including the publication oI banns and marriage rites) was thought to have ended
with the exclusion oI bishops Irom the House oI Lords in 1642, with the establishment oI Presbyterianism
(1645), and, Iinally, with the abolition oI episcopacy.
Homily. Sermon.
violl. vial.
armed men. Milton alludes to the story oI Cadmus sowing dragon's teeth in Metamorphoses 3 . 101-30.
in the eye. Philo Judaeus, in his On the Creation, speaks oI the image oI God in man--the mind--as "like the
pupil in the eye": "he made man, and bestowed on him mind par excellence, liIe principle oI the liIe principle
itselI, like the pupil in the eye" (translated by F. H. Colson and G.H. Whitaker. 10 volumes |London: William
Heinemann Ltd., 1929| 1.51).
whole impression. An entire edition or press run.
fift essence. Also known as quintessence. This is how Hamlet uses the word in Shakespeare's Hamlet 2.2.324 .
nquisition. See the article on the Inquisition in The Catholic Encyclopedia.
Protagoras. According to Cicero in his On the Nature of the Gods (1. 23), the sophist Protagoras was
banished Irom Athens (411 BCE) Ior the beginning lines oI his treatise on the gods: "I am unable to to know
whether the Gods exist or not."
Jetus Comdia. The "Old Comedy" oI Athens, as written by Cratinus, Eupolis, and Aristophanes, was
characterized by the vitriolic lampooning oI public Iigures. It had been traditional to suppose in Milton's time,
due mostly to the accounts oI Horace in his Ars Poetica, that Middle and New Comedy was largely Iree oI
such personal attacks due to legislation against them.
Epicurus. Epicurus (341-270 BCE) taught that all matter is composed oI irreducible atoms, which are eternal,
and hence were not made by a divine creator. He held that gods exist, but are indiIIerent to human aIIairs, and
that pleasure (or the absence oI pain) is the only good. He emphasized virtue and simple living, gaining
pleasure Irom easily IulIilled desires, with the highest pleasure coming Irom Ireedom Irom painIul need. His
philosophy was distorted into mere hedonism by those who noted only his goal oI pleasure, and not the means
by which it was attained. Milton harbors this interpretation, and thus his reIerences to Epicurus are usually
derogatory.
school of Cyrene. Milton reIers to the Iollowers oI Aristippus (435-366 BCE) who advocated something
much more like what we would call hedonism than did Epicurus.
the Cynick. Milton reIers to the school oI Antisthenes (455-365 BCE), called Cynosarges, and hence the
name Cynics. One oI his students, Diogenes the Cynic (died 320 BCE), developed such a reputation Ior
inpudent and insolent rhetoric that the whole school came to be characterized by his practice.
Chrysostome. John Chrysostom (died 407), a Iather oI the Eastern Orthodox Church and a patriarch oI
Constantinople. He was believed to have read Aristophanes's plays even though they were thought to be
pagan and scurrilous.
Lycurgus. Lycurgus was generally believed to have been the Iounder oI and law-giver to Sparta in the ninth
century BCE.
Thales. Thales probably was a poet and musician oI ancient Sparta.
Laconick Apothegms. The apothegms, or short maxims, Iavored by those oI Laconia (Sparta). Laconic has
become a synonym Ior terse.
Archilochus. Archilochus oI Paros (seventh century BCE) was a lyric and satiric poet, notable Ior having
invented the iambic trimeter and trochaic tetrameter.
Andromache. See Euripides's Andromache 590-93 .
twelve Ta-les. A code oI Roman law made in 451-450 BCE.
Pontifick College. The council oI high priests which supervised the religious liIe oI Rome, including the
management oI public engineering projects and the calendar and various other endeavors which required
technical knowledge. Augurs were priests who determined Irom various omens the gods' attitude toward
public activities. A Ilamen was a priest devoted to a particular god Ior whom he perIormed sacriIices on a
daily basis.
taly. In 155 BCE, Athens sent an embassy composed oI three philosophers to Rome in order to ask Ior
remission oI a Iine imposed on the city Ior having sacked Oropus. Among the group were Carneades, a
moderate Skeptic; Critolaus, a Iollower oI Aristotle; and Diogenes the Babylonian, whom Milton reIers to as a
Stoic in order to diIIerentiate him Irom the Diogenes oI Sinope, who was a Cynic. Their introduction oI
Athenian philosophy to Rome drew the opposition oI Marcus Portius Cato (234-149 BCE), the public censor
charged with regulating public morals, Ior he Ieared an alteration oI the manners and customs oI the state.
Also known as Cato the Censor, He was noted Ior his conservative and anti-Hellenic policies, in opposition to
the phil-Hellenic ideals oI the Scipio Iamily.
Sa-in. Cato was raised in the Sabine territory. Milton reIers to Cato's denunciation oI Lucius Scipio, Iather
oI Scipio AIricanus .
Nvius. Gnaeus Naevius (about 270 - about 200 BCE) wrote tragedies, comedies, and an epic. He was Iond
oI satirizing Scipio and the patrician Iamily oI Metelli, Ior which he was thrown in prison until he recanted.
Plautus. Plautus (about 254 - 184 BCE) wrote many plays that were largely adaptations Irom Athenian
comedies and had a major eIIect on English dramatists.
Menander and Philemon. Menander (342-292 BCE) was one oI the leading Athenain "New Comedy"
playwrights, and Philemon (368-264 BCE) was another.
Augustus. See Tacitus Annals 1. 72.
Lucretius. Milton reIers to Lucretius's De Rerum Natura which expounds the doctrine oI Epicurus and is
addressed to Memmius in the opening lines. Despite Cicero's attacks on Epicurus in The Tusculan
Disputations (Against Piso 69 ), Milton and many others believed Cicero acted as editor Ior the second edition
oI De Rerum Natura.
Lucilius, or Catullus, or Flaccus. Lucilius (about 180- about 102 or 103 BCE) and Catullus (85-54 BCE)
were known Ior their satirical wit, so also was Horace (65-8 BCE), whose Iull name was Quintus Horatius
Flaccus.
Titus Livius. Milton reIers to a section oI Livy's History which does not survive. Milton reIers
Tacitus's Annals 4. 35, an account oI the deIence oI Cremutius Cordus against the charge oI libelling Tiberius
by praising his enemies.
Naso. Ovid's Iull name was Publius Ovidius Naso. He was banished by Augustus allegedly Ior the immorality
oI his Ars amatoria (Art of Love).
Proclus. Porphyry's (234 - about 305) Against the Christians was ordered burned by Constantine, the Iirst
Christina emperor. Proclus ( 410- 485) was a neoplatonist and anti-Christian. Proclus's writings did not come
under attack until Iourty-Iour years aIter his death, when Justinian suppressed the Athenian philosophical
schools.
Carthaginian Councel. There appears to have been no council in North AIrica in 400; see the Catholic
Encyclopedia. Milton quotes Irom Paolo Sarpi's Historie of the Council of Trent (translated by Nathaniel
Brent 1620).
Gentiles. Heathens.
Padre Paolo. Paolo Servita was Pietro Sarpi's religious name. One oI the leaders oI the Venetian movement to
abolish papal secular supremacy, his most important written works were the Historie of the Council of
Trent and the History of the nquisition. Milton calls him in Of Reformation. "the great Venetian antagonist oI
the Pope."
Martin the 5. Martin V (Oddone Colonna) was pope Irom 1417 until 1431. His bull (papal proclamation) oI
1418, nter Cunctas, was designed to suppress heretical writings, including those oI pre-ReIormation
reIormers John WycliI and John Huss .
Wicklef. Milton bestowed much praise upon John WycliI in his Tetrachordon: "that Englishman honor'd oI
God to be the Iirst preacher oI a general reIormation to all Europe."
Husse. John Huss was Czech proto-reIormer excommunicated in 1411 and burned at the stake as a heretic in
1415.
Leo the 10. Leo X ((Giovanni de Medici) was pope Irom 1513 until 1521. His Bull oI May 3, 1515 broadened
censorship to cover all writings.
Councell of Trent. Held at Trent Irom December 13, 1545 until December 4, 1563, the Council oI Trent was
convened to discuss and respond to the ReIormation's challenge to Catholic orthodoxy, unity and
ecclesiastical hegemony.
Spanish nquisition. See the Catholic Encyclopedia article on the Inquisition and on the Catholic
Church's Censorship oI Books .
Author. In 1542 Pope Paul III reIormed the Inquisition, this time to have jurisdiction over books. He Iorbade
publication unless a license had been obtained Irom inquisitors in advance. In 1559, Iollowing the advice oI
the Council oI Trent, Pope Paul IV issued the Iirstndex of Prohi-ited Books , as well as an ndex of
Expurgations, which indicated prohibited passages Irom books otherwise allowed to be read. In 1562 and
1563 the Council oI Trent added two decrees on the cataloguing oI Iorbidden books.
Claudius intended. 1644 has the Iollowing marginal annotation at this point: "Quo veniam daret statum
crepitumque ventris in convivio emittendi. Sueton. in Claudio." In English (Irom the Loeb translation oI J.C.
RolIe 1914): "|He Claudius} is even said to have thought oI an edict| allowing the privilege oI breaking
wind quietly or noisily at table |having learned oI a man who ran some risk by restraining himselI through
modesty" (Lives of the Caesars 5.32).
shavn reverences. Milton reIers sneeringly to the tonsure worn by monks, Iriars and some other ecclesastical
oIIicials in the Roman Catholic Church.
spunge. Eraser.
Antiphonies. Responsories and antiphonies are parts oI church service in which speakers or singers respond to
one another in alternating speech or song.
Lam-eth house. Lambeth House (now Lambeth Palace) is the residence in London oI the Archbishop oI
Canterbury, primate oI England. The Bishop oI London used to keep a residence in the precincts oI St. Paul's
Cathedral.
in. This word is missing in 1644; I have supplied it in order to complete the sentence.
cros-legd. When Jove's son Hercules was about to be born, his jealous wiIe Juno dispatched the goddess oI
childbirth to interIere with the delivery by sitting in Iront oI the mother's door with legs and Iingers crossed.
See Ovid's Metamorphoses 9. 281-323 .
Radamanth and his Colleagues. Rhadamanthus, Minos, and Aeacus were in classical legend, the judges oI
Hades.
damned. Milton compares prohibited books to damned souls. Yet, while the damned are judged aIter they
have come into existence and lived, books prohibited by the Licensing Order are condemned without even
being born into the world. Because books are not subject to a Iair trial, as are souls, Milton argues that those
who have wished to issue such licensing orders in the past -- that is, the Catholic Church -- have had to
imagine new realms oI hell that could accomodate books oI Protestant countries as well the draconian
methods oI judgement necessary to damn them.
minorites. Followers oI St. Francis called themselves Friars Minor or minorites, Ior short.
Lullius. Ramon Lully was a medieval mystic, logician, philosopher, poet, and martyred missionary. Though
he died as a missionary, he is best remembered as an alchemist.
Moses, Daniel, and Paul. Milton appears to reIer his readers to Acts 7 :22, Daniel 1 :17, and Acts 17 :28.
These are all passages where holy men were said to be Iamiliar with pagan or gentile wisdom.
a Tragedian. The sentences Milton reIers to are Iound in three places. In Acts 17 :28, Paul quotes
Irom Aratus; in Titus 1 :12, he quotes Epimenides; and in 1 Corinthians 15 :33 he quotes Irom Euripides, a
tragedian; see Heracles 270 .
Julian. Julian the Apostate (Flavius Claudius Julianus 331-63) was emperor oI Rome Irom 361-363. The
nephew oI Constantine, he was originally a Christian, but eventually turned back to the worship oI Roman
gods. The decree Milton reIers to Iorbade Christians to teach, or to become teachers, thus indirectly
Iorbidding them to study the pagan learning Julian otherwise sought to promote.
Apollinarii. Apollinaris oI Alexandria and his son wrote a grammar Ior Christians and translated books oI the
Bible into poetic and dramatic Iorm.
seven li-erall Sciences. Sometimes called the "seven liberal arts" and the grandIather oI what we know call a
liberal arts education, the seven included the medieval trivium oI grammar, logic, and rhetoric and
the quadrivium oI arithmetic, geometry, atronomy, and music.
Socrates. Socrates Scholasticus (about 385 - about 440), a church historian.
Decius or Diocletian. The emperors Decius (249-51) and Diocletian (284-305) pursued severely anti-
Christian policies.
St. Jerom. Jerome is most Iamous as a Bible translator, having translated the entire Bible into Latin, a Bible
that later came to be known as The Vulgate and served as the authoritative scripture oI the Roman Catholic
Church Ior ages. In his Letter 22, "To Eustochium" (paragraph 30), Jerome recounts that during Lent he Iell
into a Iever and began having visions in which he was questioned by God about the state oI his soul. He
replied that he was a Christian, but was told: "Thou liest; thou art a Ciceronian, Ior the works oI that author
possess thy heart." He was subsequently severely Ilogged by an angel and when he awoke Irom his dream he
Iound lash marks all over his body.
Basil. Basil the Great, Bishop oI Caesarea (370-79) who advised Christians to accept what was wise in pagan
writers and also to recognize what was best to ignore.
Margites. Margites was the name oI a caricature oI Achilles in a mock heroic poem that passed under the
name oI Homer. Aristotle wrote that this work was to comedy what the liad and Odyssey were to tragedy
(Poetics 1449a ). Nothing but a Iew lines quoted by Aristotle in his Nicomachean Ethics (1141a) appear to
survive.
Morgante. l Morgante Maggiore by Luigi Pulci was a mock-heroic predecessor to Ariosto's Orlando
Furioso, it was published in Venice in 1481.
Euse-ius. Eusebius Pamphilius was Bishop oI Caesarea until about 340. Known as the Iather oI Church
history, he wrote an account oI Dionysius Alexandrinus's experience oI a vision Irom God regarding books.
Eusebius's account in is his Church History 7 .7.
answera-le. In accordance with, or similar to Paul's teaching in 1 Thessalonians 5 :21.
pure. Milton quotes Titus 1 :15. But see also Raphael's teaching about knowledge by analogy to Iood
in Paradise Lost 7.126-30.
unapocryphal vision. Milton reIers to Peter's vision in Acts 10 : 9-16.
Selden. John Selden (1584-1654) was a parliamentarian who was imprisoned several times by Charles I Ior
his opposition to the extreme interpretation oI the royal perogative, which Charles held. The preIace oI his De
Jure Naturali et Gentium fuxta Disciplinam E-raeorum (1640) contains the argument that it is better to
review not only opinions which support one's own ideas, but also opinions which oppose them.
repasting of our minds. Milton's Raphael also compares alimentary and mental diets in Paradise Lost 7. 126-
130.
Manna. See Exodus 16 .
defile not. Milton quotes Irom Matthew 15 : 17-20 and/ or Mark 7 : 14-23.
perpetuall childhood. Milton echoes Paul's description oI Jewish Christians who kept the law as children or
immature heirs and so no better than slaves; see Galatians 4 .
Salomon. Solomon; see Ecclesiastes 7:12.
Syriack. See Acts 19:19.
practi:d. Practised the magic described in them.
Psyche. The story oI Cupid and Psyche is Iound in Apuleius's The Golden Ass book 5 . Also a 1596 English
edition Irom Early English Books Online . Venus, Psyche's mother-in-law, expressed her jealously by pouring
wheat, oats, lentils, and other seeds in a great pile and assigned the girl the seemingly impossible task oI
sorting them by sundown. Compassionate ants do the work Ior her.
knowledge. See Genesis 3:5 and 22.
wayfaring. The Thomason copy oI 1644 (British Library; Wing M2092) used as copytext Ior this edition has
the "y" in wayfaring lined through and supplies an "r" above the line to spell warfaring instead
immortall garland. Milton seems to be combining the classical with the biblical. Winners oI Olympic races
were presented with wreaths oI wild olive. For enduring temptation, the righteous Christian receives an
immortal according to James 1 :12 and 2 Timothy 4 : 7-8.
excrementall. OI the nature oI an outgrowth or excrescence; see OED2
Spencer. See The Faerie Queene 2 . 7-8 and 12.
Scotus. John Duns Scotus was a medieval philosopher and theologian. See also the article on Thomas
Aquinas .
Chetiv. The Talmud is composed oI both the primary (Mishnah) and secondary (Gemara) Hebraic
commentaries upon Hebrew scripture, or Torah. It lays claim to an authority second only to Torah itselI. Keri
and Chetiv are technical terms oI Masorah, the textual criticism oI Hebrew Scripture. When a textual reading
(Chetiv) is suspected oI corruption, or makes Ior unseemly reading, or, like the tetragrammaton YHWH is
Iorbidden to be pronounced aloud, the margin provides a euphemism to be read aloud, called a Keri.
Evangelick preparation. Church Iathers Clement (in his Hortatory Address to the Greeks) and Eusebius (in
his Evangelical Preparation) described lewd pagan rituals in order to convince Christians not to participate in
them.
renus, Epiphanius, Jerom. Irenaeus in Against Heresies, Epiphanius in Panarion, and Jerome in his
various attacks on Origen, Pelagius, Jovinian, and Vigilantus, uncovered or exposed numerous heresies to
their readers.
Petronius. According to Tacitus, Nero called his Iriend Petronius elegantiae ar-iter, chieI judge oI taste and
etiquette; See Annals 16.18 .
Are::o. Pietro Aretino (1492-1556) was Italian satirist born in the town oI Arezzo. He led a liIe oI adventure
and wrote abusive works Ior hire. His derisive wit was so Ieared that the giIts oI those who sought either to
buy him or buy him oII made him very wealthy. He was a Iriend oI Titian, who painted his portrait. His
comedies, such as La cortigiana and La talenta, are singular, iI exaggerated, portraits oI his time. His letters,
in spite oI their impudent coarseness, are Iull oI verve. Ariosto called him the "scourge oI princes." See his
illustratedSixteen Postures .
Jicar of hell. Anne Boleyn's cousin, Sir Francis Brian, the notoriously wicked courtier oI Henry VIII.
Cataio. Cathay or China.
guide. See Acts 7 : 27-31.
Sor-onists. Scholars oI the Sorbonne, a center oI Roman Catholic theology in Paris.
Arminius. Jacob Hermansz (1560-1609), known as Arminius, was a protestant theologian who taught
(contrary to strict Calvinism) general as opposed to particular predestination, conditional election, Iree will,
and religious toleration. Milton later adopted a version oIarminianism himselI.
Aristotle. See Nicomachean Ethics 1095a .
Salomon. See Proverbs 23 : 9.
Saviour. See Matthew 7 : 6.
want. Lack, or do without.
prevented. Come ahead oI, anticipated.
Commonwealth. Milton seems to reIer, perhaps with a slight sneer, to Plato's Repu-lic here, but the rest oI the
sentence cites also Plato's Laws , as iI Milton considered both dialogues as pretty much oI a piece in
imagining a well-governed state, not meaning to describe one or prescribe how one might be organized.
there also enacts. See Plato's Laws 801d .
wanton epigrams and dialogues. Perhaps Milton reIers, at least in part, to Plato's Iamous dialogues on love
and Iriendship that praise homoerotic relations above all others, the Symposium and the Phaedrus.
friends. Aristophanes lampooned Socrates in The Clouds.
Dorick. See Plato's Repu-lic 398e where Socrates proposed supressing soIt, eIIiminate music (Lydian airs),
but allowed the Dorian and Phrygian styles as more martial and manly.
Frontispieces. Pictures put beIore the title oI a book.
re--eck. A three-stringed lute.
Monte Mayors. That is, these are the lower class equivalents to the more posh romances, such as
Sidney's Arcadia and Montemayor's Diana.
Atlantick and Eutopian polities. Political sytems with no grounding in reality, like that oI Plato's Atlantis
(Critias 113c and Timaeus 25a ) or More's Utopia.
there mentions. That is, in the Laws 643-44 .
gramercy. Merit or worth.
in the motions. That is, in a puppet show.
reason is -ut choosing. See much the same dictum in Paradise Lost 3. 108.
powrs. Pours.
that continud Court-li-ell. Milton reIers to the anti-Parliament newspaper, the Mercurius Aulicus or "Court
Mercury," published Irom 1642-1645.
Sevil. Seville was the headquarters oI the Spanish Inquisition .
pluralities. The practice oI simultaneously holding more than one (normally Iull-time) church appointment to
increase one's income and power. Milton attacks plurality in his poem On the new Forcers of Conscience as a
practice typical oI the old days oI prelacy, now persisting in the new Presbyterian system.
competency. An appointment with an income suitable Ior a living. See the listing Ior "competency" in
the OED2 .
ferular. A Ierular, or Ierula, is a teacher's whipping rod made Irom the Iennel plant. See deIinition 2 Ior
"Ierula" in the OED2 .
fescu. A teacher's pointer.
Palladian oyl. Pallas Athene was the goddess oI wisdom. Olives were sacred to her because she taught men
how to extract oil Irom them to burn in their lamps while studying.
punie. A Ireshman or junior student.
patriarchal. Milton puns here on two senses oI the word, the Iirst denoting a protracted Iatherliness, and the
second glancing at the Roman Catholic oIIice oI patriarch. Patriarch was the second-highest oIIice in the
Roman Church, underneath only the pope. At the time Milton was writing Areopagitica, Archbishop Laud ,
religious adviser to King Charles I, was tried Ior treason Ior conspiring to have himselI installed as patriarch
oI Great Britain.
a coits distance. A coit, or quoit, was a metal ring thrown like a discus in athletic contests. See deIinition 1 Ior
"quoit" in OED2 .
Stationer. Printer or bookseller.
return. Reply.
such authori:d -ooks are -ut the language of the times. A paraphrase oI a line Irom Francis Bacon's 1589
work An Advertisement Touching the Controversies of the Church of England, which was published in the
1640s under the title A Wise and Moderate Discourse Concerning Church-Affaires.
ventrous. Adventurous or daring.
Knox. John Knox was the Iounder oI Presbyterianism who reIormed the Church oI Scotland.
their dash. The crossing out oI words by a licensing agent, that is censorship.
what -ook of greatest consequence. II not a reIerence to Knox's History of the Reformation (1644), probably a
reIerence to Edward Coke 's nstitutes of Laws of England (1641). Both works were heavily censored beIore
they were published.
iron moulds. Spots oI rust on paper caused by such things as ink stains, which could eat a hole through the
paper itselI.
periods. Sentences.
monopoli:d. Monopolies to trade in particular wares were traditionally granted by the king. Resentment oI the
monarchical power over monopolies was one oI the catalysts Ior the Puritan Revolution. Though oIIicially
abolished in 1624, Charles used monopoly-granting powers to raise the money necessary to rule without
Parliament Irom 1629 until 1640.
tickets and statutes. Both oI these, by preventing the imports oI certain goods, could be used eIIectively to
guarantee a monopoly.
Philistims. In 1 Samuel 13 : 19-21, we read that the Israelites are Iorced to go to the Philistines in order to
have their tools sharpened, because their conquerors do not want them to have smiths and thus the capacity to
make weapons.
staple commodity. An item which is under the jurisdiction oI a corporate entity with the power to regulate
trade in the item.
dettors and delinquents. Debtors in 17th century England could be thrown in prison until they paid their debts.
However, until the right was abolished by Parliament in 1648, members oI both houses oI Parliament and
their servants and relations were shielded Irom prosecution Ior debt. Debtors could also seek reIuge in the
precincts oI deIunct monasteries, where they could not be arrested. In 1643 Parliament declared all those who
had Iought Ior the king against Parliament "delinquents," and their property was conIiscated. They were later
pardoned, contingent on a conIession oI guilt, and allowed to recover their property Ior a small assessment.
pipe. That is, a pipe Ior Ieeding one who cannot Ieed him- or herselI.
laick ra--le. Sarcastically reIers to the Laudian sentiment that the lay members oI the church should not have
an active role in it.
conceit. Idea or opinion.
enchiridion. A handbook or manual, a reIerence guide. See deIinition in the OED2 . Milton is probably
punning on the Greek word encheiridion, which means dagger.
the castle of St. Angelo. A papal prison on the Tiber River in Rome.
fustian. Bombastic, pompous, overblown speech. See deIinition 2 in the OED2 .
Galileo. The Inquisition Iorced Galileo to recant the heliocentric theory he proposed in his Dialogue on
the Two Principal Systems of the World. Milton claims to have visited Galileo on his Western European
journey in 1638.
Franciscan and Dominican licencers. The oIIicers and inquisitors oI the Inquisition Irequently were
Franciscan and Dominican Iriars.
in time of Parlament. A contrast with the years 1629-40, when Charles I and his appointed councillors ruled
without a Parliament.
Jerres. Verres was a cruel and unjust praetor in Sicily Irom 73-71 B.C. Cicero , Iormer quaestor oI Sicily,
was recalled to the island to oust Verres. BeIore he had Iinished the second oI his Verrine Orations, Cicero
had Iorced Verres into exile.
the dis-urdning of a particular fancie. Milton denies any peculiarly personal motivation to his argument. His
critics had claimed that The Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce (1642) was motivated by his apparently Iailed
marriage to Mary Powell. Areopagitica also could be construed as an attempt to disburden "a particular
Iancie," since he Iears that works like the ill-received DDD might be censored or banned.
Bishops and Pres-yters. Presbyterians and other reIormers claimed there was no biblical authority Ior any
church oIIicers other than deacons and presbyters, both parish or congregational oIIices. Bishop Joseph
Hall warned reIormers that the Presbyterian system would make each oIIice-holder a tyrant in his own parish,
regardless oI what he was called. Milton gives a deIense oI the Presbyterian position in his Of Prelatical
Episcopacy.
five or six and twenty Sees. A see is a diocese or region oI episcopal authority.
mysticall. That is, oI an obscure origin or authority. See deIinition 2 in the OED2 .
who -ut of late cryd down. That is, one who recently (and successIully) protested the bishops' claim to sole
authority in ordinations and over parishioners in their dioceses, and that only university graduates could be
ordained (in other words, a Presbyterian leader), will now assume similar tyrannical powers over books and
pamplets.
Covnants. In 1638 the Scottish National Covenant opposed the Iorced imposition oI episcopacy on Scotland
by Charles I. When the English signed the Solemn League and Covenant in 1643, they pledged to reIorm the
Church oI England to eliminate episcopacy and to establish a presbyterian church organization in England.
Protestations. In 1641 Parliament tried the Earl oI StraIIord Ior treason. He had led an English army against
Scotland to impose episcopacy there. King Charles tried every means, including the threat oI Iorce against
Parliament, to protect his minister. In response, Parliament devised the Protestation, which was a pledge to
deIend the liberty oI the people.
chop. To exchange one Ior the other.
Palace Metropolitan. ReIerring to Lambeth Palace, the London residence oI the Archbishop oI Canterbury .
conventicle. A religious meeting or assembly oI a clandestine, irregular, or illegal character, especially a
religious meeting outside the proper jurisdiction or oversight oI the established church.
the cruse of truth must run no more oyle. Echoes Kings 17 :9-16.
Jicount St. Al-ans. Sir Francis Bacon. Milton quotes the Iirst halI oI the sentence he quoted above.
a streaming fountain. See Proverbs 18 :4 and Psalm 85 :11, or possibly an allusion to the Song oI Solomon
4 :15.
Assem-ly. Westminister Assembly oI Divines, which was at the time advising Parliament in their on the new
structure oI an established English Church.
arrant. Unmitigated, thorough-paced. See deIinition 3 in the OED2 .
implicit faith. In contrast to explicit Iaith, or Iaith grounded in diligent study and understanding oI Church
doctrine (required oI the clergy in medieval times), implicit Iaith was based upon the acceptance oI Church
authority (expected oI the laity).
Loretto. According to popular medieval piety, angels had transported the house in which Mary was born and
Jesus conceived to Loretto Irom Nazareth in 1291. As such, Loretto was a popular pilgrimage destination.
all mysteries. Occupations, craIts, and trades.
factor. Agent; see deIinition 1 in the OED2 .
dividuall mova-le. A commodity capable oI being divided and moved or transIerred.
malmsey. A Iine, sweet Spanish wine. Also, the wine in which Clarence is drowned in Shakespeare's Richard
1.4 . 161.
green figs. See Matthew 21 :18-21 and Mark 11 :12-14, where Jesus demonstrates the power oI Iaith to his
disciples.
Pu-licans. Custom oIIicials who collect duties, such as tunnage and poundage taxes.
tunaging and the poundaging. English Parliaments traditionally granted the right to collect tunnage and
poundage revenues to each incoming king. Tunnage was a tax on barrels (tuns) oI wine, and poundage was a
tax levied on the value oI imports calculated in pounds sterling. Charles I's Iirst Parliament reIused to grant
him this privilege.
parochiall. ReIerring to a minister and his parish.
Hercules pillars. Hercules is a symbol oI power and moral rectitude. The pillars oI Hercules were erected at
the limits oI his wandering, and as such serve as a symbol Ior the limits oI human ambition.
topic folio. A Iolio-sized commonplace book in which a preacher would gather notes and quotations around
which to build his sermons.
Harmony. A collection oI similar passages Irom diIIerent sources, arranged so as to exhibit their agreement
and account Ior their discrepancies; now chieIly used oI a work showing the correspondences between the
Iour Gospels and the chronological succession oI the events recorded in them. See deIinition 4 in the OED2 .
Catena. A string or series oI extracts Irom the writings oI the Iathers, Iorming a commentary on some portion
oI Scripture. See entry in the OED2 .
sol fa. A musical scale.
interlinearies, -reviaries, synopses, and other loitering gear. Texts with translations on alternating lines,
abridged versions, compendia, and other cribs or time-saving devices Ior the lazy student.
St. Thomas in his vestry Milton alludes to various market locations in London, named Ior their propinquity to
certain churches, as iI they traded in relious doctrines. Near the Church oI St. Thomas Acon was a clothes
market; the precincts oI St. Martin le Grand served as a sort oI grey-market center; and St. Hugh was oIten
identiIied with the shoe trade.
maga:in. A warehouse Ior merchandise or a building Ior military supplies. See the entry Ior "magazine,"
deIinitions 1 and 2 in the OED2 .
impald. Enclosed within a palisade oI stakes, or pales.
Christ urgd it. Compare to John 18 :20: "Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the
synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing."
dis-inurd. Dis-acquainted or unaccustomed with a practice or action oI some sort.
Alcoran. Al-quran, the Koran.
pitch our tent here. A reIerence to the Moses's Iinal view oI the Promised Land, which occurs when the
Isrealites he has led there camp Ior the night near the river Jordan: Deuteronomy 34 :1.
mortall glasse. See 1 Corinthians 13 :12.
her divine Master. That is, truth and grace came with Jesus Christ; see John 1 :17.
gyptian Typhon. Plutarch relates this allegorical myth in the story "OI Isis and Osiris" Irom Moralia.
Com-ust. Burned, scorched. See deIinition 1 in the OED2 .
Zuinglius. Ulrich Zwingli started the Swiss Protestant ReIormation in Zurich.
Calvin. John Calvin Iollowed Zwingli as the leading proponent oI the Protestant ReIormation, in Geneva.
Syntagma. A collection oI statements, propositions, doctrines, treatises. See deIinition 1 in the OED2 .
golden rule. The mathematical Rule oI Proportion: the Iirst quantity is to the second quantity as the third
quantity is to an unknown Iourth quantity which can be calculated.
school of Pythagoras. Milton reIers to the doctrine oI metempsychosis, or the translation oI souls Irom one
body to another. The doctrine was thought by some to have originated among the Druids Irom whom
Pythoagoras adopted it. Gratiano reIers sarcastically to the doctrine in Shakespeare's Merchant of
Jenice 4.1.133
Persian wisdom. Magic arts and practices were commonly thought to have originated among the Persians.
Julius Agricola. Julius Agricola was the proconsul oI Britain Irom 78-85. He governed under three Caesars:
Vespasian, TItus, and Domitian.
Transylvanian. Transylvania , now part oI Romania, was ardently Protestant during its brieI existence as a
sovereign territory.
the Hercynian wildernes. The wooded and mountainous regian oI central and south Germany.
propending. Inclining. See entry Ior "propend" in the OED2 .
Wicklef. John WycliIIe was an English theologian and a Iorerunner oI the Protestant ReIormation; he was
branded a heretic Ior his anti-papal views. Jan Hus was Czech reIormer and Iollower oI WycliIIe. Jerome oI
Prague was a later Czech reIormer and a disciple oI both.
City of refuge. ReIerring to the cities oI reIuge established by the Jews to harbor those who have committed
unintentional manslaughter. See Numbers 35 and Joshua 20 .
plates. Plates oI armor.
the fields are white already. Quoted Irom Joshua 4 :35.
a little for-earance of one another. Echoes Ephesians 4 :1-3.
Pirrhus. Pyrrhus was the king oI Epirus, who deIeated the Romans at Hereclea and remarked that he would
conquer the world iI he had Roman soldiers or iI he were king oI Rome.
house of God. An oblique reIerence to 1 Kings: 5 -6, speciIically 1 Kings 6 :7.
-ut all the Lords people are -ecome Prophets. See Numbers 11 :27-29.
the firm root. See Romans 11 :16.
maniples. Literally a "handIull," also the branches carried by soldiers as a standard, and a tactical unit in the
Roman inIantry. See deIinitions 1 and 2 Ior "maniple" in the OED2 .
-esiegd and -lockt a-out. ReIerring to November 1642 when the royalist army threatened to attack London.
AIter the royalists were driven oII, Londoners built a twelve-mile system oI IortiIications to put an end to any
Iurther advances. Milton's Sonnet VIII alludes to that period oI threatened attack.
-esiegd -y Hani-al. See Livy's History of Rome 26 Ior the story oI Hannibal's seige oI Rome.
invinci-le locks. A reIerence to Samson's initial triumphs over Delilah, who seeks the secret oI his strength;
see Judges 16 :6-20.
muing. As a Ialcon moulting, see entry 4, deIinition 1 Ior "mew" in the OED2 . It has also been suggested that
"muing" is a misprint Ior "nuing" or "renuing."
purging and unscaling her long a-used sight. Alludes to the conversion oI persecuting Saul, who became the
Apostle Paul; see Acts 9 :3-22.
ingrossers. Monopolizers: see deIinition 1 Ior "engrosser" in the OED2 .
a-rogated and mercilesse law. Milton reIers to the Roman law (abolished in 318) which gave Iathers supreme
power over the lives oI their children.
cote and conduct. "Cote and conduct" is a tax on counties to pay Ior the outIitting oI their military recruits. A
noble is a small coin worth about 33 pence. Danegelt was the tax raised to placate the Danes, through
negotatiation or war, when they harassed and occupied England in the middle ages; during Charles I's reign, it
was known as ship money.
the Lord Brook. Robert Greville, the second Lord Brooke, who was killed in battle deIending the
parliamentary cause. He wrote A Discourse Opening the Nature of that Episcopacie, which is Exercised in
England (1641).
The temple of Janus. Janus was the God with two Iaces in opposite directions. The doors to the temple oI
Janus in Rome were kept open during times oI war and closed when peace reigned.
windes of doctrin. A paraphrase oI Ephesians 4 :14-15.
the discipline of Geneva. Presbyterianism.
to seek for wisdom as for hiddn treasures. See Proverbs 2 :4-6.
a -attell raungd. Like an army arranged Ior battle.
souldiership. The Thomason copy (1644) has shouldiership here; I have omitted the "h" as a misprint.
Proteus. Shape-changing sea god.
spake oracles. See Homer's Odyssey 4.385 and Virgil's Georgics 4.387 -452.
as Micaiah did -efore Aha-. See 1 Kings 22 :1-37.
adfurd into her own likenes. Bound to an oath under penalty, as in 2 Chronicles 18 :15, when Ahab is
speaking to Micaiah.
those ordinances. See Colossians 2 :8-17 Ior the Iull context oI this passage.
this Christian li-erty. Paul boasts oI Christian liberty in Galatians 5 :1 and Romans 8 :21.
may doe either. See Romans 14 :3-20.
a linnen decency. The Iormalistic vestments oI the clergy, attacked by Milton also in his Of Reformation.
wood and hay and stu--le. This echoes 1 Corinthians 3 :10-13.
su-dichotomies. A word Milton coined, comparable to "sub-divisions."
sever the wheat from the tares. This passage and the next Iew lines allude to the parables in Matthew 13 :13-
43.
the -ond of peace. This and the preceding lines quote Irom Ephesians 4 :3.
shakes a Kingdome. See Haggai 2 :6-7.
chooses not as man chooses. Milton alludes to 1 Corinthians 1 :26-28.
Chapell at Westminster. Convocation, the governing body oI bishops in England, met in the Chapter house in
Westminster until it was abolished and its powers assigned to the Westminster Assembly oI Divines which
met in Henry VIII's chapel at Westminster.
Harry the 7. Henry VII was buried in the Chapel at Westminster with some oI his Ieudal allies.
Pharisees. Echoes a passage in Matthew 23 :13.
first -roke that triple ice. An image taken Irom Horace's Carmina 1.3.9 .
our Saviour gave to young John. For the Joshua story see Numbers 11 : 27-29; Ior the story oI Jesus and John,
see Luke 9 :49-50.
Elders. The Greek word translated as "elder" in the Authorized Version (1611) oI the Bible, is pres-uteros,
and may also be translated as "prebyter;" hence the term pres-yterian as one who believes that the Bible
oIIers no authority Ior the oIIices oI priest and bishop.
lett. Obstruction. See deIinition Ior "lett" in the OED2 .
Dominican. In other words, the Spanish Inquisition, dominated largely by members oI the Domincan order oI
Iriars .
Star-cham-er decree. A decree Irom July 11, 1637 by the Court oI the Star Chamber which called Ior the
suppression oI undesired publications. The Court oI the Star Chamber was abolished on July 5, 1641.
she is now falln from the Starres. The Court oI the Star Chamber was abolished on July 5, 1641.
copy. Copyright.
divers glosing colours. Coloring or misrepresenting the truth in several ways.
procuring -y petition this Order. The Stationers Company petitioned Parliament in April 1643 to re-establish
the control over the press the Court oI the Star Chamber had held.
Sophisms and Elenchs. Using Ialse, sophistical arguments and Ialse reIutations Ior purposes oI deceit.
advertisement. A warning or notiIication oI Iacts. See deIinition 4 in the OED2 .